Golf in Morocco

GOLF ACCOMMODATIONS

For extended winter stays incorporating golf, Palmeraie, near Marrakech, is the best area to stay. It is the warmest place to be in January to March. 

YourGolfTravel lists many resort/golf packages but their golf packages are only for a few days. I could just book into one of the hotels in Palmeraie myself.

A few resorts they mention (prices low to high):

• Kech Boutique Hotel & Spa, Avenue Mohammed VI ($125)
• Jaal Riad Resort Marrakech ($140)
• Hotel Du Golf Rotana Palmeraie ($150)
• Iberostar Club Palmeraie ($165)
• Be Live Experience($175)
• Hotel Kenzi Club Agdal Medina ($225)
• Be Live Collection
• Kenzi Menara Palace
• Movenpick Hotel Mansour Eddahbi
• Sofitel Marrakech Lounge & Spa
• Fairmont Royal Palm Marrakech

Other accommodations in the area (price per night based on 2 week stay):

• Jaal Riad Resort ($180)
• Palm Plaza Hotel & Spa
• Palm Auberge
• Selman Marrakech
• Résidence Ennaim
• Villa Sunstone

GOLF COURSES

Morocco has many golf courses from high-end resorts (and matching high round costs) to lower end public style courses. I have noted the winter rates for 18 holes and converted Dirham to Euros.

Al Maaden Golf Resort, Marrakech (€70)
Amelkis Golf, Marrakech
Assoufid Golf Club, Marrakech (€85)
Atlad Golf Marrakech, Merrakech
Concept Parcours Golf Maroc, Marrakech
Fairmont Royal Palm Marrakech Golf & Country Club, Marrakech
Palmeraie Rotana Resort, Marrakech
The Montgomerie Marrakech, Marrakech
Noria Golf Club, Marrakech
Palm Golf Marrakech Ourika, Marrakech
Royal Golf Marrakech, Marrakech (€90)
Samanah Golf Club by Nicklaus, Marrakech
The Tony Jacklin Marrakech, Marrakech

Agadir Golf Training Center‬, AGTC is rated on TripAdvisor as an excellent place to get golf lessons.
Golf de l'Ocean, Agadir (€70)
Golf du Soleil, Agadir
Golf les Dunes, Agadir (€65)
Royal Golf Club in Agadir, Agadir
Tazegzout Golf, Agadir

Plage des Nation Golf, Rabat
Royal Golf Dar Es Salam, Rabat
The Montgomerie Rabat, Rabat

Golf El Jadida, El Jadiad
Mazagan Golf Club, El Jadida

The Tony Jacklin Casablanca, Casablanca

Bahia Beach Golf, Bouznika (€56)

Cabo Negro Royal Golf Club, Cabo Negro, Tetouan (€56)

Golf de Mogador, Essaouira (€70)

Take a look at the booking site TeeTimesForYou to book times at golf courses around Europe as well as Morocco and Cyprus. They list 21 courses in Morocco. 

Marrakech Golf Club map

Agadir Golf Club map

Winter Stay in Morocco

It looks like Marrakech is the best place to stay in January with daytime temperatures around 70°F (20°C) and night time temperatures around 44° (10°C). Being predominantly desert, the night time temperatures in most areas of Morocco are quite cool.

Blondie in Morocco has a few suggestions for places to stay for short to long term stays. Though people imagine living in a classic riad, it is probably more comfortable to stay in more modern sections of the city. She considers Gueliz with its French-influenced Art-Deco architecture to be one of the better places to stay. The Hivernage districts more modern and quieter than Gueliz. Of the two, I would probably prefer Hivernage.

She mentions two more upscale neighbourhoods that have villa rentals: Targa and the more expensive Palmeraie (palm grove). In Pameraie a villa with swimming pool is about €1,500, and with a community pool about €750 per month. This sounds very reasonable.

But another of her favorites in the more expensive areas is Marrakesh Golf City Prestigia, located only 4km from city centre. Apartments from around €650 per month. Secure with lots of walking area and a golf course.

I found a rental on Tripadvisor for an Atlas Golf Resort Apartment in Pameraie for $85 per night.

Oriental Desert Express

Travel into the desert of eastern Morocco near the border with Algeria aboard a private luxury train. Starting out in Oudja it runs 300km south to Bouarfa. See their website and a short video.

If the train and scenery look familiar it's because the railway was one of the locations for the James Bond movie Spectre.

 

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Rail map showing connection to the ODE

Visiting or long term stay

The Moroccan government has light restrictions on travel for Canadians travelling to the country. The entrance details can be found at the Visit Morocco website. Entrance is allowed without restriction for those who have had any of the major vaccines. If a person has not had a vaccination then a COVID test result must be presented that was taken less than 72 hours prior to arrival.

