Marrakech is an incredible city, yet it assumes that you know a few things about its customs and traditions before your plane touches down at the Marrakech Menara Airport. So don’t skip your homework. Read on now to truly enjoy Marrakech upon your arrival.
Last updated: December 28, 2024
What You Need to Know Before Traveling to Marrakech
Marrakech… A dream destination for many travelers. An African city with strong cultural traditions, yet welcoming of foreigners that are eager to explore what was previously considered not a safe destination to travel to.
Marrakech is a city that entices with its splendid riads, busy souks, traditional food, bright colors, and friendly people that make your experiences in the city more enjoyable and truly unforgettable. Yet Marrakech is also one of those places that you need to learn, read, and ask about before stepping your foot on the ground in this African city.
Taking highly polished and edited Instagram pictures as a standard of what to expect in Marrakech is a sure recipe for disappointment and failure. You need to dig a little bit deeper, to learn about locals’ conduct and manners, traditions and practices beforehand.
During our recent visit to Marrakech, we spent a lot of time exploring the city and talking to locals. The real Marrakech goes far beyond pretty decor and the abundance of cheap exotic items in the souks. It’s a place with rich culture, real people with their real struggles and happy moments. A place full of unwritten rules and uncommon practices.
We made enough mistakes while in Morocco. Luckily, our local guide quickly steered us in the right direction and helped us make the most of our trip. With these firsthand experiences, let me share things you should know before traveling to Marrakech.
8 THINGS YOU SHOULD BEFORE TRAVELING TO MARRAKECH
1. Taxis Have “Standard Rate”
Learn about so-called taxi “standard rates” in advance to avoid being ripped off the moment you step out of Marrakech airport. Although Marrakech is a walkable city, there are times when you need to catch a ride. Taxis come handy here. Whether you need to get around the city, venture to the desert or Atlas Mountains, you find multiple taxi options.
In fact, as soon as you show interest in hiking a cab, several drivers will appear by your side at once, each one of them promising to take you to your destination in the most convenient and fastest manner. At least five Marrakech natives attempted to escort us with all our belongings to their cars, parked just a few feet away, when they saw us pondering on how to get to our hotel.
On our question about the price, a tall man leaning on the door of a small yellow cab informed us in perfect English, ” 200 Dirhams is a standard rate.”
Standard rate? First, the price was ridiculously high for such a short distance. Second, during our ride to the hotel this so-called rate issue nagged at the back of my mind. How was it possible to determine the standard price without a taximeter?
Later that day we asked two different people how much they’d charge to take us back to the airport just 1.5 miles away. After a brief silence, a little bit apologetically, our city guide was willing to undertake this task for 150 Dirhams. A random taxi driver who waited for potential customers at the main entrance of our hotel asked for 100 Dirhams.
So, the “standard taxi rate” in Marrakech seemed to change its standards depending on who you asked and your bargaining skills.
2. Haggle a Lot when in Marrakech
The bargaining does not stop at a taxicab door. In fact, a short conversation with a taxi driver can serve as an introduction to the complex bargaining world of Marrakech. The climax of which occurs in the famous souks of Medina.
Berber rugs, extravagant lamps, Aladdin-style slippers, colorful tagine pots and glassware, traditional Moroccan jewelry, and the abundance of spices… Marrakech markets allure amateur and expert shoppers looking for exotic African souvenirs to take home.
The wandering eyes of tourists overwhelmed by the richness and colorfulness of Moroccan goods don’t escape adept merchants who try to sell everything from teas and harem pants, jewelry and oils. The initial price is normally higher than what you pay at the end, but only if you master Marrakech’s famous game of haggling.
Good to Know: Also keep in mind that some goods, including magical beauty potions that seem to solve any problems you can think of, come at a much higher price for foreigners than locals.
“Standard Rates” at the Souks
The “standard rate” is not very frequent here. However, you can still encounter some stalls with big numbers written on small pieces of paper and attached to the bottles and shelves. Seeing your hesitation, smart vendors first offer you traditional mint tea. Then they hurry to inform you that every product in the stall has its own fixed price aka “standard rate”.
Yet just when you are about to leave, remarking that the price is too high, this “fixed” number gets dropped and “only as an exception for you”.
TIP: If you are still dissatisfied with a new deal, do not be afraid to walk away. After another round of vigorous haggling, merchants at the next stalls will be willing to exchange their goods for significantly less money.
