# Need some tips about Morocco please



## Trampies

Hello, we're new to this forum and new Motorhome owners looking for advice about Morocco.
We're already down in Spain and thinking about heading further south. We've started reading some of the Moroccan threads and reassured to see that Morocco is a regularly travelled route. However, we'd like to know if it's necessary to always use camp sites? We haven't actually used any camp sites in France or Spain as we prefer to do things 'freestyle' - but is that going to be possible in Morocco??
This is probably the first of many questions - all tips and hints gratefully received - thanks in advance.


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## grizzlyj

Hiya

We did and would again.

Partly we had to as quite often there wasn't any alternative where we wanted to stop.

For instance Essaouira has no campsite, there are I think two nearby but needs a taxi ride, so many people just stay in the town centre guarded public car park right by the harbour. Al Hoceima used to have a campsite, but was a building site last year and looked like it would be a big posh hotel by now, so we parked near the port with bored customs officials looking out for us. In Targuist we stopped in a quiet car park and were told to move into a town centre truck park by Police, not sure why. And many times on "pistes", sometimes nowhere near anyone, sometimes just outside a small village, or sometimes a 5min walk from some shepherds tents. Plenty of interest in us, plenty of offers of tea, no bad experiences. Some of the time we travelled with one other camper, sometimes just us on our first and only visit to date.

Not many others here seem to have done so though. Maybe some settling in time is needed to get a feel for things?

But since you actually ask if its possible, then the answer is definitely yes.

Have fun!

Jason


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## AndrewandShirley

On our way back from Morocco and our advice would be go and explore.

Essaouira's camp site about 1000m from the main town and easily walkable, either on the prom or along the foreshore. The aires is nearly opposite the site near the windsurfing bars. Taxis are less than a £1 from either into Town. You can also park overnight in the town near the fish market.

You can wild camp if you wish or use one of the many sites that seem to be springing up all over the place.

Casablanca camp site on the coast road about 15 minutes to the south is an excellant base.

Hope this helps.


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## grizzlyj

AndrewandShirley said:


> On our way back from Morocco and our advice would be go and explore.
> 
> Essaouira's camp site about 1000m from the main town and easily walkable, either on the prom or along the foreshore. The aires is nearly opposite the site near the windsurfing bars. Taxis are less than a £1 from either into Town. You can also park overnight in the town near the fish market.
> 
> You can wild camp if you wish or use one of the many sites that seem to be springing up all over the place.
> 
> Casablanca camp site on the coast road about 15 minutes to the south is an excellant base.
> 
> Hope this helps.


Thank you for that.

We didn't bother looking at Essaouaria campsites because they looked too far away on the map, and parking so close as we did seemed fine.


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## OurTour

*Vicarious Books Camping Morocco*

Hi Trampies

We prefer to stay off sites too, every penny is a prisoner, plus it means we have greater freedom and get closer to the action. Anyhow, our experience in Morocco was that we were a bit thrown at first at how different it is from Europe. All of a sudden your van will be the centre of attention, as you will be once you step out of it. You're a rolling oasis of cash in a place where there pretty much is none. We found ourselves sticking to campsites as mini oases until we started to get used to the attention, and used some guarded parking (the campsite facilities are generally in a poor state, with the odd surprisingly brilliant exception).

If you can get your hands on the Vicarious Books Camping Morocco book, it'll give you a good list of both official campsites and guarded parking, should you decide you need 'em. We were in Spain when we decided to go so struggled to get a copy. Once in Morocco we found some campsites sold French language campsite guides, but at exorbitant rates (not helped by the huge import taxes you'll be paying).

Have a great time! Cheers, Jay


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## Trampies

Many thanks for your replies. 
Any other tips gratefully received -regarding places to visit in particular.


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## millbridge

*Morocco*

We have just returned from our first trip, albeit with Desert detours. But we shall return independently. So our advice would be go and do it there are some reasonable sites and there are some awful ones. On the whole we were pleasantly surprised. There are plenty of wild camp spots but not for us. Go and do it It's a wonderful place with very friendly people. But just remember tourism is a major part of their income so expect to be harvested as a part of their cash crop!


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## Detourer

In general you should have no problem Wild/Free Camping, call it what you will……….

Info should be taken from an overall viewpoint and not just from the excellent reports of onetime visits or some of the great blogs that are out there. A person may be lucky and not get moved on, so will say no problems, while another will be told to move and then say there is general problem…… both are wrong in many respects.