Mobile phone plans

According to one website the best mobile plan to use is Maroc Telecom. The others recommended are Inwi and Orange.
You can get a Moroccan SIM card in Maroc Telecom's, Orange's, and Inwi's official stores. You can also get them from third-party resellers such as tobacco stores. They are also available at the airports in Casablanca and Marrakesh.

You can expect to pay the following for a Morocco SIM card:

• Maroc Telecom: 30 MAD (~$4.50CAD)
  
• Orange Morocco: 30 MAD (~$4.50CAD)
• Inwi: 20 MAD (~$3.00CAD)

The Morocco international dialing code is 212.

A completely different method of having phone access around the world is to use a mobile portable WiFi hotspot. The TEP Wireless Hotspot allows you connect your phone or laptop to the internet through the hotspot. The advantage of the device is that it can be used in over 130 countries, so you don't need to buy a new SIM card every time you travel to a new country. (There is a Europe plan that covers Europe, including eastern Europe, and the UK.) It comes preloaded with 1GB of data. For use in Morocco, 8GB of data for 30 days costs $77US. See all data plans here.

Accommodations

Marrakech

In Marrakech, a good riad is Palais Sebban, 43 Derb Moulay Abdellah Ben Hseine, Rue el Ksour.

Tel: +212(0)5.24.44.02.25 / +212(0)5.24.44.02.26

Email: contact@palais-sebban-riad.com

Website: www.palaissebban.com

Some other riads in Marrakech recommended on TripAdvisor:
L'Oriental Medina & Spa, 5 Derb Lgssaba, Lmoukef, kaat bennahid
Riad Chams Marrakech, 214-215 Derb Sidi
Riad L'Orchidée, 42-43 Derb Sidi Bou Amar
Riad Dar Dialkoum, 317 Derb Nakhla Bab Doukala
Mon Riad, 4 Derb Lahabasse
Riad Karmela, 10 Derb El Ferrane Azbetz (map)
Riad Irhalne, 5 Derb Sidi Ben Aissa Dabachi
Riad Dar Zaman, 29 Derb Bouelilou, Sidi Ben Slimane

Recommended by Lucas Peters of the Morocco guide:
Riad Boussa, 192 Derb Jdid - Dabachi
Riad Les Trois Mages, N 11 Derb Jamaa, Rue El Gza, Riad Larousse
Riad Dar Najat, 18 Douar Graoua, Derb Lalla Chacho
Riad Alisma, 50 Rue de la Bahia
Hôtel Sindi Sud, 109 Derb Sidi Bouloukate. A good quality, clean budget hotel - 100Dh!

Mon Riad

Riad Chams Marrakech

Riad Dar Dialkoum

Riad Irhalne

Riad Karmela

Riad L'Orchidée

Wanderlust magazine has an article on some quality accommodations in Marrakech.

Fes

Riad Dar Chrifa - www.riaddarchrifa.com, 20 Arsat El Hammoumi Ziat, 30000 is recommended by Luke and Sabrina at Chopstick Travel.
Tel: +212 (05) 35 63 78 50     Email: riaddarchrifa@menara.ma

Riad Dar Chrifa

Riad Dar Chrifa

Tripadvisor recommended hotels in Marrakech
Hotel Sol Oasis, Douar Ben Rahmoun Prefecture Sidi Youssef Ben Ali
La Maison des Oliviers, KM 6 Route de l'Ourika, BP 429, Lagouassem
Riad Nora, 29A Rue de la Bahia

Casablanca

ONOMO Hotel Casablanca, Angle de rue boulevard Massira & rue Normandie
ibis Casa-Voyageurs, Avenue Ba Hmad Place de la Gare
Adagio Casablanca, 279 Boulevard Bir Anzarane
Grand Mogador, rue Hassan II
Le 135 Hotel, 135 Blvd Hassan II
Hotel Gauthier, rue Ilya Abou Madi

Wanderlust Magazine recommends Hotel le Doge as a beautifully restored 1930s Art Deco hotel. Nice but quite expensive - €135 and up.

Train travel - Al Boraq high speed train

After a decade of development, Morocco now has Africa's first high speed train, connecting Tangier with the capital, Rabat, and Casablanca. The Al Boraq double-decker will eventually continue on to Marrakech and Agadir.

It is operated by ONCF (Office National des Chemins de Fer), Morocco's national railway authority. Tickets can be booked on this site.

Travel time from Casablanca to Tangier has been reduced from 6 hours on the regular train to 2 hours and 10 minutes, often attaining its record speed of 357km per hour.

1st Class Seating

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