safety of college students traveling spain/morocco

Spain as a whole is a very safe country, you will see many families up late at night (by North American standards) dining, playing, walking around. I cannot speak for the other countries on your list.

I don't think there will be a safety issue in Morocco if they follow normal precautions (related to alcohol, etc.).

I traveled to Morocco with my mother in the early 1990s, we used public transportation solely, and we never felt threatened. We were often annoyed by young men wanting us to hire them as guides, but I understand that that problem has been greatly reduced.

The best way to see Morocco is to fly to a place like Fes or Marrakech--ideally in and out of two different airports so different parts of the country can be visited. Tangier is not a great destination, and Casablanca is overwhelmingly modern.

Spain, Portugal, France- no problem but always be aware of your surroundings as in any city.
How independent and street smart is your daughter? Both of our kids, boy and girl, traveled all over Spain and other European countries while in college. They often had to take charge as the friends they traveled with were not as experienced in cities or in traveling.
Morocco- I had no problems there but again. I don’t know these young women and their level of travel smarts.
I would caution against taking a night train if they are traveling alone.

Most college students that study abroad for a semester have the metro system where they live memorized within two days, the rail system to other parts of Europe with a week of arriving and are soon thereafter are checking the budget airlines out for cheap fares. So say my friends whose children studied abroad. They will be okay.

We are planning a trip to Spain with our family. We have several friends who have been and rave about it. One male friend discouraged us from going to Morocco, specifically Marrakech. He is well travelled, and said he felt uncomfortable there. Many areas were “rough” and transportation was “sketchy.” As young women traveling independently, I think there are other fascinating places that I would feel more comfortable in.

I’m not one to be in easily dissuaded from travel, but I also don’t like to feel unsafe. I would love to see Morocco on a guided tour, but not on my own (and I consider myself an experienced traveler).

The USA State Department has an official site that you can consult for travel advisories

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories.html/

I wouldn't worry about safety in Marrakech (use normal big city precautions, of course) so much as being constantly approached by men. We saw this a lot on a tour last year with one of the single women in our group. Nobody bothered her, per se. She was just constantly being addressed, asked questions, etc., even when walking with the rest of us.

If your daughter knows some French, that will help in Morocco.

Here's one young (about 40 y.o.) woman's experience in Tangier, not Marrakech.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/14/travel/tangier-morocco-women-female.html

Female tourists, locals assured us, are fine without headscarves and with their knees showing (I was the only one in our group who did the latter), but you will get stares. We decided against tea at the famed Café Tingis in the medina because there was not a woman among the 50 or so crowded inside and out. Every time we took a walk, we’d get catcalled. Mostly that meant a lot of “holas,” but we were also followed for blocks, and Melanie said that multiple men hissed in her face.

& https://thepointsguy.com/news/jada-yuan-52-places-traveler-lessons/

In the Moroccan port city of Tangier, that meant clothing that would help with the heat but was also culturally appropriate.
“Tangier is a pretty cosmopolitan place, but I didn’t have a lot of clothes. I had one dress that was appropriate for the heat and culture, just above the knee, but I maybe would have had an easier time not getting harassed if I covered up my knees. It was the only place I felt harassed,” said Yuan.
“I packed three pairs of shoes: hiking boots, which were warm and waterproof and had traction; Reef flip flops; and Altra sneakers which were like clouds.”

I would recommend that they try to make a couple of guy friends on the study abroad trip and bring them with them to Marrakesh.

A female coworker of mine and her female cousin just returned from Morocco yesterday. She said the people were friendly, public transportation fine, and unlike in Egypt, the people left them alone in the markets. They never felt unsafe. She said that in really small towns she thought it would be fine to walk around alone, but in the larger towns of Fes and Marrakesh (that she visited) she felt that walking with another person would be better.

If your daughter has not already gone, I would recommend she only go if they bring a male friend. My daughter is also on a summer study abroad program right now and just came back from Marrakech 2 days early due to an incident while there. As long as they were with their male friend they were fine, as soon as they were not, not so much. PM me if you would like a little more detail.
Joann

Tell them to be hyper vigilant in the souks as far as street crime, theft.

As women traveling on their own, they may find Marrakech more than they bargained for. I was there about a year and a half ago. Safety is not an issue at all, but foreign women on their own are going to receive a lot of attention. In my experience, it isn't hostile attention at all, but it's very "present," unrelenting, and is just exhausting. Add to this the very "in-your-face" approach from merchants in the medina, and it makes for a tiring, if fascinating, trip. When I was there, I was with a small group tour, but one that was designed around a fair amount of free time, so I walked around on my own several times. Going about in a small, coed group, made life a lot simpler.

Having said that, if they really want to go, there are options. There are tour companies that offer organized tours for a couple days to a couple weeks. I went on a 13 day trip across Morocco through Intrepid (an Australian company that aims at a slightly younger clientele than RS, but has a similar responsible tourism and "temporary local" ethos). I am sure they could find options for a semi-structured experience in Marrakech that would let them really see the city while also mitigating some of the more culture shock elements. Again, I don't want to give the wrong impression. Morocco is a safe country with wonderful, truly welcoming people. I loved my visit there and hope to go back one day. But it IS different, especially for women travelers, and if your daughter's friend in particular hasn't traveled much, Marrakech "without a net" might be overwhelming to the point of really spoiling the fun.

Caroline

Follow your "mom instincts." I know what my instincts would tell me if I had a college-aged daughter.
FYI, I have traveled all seven continents, Europe many times, and, yes, also Morocco for three days in Marrakech. (making own arrangements via a New York Times recommended riad).

Marrakech is safe but brutally hot in summer. Aside from the heat, I wouldn't recommend it for two young women on their own unless they are pretty travel-savvy.

If they want something more "exotic", Istanbul is a much better option.

... I am with Suki on this one, she hit the nail: "How independent and street smart is your daughter?" As a general rule, our streets are safer than those in many big cities in the US, but "too much naivety" is always a bad counsellor, regardless of where in the world you go. If she's a tad street smart, she'll be fine and will have a wonderful time, no doubt.

Update, oopsy, thanks Bets that's true, I didn't realize this was a post from March!

I spent two weeks in Morocco ( and several in Turkey) many years ago and have had friends there. There is a different view of western women and certain assumptions about their character by some people. Popular media doesn’t help things. You are right to use your mom-radar and steer them elsewhere, or have them go on an organized tour for young travelers.

Since they may have already traveled by now, perhaps you can report back the outcome now.

Thanks to everyone for the input, actually the girls are getting ready to go this week. We have shared these posts with them, they agree that females traveling alone may not be the best way to go. If they can bring a couple of male companions from their program....maybe. I’m trying to steer them to southern Spain instead, similar cultural influences (kinda), safer (hopefully). Thanks again!

Check out Granada. I’m researching it for an upcoming trip. The Alhambra looks fabulous, and there are lots of shopping areas that may have a more exotic feel. The hammam baths look amazing also.