Find out everything you need to know about your arrival in Marrakesh here. The journey from Europe is uncomplicated, but with our insider tips you can start your trip in a more relaxed way.
Especially when you arrive late in the evening and just want to get to your hotel, it’s reassuring to know what to expect.
- North Africa is easy to reach from Europe
- Arrival in Marrakesh: One of the most beautiful terminals in the world
- Passport control
- Continue to baggage claim
- Not a good idea: changing money at the airport
- Check again
- A good idea: buy a Moroccan phone card
- Finally out of the airport
- And how do you get to the hotel now?
- Small and large taxis
- Further transfer options
North Africa is easy to reach from Europe
There are direct flights to Marrakesh from many major European cities. Easyjet, Ryanair and Vueling in particular offer many flights to Morocco. There are many flights to the Maghreb, especially from France, and some airlines even serve Marrakesh twice a day.
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Unfortunately, many airlines tend to arrive very late and it is not uncommon to land after midnight. Airlines such as Ryanair now have several planes stationed in Marrakesh, which explains the very late arrival times and sometimes very early departure times.
Your hotel is used to this, but it would be nice if you could let them know your arrival time in advance. In many riads, only the night watchman is on duty at this time of day. If you arrive late in the evening, it would be nice for him to know when to expect the guests.
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Just under 4 hours flight from Germany and you are already in Marrakesh, the red city. It’s easy to see where this name comes from when approaching the airport.
All shades of earthy reds dominate the picture, peppered with the occasional olive grove. But then the airport comes into sight, the arrival in Marrakesh draws closer and the anticipation of the next few days takes on concrete forms.
Especially in winter, you may be lucky enough to catch a beautiful view of the snow-covered High Atlas.
Incidentally, there are no flights over the medina, so you can see more of the new town and the outskirts of Marrakesh.
Incidentally, in most cases it doesn’t matter which side of the plane you are sitting on, as the approach direction and the approach lanes change depending on the weather and it is therefore impossible to predict which side will offer the better view on approach.
When it is very warm in Marrakesh, the landing approach can sometimes be quite shaky. Due to the heat and the nearby mountains, thermals develop, especially in summer, which do not allow for a smooth landing.
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Arrival in Marrakesh: One of the most beautiful terminals in the world
Opened in 2014, the terminal of the international airport with the melodious name Marrakech-Ménara (abbreviation RAK) is considered by insiders to be one of the most beautiful in the world. Up to 5 million passengers are handled here every year. However, before you can admire the successful combination of modern, airy architecture and traditional Arabic elements of the airport, you usually have to take a short walk across the tarmac.
You can smell it as soon as you get out of the car: Marrakesh, so foreign, so spicy, so different. Also usually so much warmer than here. If you get on a plane in Germany early in the morning in winter, you want to get rid of your thick winter jacket quickly. If you’re lucky, it’s 20 degrees higher than at home.
Passport control
There’s no need to dawdle when disembarking: first you go up the stairs, then down the stairs through the terminal and then you have to queue: passport control is the first hurdle on your arrival in Marrakesh. Important: Entry to Morocco is only permitted with a valid passport, an identity card is not accepted. The current entry requirements for Great Britain for example can be found on the ministry of foreign affairs website.
Until the end of 2019, an entry document still had to be filled out, but digitalization is also making inroads here and so the cumbersome procedure has been eased somewhat. However, it can still happen that you have to queue for over an hour until you finally have the necessary stamps in your passport. If it’s quick, the whole thing can be done in five minutes.
Please note: each traveler must go through passport control individually. Families should split up and children over the age of 16 need to see the customs officers alone at the checkpoint. That’s why we always send our teenage children ahead of us to passport control, so that we are still with them in case any questions arise. If you have already passed through immigration before your child, security staff will sometimes ask you to leave the area and of course you don’t want to do this if your children have not yet officially entered the country. Passport control takes quite a long time, which is not due to the Moroccan customs officers, but to the slow computer system.
Afterwards, please do not put your passport away yet — at the exit of passport control it will be checked again that each passport actually contains a stamp. It is quicker if you have opened the page with the stamp and the inspector does not have to search for it. I suspect this is also the reason why the passport is always stamped on the last available page.
Continue to baggage claim
Those who have passed passport control in just a few minutes can now wait for their suitcases. Good for those who only have hand luggage. If you are waiting for luggage, you can expect it to take at least half an hour from the time you get off the plane until the first suitcases are handed out, if not longer. So time to take care of other things: in this area of the terminal there are (clean!) toilets and exchange offices in addition to the baggage claim area.
Not a good idea: changing money at the airport
The Moroccan currency is called Dirham (MAD) and is not a freely convertible currency. This means that you cannot exchange dirhams at a bank outside Morocco.
When you arrive in Marrakesh, you must make sure that you can exchange dirhams.
On your departure, you must exchange any remaining funds back, as dirhams may not be exported except for small amounts.
However, I would advise caution with the exchange offices at the airport. The exchange rates are rather unfavorable for the traveler and in the city there are exchange offices with better rates as well as ATMs where you can withdraw money with your credit card.
