We visited Tangier today with 9 women in our group. Upon the recommendation of Rick Steves, we contacted Begdouri Aziz to be our guide. We were very disappointed. During the minivan tour, he gave us minimal information on any sights we were seeing. We knew no more about the history of Morocco than we did before we visited. He was on his phone constantly, either texting or talking. Then he dropped us off for lunch without telling us the price we would pay. He disappeared for two hours and finally reappeared to then eat his own lunch. We then wandered through the old town without much explanation as to where we were. Finally, it was evident that he had shown us everything he planned, so we asked him to take us back to the ferry. He was very personable and we felt safe being with him, but overall we felt we paid more than other tours we could have taken.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16895 posts
Thanks for sharing that report, which I will forward within the company. When Aziz worked with our tour group a couple of years ago, I experienced and reported some of the same issues. It found it helpful to prompt him with as many questions as possible, to show your interest and direct your experience. I understand that this may not be how you expect a guide to work, but it helped at the time. Our researchers have said that phone use is also an issue with other guides, but Aziz does seem to have a lot of irons in the fire. Cost-wise, all the local guides listed charge the same, about 35 euros per person for a full day. I'm sorry you didn't get a better experience on your first visit to Morocco. (Hope you did get some good photos.)
Posted by
Ann Arbor, Mi
3696 posts
That is really unfortunate. We had a photo tour there a few years ago and ended up hiring a wonderful guide named Mohammad. I believe he had been a professor and wanted us to fall in love with his country... which we did. He was complete with the white outfit and bright yellow shoes with turned up toes (I am sure there is a proper name for them that I don't know) He knew so much and of course added all the little 'gossip' that made the history so interesting. Hope you still had a wonderful time.
(How can people be on the phone when they are working???? It's just stunning)
Posted by
Grand Junction, Co
44 posts
Anybody else have suggestions for tour guides? We were going to wing it off the ferry and pick a guy by gut feeling. Is this a bad idea? We do not like the group tours that bring you to the same commercial restaurant and wear name tags.
Posted by
Grand Junction, Co
44 posts
sorry for the little bump, still looking for guides
Posted by
Morocco and South Africa
29 posts
Greetings fellow travelers,
I have just joined the Rick Steves travel forum and hope to offer some sound and helpful advice regarding travel in Morocco.
With regards to "Tangier guides", Tangier’s small medina is a delight to walk around and in the past decade has begun to shed its sleazy image, though there's always the odd tout or boy sniffing around for some kind of business from you. The few sights (Ibn Battouta's tomb is a must-see for those who revere the great explorers of the past) and noteworthy shops are easy to find, but if this is your first visit to Morocco and you’re feeling a little overwhelmed at the thought of having to negotiate the medina’s alleys and lanes, I recommend contacting Saïd Nacir (www.d-destination.com), a Tangier specialist.
Darren Humphrys
Posted by
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
8293 posts
Glad to see Darren on Rick Steve's forum. He was very helpful to me a couple of years ago (on another forum) when I needed advice before a trip to Morocco.
Posted by
Morocco and South Africa
29 posts
Hello and thank you, Norma.
Darren Humphrys