Casablanca Tour Guides

[GoVolsTB]

We will be on a Celebrity TA that stops in Casablanca next year and we are looking for a tour guide for a possible excursion to Marrakesh or Rabat. The only name I have seen is Abdel with Tangier Tours. I did email him and he responded quickly but his prices seem VERY HIGH...135 Euros/person to Rabat or 165 Euros /person to Marrakesh. Anyone have any others to recommend????? Any help will be greatly appreciated.

[General Max]

He is worth the price. Use him.

[Foxhill]

General Max:

 

I have read many of your posts speaking highly of Abdel with Tangier Tours. Do you know if he also provides tours that originate in Tangier? We were suppose to stop in Casablanca but they have now changed to Tangier and we have 12 hours there. Trying to find a reliable guide in Tangier and also what is there to see in the general area in addition to Tangier itself.

[Trece]

I just posted on the "Guide/Driver in Casablanca" thread about using Abdel in Tangiers (didn't see this post until after that one). You'll love him!

[General Max]

The name of Abdel's company is "Tangier Tours". I believe he is available in Tangiers.

[General Max]

Here is abdelhamid's website for tours of Casablanca

 

 

http://www.freewebs.com/fromferrybacktoferrytours/index.htm

[bcscot]

Please read the account of my experiences of booking with Abdelamid of Tangier Tours, on the other Casablanca threads. My experience was less positive, but I hope anyone else who books with him, has a good tour.

[whyme]

We will be on a Celebrity TA that stops in Casablanca next year and we are looking for a tour guide for a possible excursion to Marrakesh or Rabat. The only name I have seen is Abdel with Tangier Tours. I did email him and he responded quickly but his prices seem VERY HIGH...135 Euros/person to Rabat or 165 Euros /person to Marrakesh. Anyone have any others to recommend????? Any help will be greatly appreciated.

 

 

Who did you end up using for your Tour in Cassablanca???whyme71842@aol.com

[Parrot Mom]

don't count on much for casablanca.. sadly this years casablanca t/a stops have been cancelled due to "problems" although agadair is still scheduled. Many of us were also turned off by the high prices to Marakesh and fez and had booked (gasp) the ships tour...which obviously has been cancelled according to celebrity..

[daryleann]

NCL's Gem is still scheduled to stop, according to NCL office. We will be there Oct. 31.:D

[shoshona2]

To Parrot Mom,

 

I'm sure you're aware that Princess has cancelled ALL of their stops in Casablanca until the end of the year. We will be on the Crystal Serenity two weeks from now and hopefully won't stop in Casablanca. My friends and I are receiving daily updates re Morocco via email. Just two months ago, a man tried to blow up a bus with tourists in Casablanca. He failed due to the quick thinking of the bus driver who closed the door to him. 30 tourists were very lucky -- the only person injured by the homemade bomb was the assailant . Earlier in the Spring, there were various bombings where people were killed. The intelligence is that some people are going to try to kidnap westerners or damage a cruise ship. I guess Celebrity and Princess' insurance companies don't want to take a chance on their ships.

 

Sheila

[DOC & BABE]

:eek:

To Parrot Mom,

 

I'm sure you're aware that Princess has cancelled ALL of their stops in Casablanca until the end of the year. We will be on the Crystal Serenity two weeks from now and hopefully won't stop in Casablanca. My friends and I are receiving daily updates re Morocco via email. Just two months ago, a man tried to blow up a bus with tourists in Casablanca. He failed due to the quick thinking of the bus driver who closed the door to him. 30 tourists were very lucky -- the only person injured by the homemade bomb was the assailant . Earlier in the Spring, there were various bombings where people were killed. The intelligence is that some people are going to try to kidnap westerners or damage a cruise ship. I guess Celebrity and Princess' insurance companies don't want to take a chance on their ships.

 

Sheila

 

I sure hope Hal is watching this for our next april cruise!

[Parrot Mom]

THANK YOU for actual information...we were not aware of this and Celebrity just cancelled Casablanca for "security reasons" after we had all paid the rewt of our cruise on Ocrober 1st. Now, if Tangier and Casablanca (which supposedly has had the crews harrassed) has been cancelled why are they stil going to Agadair. Yet., Celebrity until last week swore up and down we were still going to Casa...

[lanzie99]

Is this really true? The cruise ships are canceling their stops due to violence? We are on the NCL Gem in two weeks and there are two stops in Morocco. Is it best to just stay on the ship???

[Parrot Mom]

If you have your heart set on Morocco... forget about it.. this is what somebody sent to me..