West Morocco and along the coast Wild Camping is again being actively discouraged………. Good, nobody wants to see the return of the mess caused a few years back, it also discourages investment into much needed formal camp facilities. So, you stand a good chance of being told to move if you stop off camp along the coast as far south as Agadir.

Essauara was mentioned…….There is a small campsite, near to the beach, quite close to the town……the mentioned aire has now been turned into a building site, possibly only temp. You WILL told to move from promenade. If there is room and you don’t get trapped the harbour carpark is OK.

Wild/Free Camping well inland should present little problem other than local attention………In over 30 years and many hundreds of visits I have yet to hear of a serious threat or indecent incurred by a solo wild camper.

East Morocco no problems at all……..


The real question you should ask if thinking about a Moroccan visit at this time of year is the weather…….

We are halfway through our last Desert Detours tour before our break until next September. Inland temps are hovering around the 40deg NORTH of the Atlas, so will be much hotter south. This particular tour concentrates on the High Atlas, Forest areas ……….. not an easy followed route for the solo visitor. 

Ferry cost……..the genuine ones………have now moved into the expensive period.

But as has been said many times, however you go, just go……..

Ray…..Desert Detours group in the Azrou Forest area, and getting great WiFi.


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## asprn

Detourer said:


> ....I have yet to hear of a serious threat or _indecent_ incurred by a solo wild camper


You were pretty indecent, I remember, when you took your shirt off in the forest!

Dougie. :lol:


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## Detourer

Well spotted Dougie................

Not only can I not spell but have a new notebook comp with me WITH a Spanish keythingy.............. :roll: 

Very pleasant 27deg in forest......where we will be for a few days yet......but we hear very very hot in the south.

Ray


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## oldtart

Hi Ray. Wish we were with you at the present time. Have very happy memories of the Azrou forest. Drinking wine round the fire and the apes??!!

We are on the boat on the Huddersfield Narrow canal. Have been stuck here for four days now as the bottom lock is broken and no boats can get off or onto the canal. 

It's that cold that we had to buy fuel yesterday!

Val


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## andyandsue

*some videos of Morocco campsite*

We spent the winter and spring walking in the high atlas mountains and you should go . Its a bit off the usual MH trail and the people are not arabs in the Atlas so its a bit nicer if you know what i mean!!. we posted the videos on a youtube site we run as a thankyou to Mel&Chris at vicarious books, the campsites are additional to the many sites listed in the guide they print.
Follow the link below and it will take you to our channel page and you will see about 13 new sites in Morocco at the top of the list along with lots others in Spain and France . hope it whets your appetite. sue and andrew

http://www.youtube.com/user/ALLTHEAIRESTV?feature=guide


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## oly

We have just booked for Feb trip with Desert Detours. Not brave enough to go alone. Anyone else going on that trip?


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## Gretchibald

My hat goes off to you , especially those of you who have ventured off the beaten track. If I may ask a few questions out of curiosity only , as I don't think I'd be brave enough to actually follow your trails, 

1. Are you all pretty good mechanics/ electrical engineers.

2. What spares do you carry.

3. Are you security conscious than when in say mainstream Europe and if so what precautions do you take.


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## soggy

Well your obviously bold enough to go where others don't fear to thread!


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## oly

Safety in numbers rather than alone for the slightly nervous. We hope to see more being in an organised party. These people do this trip several times a year and will know where help would be at hand should it be needed.
The convoy sticks together I believe and help one another out if
anything goes wrong.
We have breakdown recovery with the insurance and I will make sure it is covered for the time we are in Morocco. I will take out travel insurance for health issues.
We will take very little in the way of valuables. We have an alarm which can be left on whilst we are sleeping and a little dog who thinks he is a lion if anyone uninvited comes around!


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## smithiesagain

Oly,

A little dog ??? taking him with you to Morocco is a no no if you intend bringing him back to the uk within 6 months of leaving Morocco !

I don't have a dog but I think I am right here !!

Jenny

EDIT:....I am sure that Detourer has given you the lowdown on this anyway....there is a very good answer on taking dogs into Morocco on another thread too !!


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## Sonesta

The pet passport rules changed in Jan this year and now you can actually take your dogs into Morocco with you and return back to the uk without them having to go into quarantine, well that is provided that their satisfactory rabies blood test results were taken and issued AFTER a minimum period of 30 days! If for example, the lab results were issued less than 30 days after the initial vaccine was administered, then unfortunately, you will have to ensure you get a second result done as otherwise they will have to be quarantined!