If you do want to change money at the airport, do not under any circumstances have a card loaded with credit handed to you. These cards cost a basic fee and you can only use them to pay in large restaurants or hotels, but not at the small traders in the souk. In addition, you have no overview of how much money is still on the card. And if there is still credit on the card at the end of your stay, the refund will also cost a fee.
If you need money for a taxi or bus, only change a small amount to cover your arrival in Marrakesh and make sure you also have small bills. The taxi driver will certainly not be able to hand over large amounts. It is customary to pay the taxi driver appropriately and not to expect change. The tourist taxis sometimes also accept euros, but you should clarify this before setting off.
When you stay with us at Riad Selouane you can exchange your money at the exchange office just around the corner and our manager will be happy to accompany you if you need help. ATMs are also available a short distance away.
Check again
Once you have collected your baggage, you will have to queue again — even if you are only traveling with hand baggage. Your luggage will be checked and scanned and you will be informed that drones may not be imported into the Kingdom of Morocco without authorization. Then you come out of the airport building through the large arrivals hall and land in a large crowd.
A good idea: buy a Moroccan phone card
If you would like to have Internet access outside the hotel, you can purchase a SIM card from a Moroccan telephone company before you leave the hotel. Incidentally, Morocco has much better LTE network coverage than for example Germany. You can expect excellent reception even in the middle of the Erg Chebbi sand dunes. As it’s easy to get lost in Marrakesh, I can only advise everyone to buy a map like this. This means you can no longer be reached by phone by your regular telephone number, but you can be reached via the Messenger service.
The employees of the telephone companies install the card and you are online right away. Normally the cards cost 10–20 euros for enough gigabytes for a week’s vacation and you can usually pay in euros, because Moroccans are enterprising people. The PIN for the SIM card is 0000 by default in case you need to change the card.
Recently, e‑SIMs have also become available in Morocco. You can order an e‑SIM in advance via Getyourguide*.
Detailed information about Moroccan phone cards can be found in our article on the use of eSIM and SIM cards in Morocco.
Finally out of the airport
At this square, drivers wait for their guests to take them to their hotels, tour groups are welcomed and family members greet their relatives from Europe.
There is shouting, pushing, searching and finding.
It’s not easy to keep an overview, because by now you’ve arrived in the Moroccan hustle and bustle.
And how do you get to the hotel now?
The easiest way to do this is to book a transfer* with your hotel in advance. Especially for your first stay or if you arrive in the evening, a pre-organized transfer will make your arrival in Marrakesh much easier. A transfer usually costs around €15 for 2 people and saves you having to search for your accommodation in the maze of alleyways in the medina, as you will be met at the edge of the old town by hotel staff and accompanied to your accommodation.
Transfers to hotels in the Marrakesh region cost up to €30, depending on the distance.
If you want to travel on your own, you can take a taxi, which are waiting in large numbers outside the airport. Please do not expect the driver to know the riad you have booked in the old town — there are hundreds of riads in Marrakesh and they are all within walking distance. In order to get out of the taxi at a suitable point on the edge of the medina, you should know near which sight your hotel is located and indicate this to the driver as your destination. You can usually ask your hotel for this information in advance.
Looking for a hotel in Marrakesh?
The best location in the medina, breakfast included, an oasis of peace in the middle of the souks: the Riad Selouane is the ideal address for your city trip!
Small and large taxis
There are two types of taxis: tourist taxis and petit taxis.
With a tourist taxi, usually a van with enough space for 4 people and luggage, you have to negotiate the price in advance. Here, too, the price is around €15 per trip. The drivers are geared towards tourists and usually speak English as well as French.
Petit taxis, which are small (yellow) vehicles with little space for luggage, are metered. These cabs are mainly used by locals and it may well be that the driver only speaks Arabic. Depending on traffic conditions, you can get from the airport to the old town for around €5, making your arrival in Marrakesh an adventure in the first half hour.
Further transfer options
There is also the option of taking bus no. 19 to Place Jemaa el Fna and walking to the hotel from there.
If you have planned a self-drive tour with a rental car, it is a good idea to hire the car after your stay in the medina, as there are virtually no parking facilities. The rental car station is located in the immediate vicinity of the airport.
Usually the car rental companies also deliver the vehicles to a pick-up point near our Riad, so that after a few days in the old town you don’t have to go back to the airport to pick up the car.
For more information on how to get to Riad Selouane, please visit how to find us. You can book a transfer to the Riad Selouane via our contact page.
You can conveniently arrange a transfer to another hotel via GetYourGuide*.
Even those who travel to Agadir*, Essaouira* or Casablanca* can book the transfer quickly and reliably via GetYourGuide.
Marrakesh airport is located just 6 kilometers outside the city. It usually takes about half an hour to arrive at the hotel from the airport and you can finally process your first impressions over a Moroccan mint tea .
Merhaba in Marrakesh!
Looking for more information about Marrakesh?
Visit our travel guide to learn more about the sights of Marrakesh and Morocco!
