General Warning, Marrakesh

Upon arrival at Marrakech Menara airport we were approached by the every unscrupulous taxi drivers whom all offered to take us to the Median for 80 Dirham. Take note, the locals pay only 20 dirham. The lonely planet guide said that it should cost between 50 - 60 dirham so I asked for it to be reduced from 80 to 60. None of them were budging naturally and it was really hot so we finally accepted an offer for 70dirham.

When we got out of the taxi, we handed the driver 100 and he told us he had no change, laughed and got in his taxi and drove away.

Unique Suggestions: If you're smarter than us, make sure you get the correct change before getting in one of these taxis or better yet, take the bus.

Fun Alternatives: Sometimes, it's not about whether the price is fair compared to what you expect to pay in your home country. You are not in London for example but in Marrakech and if the locals pay 20 Dirham then why should you have to pay more?

We were very stupid when we got off the bus in Marrakech.... I blame it on being very tired and cold and easily influenced....

Basically, though we knew petit taxis were the little muddy gold ones with the signs, and we knew these were the ones that we were supposed to ride around town.... we still jumped into the car of some guy who offered us a lift as soon as we got off the bus. Luckily, the only thing that happened to us was we ended up paying four times as much as we should have, but we really should have known better.

Snake charmers: they want money if you take pictures of them. I took a picture of one after he said i could give him ANY amount of money after i took the picture. After I snapped the shot, he came up to me with his money bowl. I gave him some change, he complained that it wasn't enough, and demanded more.. then, the 2 guys in the back surrounded me and started saying things like: oh, you can't even buy this and that with that much, blah blah blah...

I always keep a separate coin purse with some change in it, so I opened it up and emptied it on the snake charmer's bowl. He looked inside my coin purse, saw that it was empty, smiled and left me alone. Ok, why not just put up a sign that says "photos, $xx or more only." =P

After this incident, I refuse to take photos of anyone who asks for money in return, even if it's little kids... will i ever make an exception? Perhaps, if I think the photo is worth it...

If you go to the synagogue in Marrakesh, you'll certainly find someone to help you find it in the jewish district (Mellah) but be aware that this person will ask you for money afterwards.
Once in the synagogue, a jewish guy will give you 3 minutes of explanations about the synagogue (nothing interesting) and won't let you out until you give him a sufficient amount of money. And of course, your "guide" will wait for you outside ...

The main Square is very famous and praised in all the tourist guides, but I found it was horrible. The architecture is totally uninteresting and the attractions were either adressed at the tourist or not understandable. the atmosphere was strange but not interesting.

If you must then do so but remember to bargain. My friend wanted to do a camel ride and our "guide" took us to his friend who own such. It started at something like $50 dollars for an hour. My friend was able to haggle down to $15 an hour.

Fun Alternatives: Tell them that you just want to ride the camel for 10-15 minutes to take pictures. Most often than not, they would agree to lower their price.

LE PALMERAIE of Marrakesh
This palm trees wood in the north of Marrakesh used to be a nice oasis to walk around in the evenings and see the sunsets. Now a lot of rich people have built houses all around and the place is like a normal luxury urbanization, with a few palms: paved streets, high walls...
If you want to see a real oasis, you gotta go out of Marrakesh, a bit further!

It is important to remember when you are traveling in any part of Morocco (but especially around the square in Marrakesh) that there are hundreds of people out there who would love to swindle you out of your money. You may meet locals who take you under their wing. Be wary, some of these people are the real deal, but many are only trying to gain your confidence so they can pressure you into that big sale before you leave. It seems that just about anyone you meet has a brother, cousing, and uncle in the rug business. Just because someone has spent the past couple of days showing you their city, don't let them pressure you into buying something you don't want...trust me, they'll try.