I know the info I am giving is 100% correct as we are going to Morocco ourselves for several months this winter and we have checked EVERY single fact out about this and have also spoken to DEFRA for absolute clarification. Our 2 dogs had their results recorded only 20 days after the vaccine, so we knew we had to get another blood test done.

Believe it or not, our own vet was not aware of these changes though and so understandably, she needed to check this all out for herself and after speaking to DEFRA she discovered that what we were telling her was indeed accurate. 

Actually, to be on the safe side we had our 2 dogs rabies boosters done earlier than required and paid extra for another blood test; which we obviously made sure was taken well after the 30 day minimum period.

By the way those who are off to Morocco are in for a real treat; whether you go it alone or in a group. We went in 2005 for just 6 weeks and absolutely loved it. We were complete newbies at motorhoming at that time and had never owned so much as a tent before - but off we went all on our little ownsome and had the adventure of a lifetime.

We have longed to return to this fascinating place but because we have since become owners of 2 little dogs and them not being allowed to travel legally on their passport to Morocco we have been unable to. However, now that they can, we have no hesitation in going back. 

Don't worry about safety in Morocco as it is a very low risk country crime wise! I must confess, we met many fellow travellers on our journey through France & Spain enroute to Morocco, who said we were very brave for venturing into Morocco independently and I began to wonder why they all felt we were so foolish? However, I can honestly hand on heart say that we felt quite safe wherever went and found the Moroccan people very welcoming, helpful and friendly. From what I understand the crime rate in Morocco is very low compared to many of the European countries that many of us motorhomers happily visit and enjoy and therefore, there is no reason why touring around Morocco should be any more risky than anywhere else, in fact it is probably a great deal safer? 

I hope this helps anyone who is thinking of taking a dog to Morocco.

Sue

PS Just make sure you check out all the precautionary medication required for dogs travelling to Morocco plus any travel advice relating to dogs, as there may be other health and moral advice worth noting!


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## oly

Thanks for this comprehensive reply. I did check with Desert Detours first and was told many people take their dogs on the trip. When we return to Spain we will remain in Europe for most of the spring and early summer.


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## Sonesta

Hi Oly,

I think if you are staying in Europe for 6 months or more after your visit into Morocco then it isn't important that your dogs blood test results were analysed after 30 days. So therefore, providing your dog/dogs have a valid pet passport, then you should have no problems. It's just for those returning to the uk with their dog/dogs sooner than 6 months after their journey into Morocco that the new rules will benefit enormously.

For anyone who wants to know more then please look at this link: http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-pets/pets/travel/pets/pet-owners/#c

Scroll down to the paragraph re pets entering the uk from unlisted non EU countries.

Sue


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## oly

Thanks I was shocked when I read that we might not be able to bring our George home! We have been longing to do this trip but thought a month in boarding is too much for him. We have good kennels for him both in England and Spain but the one in Spain where he would have to go for this trip is in the Campo its lovely and they care for the dogs but there is lots of shooting around and he is so scared of the gun shots. I couldn't enjoy myself knowing he might be quivering.


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## Sonesta

You are quite welcome Oly. 

I know how you feel regarding putting your dogs into kennels and no matter how excellent they are (and there are some fabulous kennels out there) it's not quite the same as having your precious dog/dogs with you is it? I know we wouldn't enjoy our travels half as much if we had to leave them behind! 

Anyway, rest assured you can now take George with you into Morocco with absolutely no worries about any repercussions for taking him with you.

Sue


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## oly

Do you know how long the ferry takes and where the dog goes for the crossing? We have only done the tunnel with him.


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## Sonesta

Hi Oly,

If my memory serves me well, I think the ferry crossing from Algeciras to Ceuta was approx an hour. It was 7 years ago now but I know it wasn't a long crossing.

As for your dog - well we didn't have our dogs at the time we went, so I'm not sure where they stay exactly during the crossing but as far as I know, they stay in your vehicle. Our 2 seem quite happy in the motorhome and so, whenever we've used ferries they've always appeared quite calm when we've returned to the van at the end of the journey. I'm sure if George is usually ok at being left alone in your van, then he will be fine during the short crossing also. Leave him with a large juicy bone or a pigs ear etc and he will probably be too busy to even notice you've left! lol. 

I'm sure if you check with Ray (Detourer) he'll have all the latest and bang up to date information re your ferry crossing etc.

All the best.

