Morocco Itinerary, Side Trip to Erg Chebbi

I haven't done a tour. (Back in the day, I drove with a local guide.) I think you do have time and could easily cut a night or two in Rabat. I only spent one full day there. Fes and Meknes are only an hour's drive apart if you decide to trim time from Meknes and Rabat to Casablanca is a similar timing by car or train.

I haven't done the desert tour you propose, but I agree with Laura that you have time. I traveled Morocco with my mother on a trip that was mostly organized on the fly, back in the early 1990s. My mother was approximately 70 at the time and had a breathing problem (undiagnosed emphysema, as it turned out). We moved faster than you are planning to do, and she did not complain about the pace. I don't know what the train/bus options are like now, but we used shared taxis fairly often to move from town to town. They were quite the experience.

It might be helpful to know that (at least back when we made the trip), public buses stopped at what seemed to be random times and places. We later figured out that it was to allow time for prayers. There was not always a place to buy refreshments at those stops, so best to have bottled water with you when you hop on a bus.

Thanks for your responses. Though we have traveled in many countries (Cambodia, Thailand, Turkey, Greece, Italy, France, and about 15 more), for some reason this trip to Morocco seems more adventurous. But Mr. and I have discussed it and we are going on this desert tour. We have decided to stay in a nomad camp but will have to go by 4x4. No 1 hr camel rides for us :)! Now we just have to decide whether to go with a tour company or with a driver organized by our Riad.

I am the planner for our trips. As for the transportation between towns, I have a spreadsheet with the mode of transportation and the times and costs. I tried to use trains but there are some legs with only bus transportation. When we arrive in a town we'll probably buy our tickets to leave. Of course, we'll need taxis to get from the stations to our riads. Hopefully it will all work out. Thanks for the water suggestion. At our age, we're more interested in the bathroom situation.

Feeling more comfortable about our decision. We're looking forward to a great experience! Thanks, again, Laura and acraven.

Looking forward to your report after you return!

I'm 66 and agree with you about bathrooms. I have no memory of how that was handled at all, and as I said, my mother was about 70 at the time. In less touristy spots you will certainly still encounter squat toilets, but I think we managed somehow not to use them. Heck, I saw a few squat toilets in France this year, including one in L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue. They are definitely easier to use if you are wearing a dress or skirt instead of slacks.

Yes, we did have squat toilets in Turkey and at least once in both Italy and France, but they're better than the outdoor chicken yard complete with chickens my mother-in-law and I had to use in Spain in 1984. Mr. and our sons got the side of a barn. But at least we had a good laugh and a funny memory!

Carol, my husband and I are in the midst of planning a trip to Barcelona and Morocco. Would you mind sharing what you found out about public transportation in Morroco? We are trying to prioritize where to go and how to get there. We are thinking of flying into Marrakesh and using it as a base but also are thinking we could go to Fes and fly out from further north.

Jennifer

We haven't found out much about public transportation. I have these websites for bus and train schedules and have tried to look up the dates and times we might need. I asked a question on TripAdvisor regarding whether it's best to buy train and bus tickets ahead of time. Lots of responses with train info. Can't buy on-line. You can buy 1st class tickets at the station ahead of time and get an assigned seat. You can buy 2nd class tickets right before departure but 2nd class does not guarantee a seat and if crowded you may have to stand in the aisle. Some responses said it would not get crowded but others said it could be very crowded. Didn't get any answers about bus tickets so we plan to buy our departure tickets for both train and bus as soon as we arrive in a town. We also check out Rome2Rio for transportation options. It seems that the information on the site does not always match the info on the links it provides to the bus/train schedules. I've been re-checking my information on the train schedules and some have changed so at this point I'm confused. Sorry this is not much help. We don't expect any real problems but it is a bit stressful when going to a country for the first time. Getting as much info as possible will hopefully reduce the stress when we are there. Emphasis on hopefully.

Below is the link to my question and responses on TA.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g293730-i9195-k11114917-Buying_Train_and_Bus_Tickets-Morocco.html#88381938
Bus: http://www.ctm.ma/
Train:http://www.oncf.ma/Pages/Accueil.aspx
Rome2Rio: https://www.rome2rio.com/s/Casablanca-Airport-CMN/El-Jadida