Depending on the destination  of your stay in Morocco, there are many ways to travel around the country. Whether you take a taxi, a bus, train, or a bicycle, learn how to get around easily, to take a peek at all the wonders of Morocco. At the exit of any airport, you can either take shuttle buses, taxis or call a car rental agency.

Routes

There are two main lines: from Tangier in the north down to Marrakesh, and from Oujda in the northeast, also to Marrakesh, joining with the Tangier line at Sidi Kacem. Branch lines serve Nador, El Jadida, Safi, Oued Zem and Casablanca airport. A high-speed line (LGV) from Tangier to Casablanca is under construction, which should reduce the journey time between the two cities to just over two hours, with eventual extension to Marrakesh.

Taxis

Taxis are the most popular form of transport in all cities and towns in Morocco. If you’re traveling within the city limits, petits taxis – yellow in Marrakesh, red in Casablanca, blue in Rabat – are cheap and plentiful. You can flag them down on the street or find them near bus or train stations.

They’re metered, so you shouldn’t need to haggle or fix a price before you set off, but if the driver tries to avoid using the meter – telling you it’s broken is a typical excuse – ask him to let you out and try another taxi. A short ride is Dh7 during the day and Dh10 at night – remember to carry change.

For longer journeys, shared grands taxis are often the best way to get around. The vintage diesel-guzzling Mercedes are being replaced by large vans, but they still run fixed routes, leaving from the terminal when they’re full (usually six people).

To avoid a squeeze or unpredictable delay, offer to pay for more than one place or even take the whole vehicle – an inter-city trip is around Dh50. You can also negotiate to rent out a grand taxi and driver for a country-wide itinerary.

Uber no longer operates in Morocco, but Careem is available in Casablanca, Rabat and Tangier.

Ride the rails on Morocco’s trains and trams.

The two main lines of the national rail service, ONCF, link most of Morocco’s major cities: from Tangier to Marrakesh, passing through Casablanca and Rabat, and Nador or Oujda in the northeast to Fez and Meknes. It’s budget-friendly and comfortable, even if it doesn’t always stick to the timetable.

Morocco also has Africa’s first high-speed train, the sleek Al Boraq, and you’ll whiz along at top speeds of 320km/h (200mph). Launched in 2018, it halved the journey time from Tangier to Casablanca to just over two hours, with stops at Kenitra and Rabat.

Both Casablanca and Rabat have modern and efficient tram services. Buy tickets from kiosks and machines at the station and validate them on the tram.

Renting a car can be a great way to explore Morocco’s remote regions.

Renting a car and driving in Morocco is safe. Most roads are well-maintained and if you follow the traffic rules and the tips mentioned in this article, you’ll be good to go. Like in any other country, it’s important to do your research beforehand and to pay attention when you’re there. Moroccan car scams are not unheard of, though. Always have a proper look at the rental companies you want to rent from to make sure you don’t become a victim of scammers.

You can explore Morocco by motorcycle.

Away from the congested city centers, the lure of epic adventures on the open road – winding through remote villages flanked by the snow-tipped peaks of the Atlas or Saharan sand – means Morocco appears on many a motorcyclist’s bucket list.

If you’re coming from Europe, you can take your motorcycle on a ferry from Spain. The quickest route is across the Straits of Gibraltar from Tarifa to Tangier. Make sure you carry a good toolkit and all the necessary spares. You can also rent a motorcycle when you arrive and hit the road solo or join a group tour.

What is the cheapest way to get around Morocco? 

Buses are the cheapest and most popular way to get around Morocco, and they have by far the greatest reach. A complex network of private bus companies crisscrosses the country, with many competing lines covering the most popular routes.

Is it easy to travel around Morocco by train?

Getting around Morocco by train is a great option for all types of travelers. They’re fast, cheap, and a great way to see some of the incredible landscape between cities. While there isn’t an extensive network of trains, you’ll find that the majority of tourist destinations in Morocco are well connected.

Parking

Parking in almost any town, you will find a gardien de voitures, usually licensed by local authorities to look after cars, and claiming a couple of dirhams by way of parking fees. Alternatively, most of the larger hotels in the Ville Nouvelle quarters of cities have parking spaces (and occasionally garaging). It’s always worth paying for a gardien or parking in a garage, as new or well-looked-after cars attract a certain level of vandalism. Red-and-white-striped kerbs mean no parking is allowed.

CTM and private lines

Buses run by CTM (the national company) are faster and more reliable than private services, with numbered seats and fixed departure schedules, which can be checked online. CTM services usually have reading lights, though you may have to ask the driver to turn those on. Some of the larger private company buses, such as SATAS (which operates widely in the south) and Trans Ghazala (which runs in the north) are of a similar standard, but many other private companies are tiny outfits, with a single bus which leaves only when the driver considers it sufficiently full. On the other hand, such private buses are much more likely to stop for you if you flag them down on the open road, whereas CTM services will only pick up and set down at official stops.

Bus terminals

Most towns have a main bus station (gare routière), often on the edge of town. CTM buses usually leave from the company’s office, which may be quite a way from the main bus station, though in several places CTM and the private companies share a single terminal, and in some cases, the CTM bus will call at the main bus station when departing a city, though not when arriving.

Tickets

Bus stations usually have a number of ticket windows, one for each of the companies operating out of it. There is occasionally a departures board, but it may be out of date and in Arabic only, so you should always check departure times at the appropriate window. Bus conductors or ticket sellers may be calling out destinations in the bus station in any case, or may greet you as you come in by asking where you want to go. On the more popular trips (and especially with CTM services, which often run just once a day in the south), it’s worth trying to buy tickets in advance, though this may not always be possible on smaller private-line services.

Buses can arrive and leave already full in small towns along major routes. It’s sometimes possible to get around this by taking a local bus or a grand taxi for the next section of the trip (until the bus you want empties a little), or by waiting for a bus that actually starts from the town you’re in. Overall, the best policy is to arrive at a bus station early in the day (ideally 5.30–6am).