Sue


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## asprn

oly said:


> Safety in numbers rather than alone for the slightly nervous. We hope to see more being in an organised party. These people do this trip several times a year and will know where help would be at hand should it be needed.
> The convoy sticks together I believe and help one another out if
> anything goes wrong.
> We have breakdown recovery with the insurance and I will make sure it is covered for the time we are in Morocco. I will take out travel insurance for health issues.
> We will take very little in the way of valuables. We have an alarm which can be left on whilst we are sleeping and a little dog who thinks he is a lion if anyone uninvited comes around!


Your concerns are quite rational, but not justified. There are countries in Europe where I'd go along with you, but Morocco? Nah. 

Dougie.


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## loddy

Been there and done it with Ray of Dessert Detours. I never felt threatened or in need of locking my motor home, you have to remember they are Muslims and what they do in this life they get rewarded for in the next, as for the dog take it and let it run barefoot in the sand  . we took ours but they seem to be weary of dogs, ours is massive.

Loddy


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## grizzlyj

Hi

I was told that Muslims regard dogs as unclean, but didn't really know what that meant. A little more info

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_and_animals

So it seems dogs aren't to be harmed, but can't be pets and most likely won't be touched. We travelled with a German couple with a lovely Alsatian for a week, and no-one would get within 20m of it, but many were very keen to see a game of fetch, the teeth etc.

Loddy I thinks yours has overdosed on Moroccan whisky!


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## loddy

Laid back or what  

Loddy


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## Trampies

What a friendly, helpful bunch you are!

I've ordered a copy of the Vicarious Morocco Camping book as fortunately we have a friend's address in Spain we can use. I've just got to find a map of Morocco - presume this shouldn't be too hard in Spain. We probably won't head too far south at this time of year - but thanks for the heads up about the high temperatures.

Here's another potentially daft question: are ATM's fairly easily found when we cross the border, or do we need to sort out some currency before we arrive?


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## oldtart

Hi we had the Michelin, world map and the rough guide map. For Morocco.

We found the rough guide was the best, most up to date and the most durable. It didn't tear and was 'plasticed'. I bought it from Amazon.

Val


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## NeilandDebs

*Morocco*

Hello
When you get out of Port Med and onto the motorway heading towards Larache you will go through a tool point. Get your ticket, drive on after a short distance, couple of k I think, you will then come across a motorway services. Pull in it is new and very clean. Good thing is that there is an ATM there. Money no worries!!

Neil


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## grizzlyj

ATMs are commonplace in towns, and always worked when we needed one. Am I right in thinking you can't get currency outside of the country, or take it out with you at the end?

http://www.moroccoexplored.com/5-FAQ.html

This site has some interesting points, including why not to give to the many thousands of kids who will ask you. A reason I'd never thought of  The worst response we got from a typical poor looking young kid when declining their demand for a gift was next door to where we happened to be staying that night. The owner told us the parents were lovely, and ran a haulage business with three trucks so were one of the most wealthy families locally. The kid was a menace to everyone though.

Most garages only take cash for fuel, check your change! We could only use a card for fuel on the peage near the port as far as I remember.

I'd agree the Rough Guide map is the best overall.

We found the Michelin map to be maybe more accurate on a few occasions, sheet 742, but the paper doesn't last long on folds, like 2 weeks use!  Next time I'd take maybe two Michelin maps to last a longer trip, for inside, night before, planning, and a Rough Guide to actually use during the day. If you have time ordering from the UK would be a good idea? I didn't see anyone else using anything other than 742. If anyone knows better I'd like to hear! 

Since those two are only 1:1 000 000, I also got a 1:800 000 (ish) map (by Lonely Planet maybe? Yellow cover, I can't find it or remember sorry), thinking that since ideally I'd maybe want 1 : 100 000, the bigger scale the better. This one was shockingly inaccurate!

It took a while to realise that although at small scale, and there perhaps isn't much detail, there is more than enough detail. There are big gaps because there are big gaps!

You can also download Olaf maps for free for Garmin gps which is ace but not routable. Adam and Sophies helpful Blog covers that well http://www.europebycamper.com/search/label/Morocco.

The Marjane supermarkets often carry a selection of city street maps, but I never saw a country map at all I think. Except for an Italian one helpfully?!

We bought the Vicarious guide before we left the UK but forgot it (in fact it ended up in a box in the loft for some reason!). At our first stop at Assilah we thought that since it was our first stop off from the ferry, it may be many others last. On that basis we went knocking on the many campers doors, asking if they had a guide of any sort we could buy if they no longer needed it. One of the two UK vans came up trumps (thank you!), several of the others said they'd already given it away. Maybe you could get a map in this way too?

