Traveling Morocco is an intense experience. It’s chaotic. It’s colorful. It’s fragrant. It’s eye-opening. It’s an in your face sensory overload that travelers either love or hate.
From the high Atlas mountains to the desert to the coasts, Morocco is an amazing country that hits all a traveler’s senses. You may love it or hate it but you’ll walk away from a better traveler because you went.
But, To take or not to take a guide, that is indeed a question most travelers ask themselves. Some never travel without booking one, as they do not have time or interest in reading up on the history and culture of the place they are visiting. Others prefer to walk around the city centers and across the countryside all by themselves, cutting down on the expenses of their trip. Then there are those travelers that would opt for a guide in certain countries but would not want to use their services in another one, for whatever reason.
Why you should take a guide in Morocco?
If this is your first time in North Africa, then we recommend getting a guide. The official guides are very well-qualified historians, for the most part, having studied history, geography, and art, pride themselves in knowing answers to all the questions curious visitors may ask them and will no doubt speak your language.
They’ll help you focus on the details that make this medieval walled city so unique.
The historical sights are a lot more interesting when you get the full story behind them.
A guide will also help acclimatize you if you feel a little overwhelmed in the bustle.
Guides are also handy to help you ask people for permission to take a photo. In some cases, it’s also nice to have a guide help you bargain or let you know what is a “good” deal (but they’ll usually side with the seller, rightly so).
A half-day personal tour is just right to orientate you and make you feel comfortable enough to get lost and do some real exploring later on but as a travel agency, a guide will often come as part of the package.
However, if you’re on your own hen you choose your guide, make sure they are a licensed official guide, and qualified to show you the sights.
Many official guides are historians and very well educated. They can also speak several languages. This all helps to make the tour more interesting for you. The cost of a half-day private tour will, generally speaking, be around 300 -350 DH, and around 500 – 600 DH for a full-day tour. Prices can vary of course, but if you haggle down too much.