3. Tips Are Expected
Tips in Marrakech are expected. Common practice of giving tips as a sign of gratitude and satisfaction with services rendered has an additional value in this African city. Tipping somebody in Marrakech is viewed as an act of supporting poor and less fortunate residents of the city. According to our city guide, for some people tips are the main source of their monthly earnings.
Born and raised in Marrakech, Yomnes, our guide, admitted that one thing he dislikes most about his own city is the lack of jobs and opportunities to earn a living. Making on average 75 Dirhams a day, he goes on to tell us that the average salary for middle class Marrakechi (as he calls himself) does not reach more than 3,000 Dirham a month. Most people don’t come even close to this number. So they work hard, haggle relentlessly, and expect tips often.
“Tipping” at Marrakech Menara Airport
When you wait for your flight at Marrakech Menara Airport, you can’t help but notice local female employees standing in front of restrooms. Dressed in white from head to toes, these Moroccan women acknowledged every person with a friendly “Bonjour”. Assuming it was a custom, we stopped paying attention to them until one woman threw a few coins in the air and caught them a second later as a nicely-dressed foreigner was leaving the restroom.
We all can be from different cultural backgrounds, but we are quite familiar with this universal sigh of asking and expecting tips. Tips for making the restrooms at Marrakech Menara Airport ready for use…
4. Local Traffic Laws, Official and Unofficial
Similar to many other countries, Moroccans drive on the right side of the road. Streets of the New City of Marrakech normally feature some standardized traffic lights (although notably less than anywhere else we have been). But do these traffic lights serve their purpose? Yes and no.
The answer is a definite “yes” when it pertains to cars and motorcycles. Yet when it comes to giving pedestrians their right to cross the street on a green light, all the rules are forgotten. Dominating and ruling the road like kings, drivers honk as soon as they think they may need to slow down to let a pedestrian cross the street. Often they simply continue to drive as if there are no green (for pedestrians) and red (for cars) lights.
The Old City of Marrakech does not have any traffic lights or any traffic laws whatsoever. In some parts of the Medina, the ancient streets are wide enough to let a modern car fight its way through a heavy stream of people. Motorcycles and carriages drawn by donkeys remain dominant types of transport in this part of Marrakech.
5. Speak Different Languages in Marrakech
The official language of Marrakech is Arabic. Yet if you speak French, you may feel like a fish in water. Almost everybody in the Red City speaks and understands this language to various degrees. It’s not surprising considering that from 1912 until 1956 Morocco was predominantly under French protectorate. Spain ruled over only a small part of the country.
Although the period of French colonization is long gone, the language remains in use and is considered Marrakech’s main unofficial language. With the increasing popularity of the city among tourists from all over the world, English has also expanded its territory. Many local merchants, taxi drives, and hotel employees in Marrakech are encouraged to learn English as well.
READ MORE: How Do You Actually Learn a New Language?
6. Drink a Lot of Mint Tea
Marrakech (and the whole country for that sake) and its traditional mint tea are two sides of one coin. There is no way to visit the city without succumbing to the pleasant aroma of the tea.
Locals drink this sweet refreshing beverage everywhere and at any time. Households and hotels welcome their newly-arrived guests with a glass of mint tea. Skillful merchants of Marrakech negotiate their best deals over a kettle of this traditional drink. Even a hammam session can’t be complete without this delicious herbal tea.
Mint tea is not just a drink. It’s a centuries-old custom, tradition passed on from generation to generation, a sign of hospitality and courtesy. It’s in the blood of every Moroccan!
7. Eat Semolina for Breakfast
In Marrakech, semolina porridge, not a typical breakfast consisting of oatmeal and coffee, is offered to guests and family members almost every morning. Cooked with cinnamon and served with honey, semolina can satisfy any gourmand and easily become one of your favorite breakfast choices.
Yet despite the amazing taste and a full range of health benefits, semolina may be out of the question for celiac travelers. Made from wheat, this glutenous grain is linked to causing stomach and other abdominal pain that, by all means, you want to avoid especially when traveling.
8. Marrakech Is Fond of Bollywood Cinema
Enchanted by bright dresses and magnificent Indian dances, Marrakech is very fond of Bollywood, probably even more than Hollywood. Locals watch both classics and new arrivals of Bollywood cinema and like any raving fans follows the lives of its biggest stars.
Our driver-guide didn’t hide his enthusiasm when naming such icons as Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Kajol, Kareena Kapoor, and Priyanka Chopra as his favorite Bollywood actors. In matters of taste, there can be no disputes. Moreover, you can surely mention the newest Bollywood movies when haggling in the souks. Who knows, you may even get the best deal.