If you sail to Tangier Med there were money changers and insurance 20m after the customs in a little run of container offices, or just at the top of the rise, turn left into the guarded car park and walk into the Gare Maritime. More money changers, car hire, news agent, ferry tickets, a cash machine that you can use your card or feed it Euro notes, cafe and loos (upstairs too, next to the Mosque seem to be cleaner).

Have fun


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## Trampies

Many thanks again for your replies.
The Vicarious book has now arrived, so lots to read. 
There isn't time to get a map posted through Amazon as we want to get moving next week, so we'll rely on finding one either here in Spain or when we get there.
We'll let you know how we get on!


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## moby56

Just go for it we had no problems with wild camping just take some printed sheets with passport details and police No. as when wild camping we were asked several times for ID both by military and police if you have information on a printed sheet it saves them 15 min of copying details and they are so happy when you give them it on a sheet of paper as for internet buy a dongle 400 dirham for 2 months unlimited usage we spent 2 & half months and loved it


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## jonse

*Morroco*

Watch out for the octagonal red sign with a squiggle through it, at round abouts and other junctions it means Stop or a fine of 700 dr as we found out on the way to Sidi Ifni, this spot is well known as a cash point for the police, Abaynou is small site70dr Is good for thermal baths bit of a run off the main road but the wife enjoyed the massarge with the argon oil, Have a great time we did after leaving DDT


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## Trampies

Hello
Thanks again for all your advice.
We spent a month in Morocco and had a great time. 
We did get a copy of the Vicarious camping book before we left, but the information is somewhat out of date and the book started to fall apart after just 2 weeks of careful use. (Annoying considering how much it cost.) 
Michelin road maps were easy to come by in motorway services or Marjane supermarkets – and yes, ours disintegrated along the folds depressingly quickly. One thing we weren’t warned about was the lack of consistent road signs, but we got used to the ‘Getting Lost in Morocco’ routine surprisingly quickly.
We had no problem finding ATM’s.
We travelled on no fixed route and had lots of positive experiences with the local people – invites to tea, offers of freshly caught fish, and even the gift of a bracelet from a young woman.
Obviously there was some hustling, but it was all reasonably gentle and good natured (even in Marrakech).
We only saw one other UK Motorhome. Where were you all? There were still quite a few French and other nationalities around.
With the exception of Fez a few days ago which was sizzling, the weather was only a little too hot for comfort south of Agadir but the rest wasn’t any hotter than we would expect in Spain in August. 
Some of the camp sites we sampled were a bit neglected due to the low occupancy, but it was brilliant to have the places virtually to ourselves and meant we didn’t really feel the need to ‘wild camp’ after all.


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## jonse

*Morroco*

Glad you had a good trip, and did you stop at the octagonal squiggle signs, wish we had done it on our own from day one, will be going back sometime as we enjoyed our time there, and would recommend any one to go it alone, at least its safer than Spain


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## grizzlyj

snipped


Trampies said:


> Some of the camp sites we sampled were a bit neglected due to the low occupancy, but it was brilliant to have the places virtually to ourselves and meant we didn't really feel the need to 'wild camp' after all.


Glad to hear you had a good time!

When we stayed at Asilah we thought how neglected and run down it all looked, knackered pool, tatty loos, unkempt grounds, despite being fairly full of Euro campers.

On return a few months later it had been entirely repainted and was absolutely stuffed with camping Moroccans, everything looked like it had been bought out of storage, everything worked, kitchens, disco, a much better campsite! Obviously Europeans visiting is their off season! I'm not sure how many others came to life though, some looked like they had closed about 20 years ago 

Jason


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## locovan

Can you take dogs to Morroco on a dog Passport ??
I cant find Morroco on the approved list http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-pets/pets/travel/pets/countries/noneu-countries/


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## subfiver

Yes Dave, you always have been able to do that. You need some paperwork first tho', from a vet in Spain, for the Moroccan authorities. Don't ask what, I don't know yet ...

The question you really should've asked, tho', is "Can I bring my dog back from Morocco without quarantine ?" And the answer, as of Jan 2012 is "yes" - but you must ensure that 30 days elapsed between the date of the immunisation injection and the date the blood sample was taken. This info is on the pet's passport.


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## Detourer

In morocco with a group at the moment.......

Re dogs/pets.........6 month ban i.e. no transit from Ceuta to Spain for pets.

HOWEVER.....I have arranged a "Special" certificate from our vet in Spain for the Desert Detours Staff Dog "Alice" that we _think _ may give passage..........if not we will use a different exit route.

Always best to bet the very latest info.......rather than heresay :wink:

Ray


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