 

'm sure you're aware that Princess has cancelled ALL of their stops in Casablanca until the end of the year. We will be on the Crystal Serenity two weeks from now and hopefully won't stop in Casablanca. My friends and I are receiving daily updates re Morocco via email. Just two months ago, a man tried to blow up a bus with tourists in Casablanca. He failed due to the quick thinking of the bus driver who closed the door to him. 30 tourists were very lucky -- the only person injured by the homemade bomb was the assailant . Earlier in the Spring, there were various bombings where people were killed. The intelligence is that some people are going to try to kidnap westerners or damage a cruise ship. I guess Celebrity and Princess' insurance companies don't want to take a chance on their ships."

 

Be glad that y our warned now.. and change your itinerary or the ship.. it is too late for us

[camlork]

Hi

Also on NCL Gem with a party of 10 people scheduled to be in Casblanca on 12 November. As yet we have heard nothing about cancellations.

[AWED23]

:eek:

 

I sure hope Hal is watching this for our next april cruise!

...We are scheduled for Casablanca on March 24 aboard the Prinsendam.....Hope the problems are gone by then......What ship are you on?...:cool:

[Parrot Mom]

First, of all, Celebrity cancelled the Galaxy whch we are on and the Century sailing in one because of "safety problems"..which somehow I don't believe.. As for guides they were very $$$ and if we booked and paid a deposit we would have been out of luck..We had wanted to go to Marakesh and broke down and bough tthe ships tour for $115.00 each..Our $$ has been refunded.. Instead of Casablanca we ae going to Cartegena, Spain... a dud of a port as far as I am concerned.. We still are supposed to go to Agadair, but do not have a full day there and I think we bought a tour to Touradant.. Has the GEM been cancelled

[lorstamps]

From what I understand, the Gem did cancel Casablanca this week. They told someone on the next cruise that they would be in Casablanca on the 12th, BUT I wouldn't bet on it. We're on the Gem on the 21st, so I'm not counting on Casa. They did go to Agadir (guess not as much chance of violence there). The bummer for us is that we were hoping to visit with our niece's best friend who is currently living in Casablanca. I'll just be glad to be on a beautiful new ship and not sitting behind my computer screen at work!

 

Lori

[hinkley]

Someone posted on NCL message board , & said he had spoken to his mom on board The Gem & it was in Casablanca on the 12th.

[angelina46]

just read these posts on casablanca.didnt know there are problems there! am on the costa serena in jan to the canaries. we are stopping in casablanca. should i get in touch with costa about this or just not get off the ship?

angelina46

[Parrot Mom]

The word from a cruiser who spoke to a female officer was that they were hassled, spat at and pinched..and were very feaful.. So, most of the cruise lines were bgpassing Casa... although I'mm heart broken we had planend to take a tour of Marakesh thorugh the ship...They are to Agadair..Celebrity Galaxy and the Century have bypassed Casa sadly

[daryleann]

Just returned from our Gem trip - the first to the Moroccan area, as I see others were going. We called the week before we left (mid October ) and were told 'yes, Casa is still on' then were handed a paper as we checked in... no Casa, extended stay in Malaga. This gave them the option to sell a late trip to Alhambra for 'night visit', then we had a sea day to Agadir.

 

If the only reason people take a cruise is for one port, then wouldn't it be better to take a land tour? Friends took a 2 week trip to Morocco, and loved Casa - they were there a few days before we were supposed to be there. For that matter, if the land tours are still going...:confused:

 

According to other cruisers who visited, Agadir was boring, but we had booked a day trip to Taroudant with a Welsh guy and it was truly the best day on the cruise! Fantastic!:D:D

[freddie]

We've just returned from a Regent cruise that stopped at both Casablanca and Agadir. The Hassan II mosque in Casablanca is quite remarkable - definitely worth a visit.

 

And the stop at Agadir was wonderful - not because of Agadir, which we skipped entirely - but because of our fantastic day trip to Taroudant, which we loved. We had a private car and driver for the day. On the way to Taroudant, we stopped to meet and play with the goats which climb the argon trees. That was the highlight of our day, as we love goats.

 

Then, on to Taroudant, whose old walled city is quite unlike most of the touristic markets in the bigger cities. The souk (market) there had everything from dates and spices to rubber flip-flops and underwear. It really is a market for the locals, not for tourists. Then, we had lunch at the Hotel Palais Salam, the former palace of the Grand Pasha of Taroudant. It is a gorgeous complex, with carved marble and beautiful tile, cool gardens with fountains, and altogether a wonderful sense of escape from the outside world.

 

So, friends, please do not be discouraged by those who say that Agadir is a dreary stop (which it certainly is if only Agadir is on your agenda). However, that boring city can be the springboard to an excellent day tour to Taroudant, which is quite memorable indeed.

 

Cheers, Fred

[gilew]

[According to other cruisers who visited, Agadir was boring, but we had booked a day trip to Taroudant with a Welsh guy and it was truly the best day on the cruise! Fantastic!:D:D

 

 

Hi...who did you book your day trip to Taroudant with?