Thinking of camping in Morocco? Here are some of our favourite campsites to visit with children
A few of our favourite sites for camping with kids, along with some alternative places to stay in a camper.
Background
Having spent a month touring Morocco with 3 small children in our motorhome, we stayed on a good few different campsites. Here are a couple of our favourites, plus some other useful information about places to stay.
It should be said that when touring in Europe, where possible, we usually prefer to either wild camp or stay on official or recognised motorhome-only parking locations (Aires/Stellplatz). We usually only use campsites every now and then to make use of the extra facilities and give the kids some safe space to roam around in. However, in Morocco we found ourselves using them more than usual, discovering that they vary a lot in quality and value.
One thing to definitely watch out for is charging extra for children. Having 3 children (aged 5,3 & 1), we are used to them usually being free (or only paying for the eldest) when camping in Europe. In Morocco it seemed more usual to have to pay for any children aged over 1 or 2. That meant paying for 2 children for us, which in some cases could almost double the cost of an overnight stay. We struggled to justify paying this extra charge when we were staying in winter when evenings were cool, swimming pools were generally too cold to swim in and we would sometimes barely leave the van or use any facilities.
Campsites would typically cost us anywhere between €5-€25 per night.
Our Top 5
#1 Camping Atlantica Beach, near Taghazout
Located on the N1 road, just north of Taghazout, this was our favourite. It was a bit lacking in shade, but as we were staying in winter that was no problem for us. It is very modern and boasts large pitches, clean sanitary blocks with excellent powerful hot showers, an outdoor swimming pool and football pitch and, best of all for kids, a large area of bouncy castle inflatables open on weekends (free for camping guests). It is also, as the name suggests, right on the beach, complete with fish market and low cost camel rides.
There is also a sister site, called Atlantica Parc, located less than a mile away. This site has the benefit of a big outdoor water park (with surprisingly good poolside restaurant), which would be great in summer, and an indoor pool that they let us use for free as we were guests at their other park.
This all came at a price that was the highest we paid in Morocco (around €25 for 2 adults and 2 chargeable children (over 1s have to pay) per night) but it was a great site. The kids particularly enjoyed the inflatables, so if you’re thinking of going, be sure to visit on the weekend to make use of these.
#2 Spirit Nature Camp, near Essaouira
Located a few miles from Essaouira, this was our second favourite. It has nice spacious pitches, offering some shade, along with decent sanitary blocks. It also has a lovely pool area (with rope swing for children), treehouse and an elaborate adventure playground built into the trees. Our kids loved climbing on the rope trails there.
The only downsides of this site were it was a bit far from anything (but that’s fine if you just want to relax for a day or two) and the gravel road on approach is quite long and bumpy/corrugated in sections, so was a bit punishing on our poor old van!
#3 Motel Rif, Rif Mountains
Located on the road between Meknes and Chefchaouen, this is not strictly a campsite but a motorhome/camping-car stopover only. It is set in large, clean, well-kept grounds and has a big outdoor swimming pool, as well as a smaller children’s pool. The kids loved going in the small pool despite it being freezing in winter. You can park your van literally on the poolside so it’s a great spot for relaxing. All this for €10 a night including electricity and decent hot showers, you can’t go wrong.
#4 Laguna Park, Oualidia
Located a short drive south of Casablanca, the town of Oualidia sits aside a pleasant sandy bay and is a favourite retreat for the growing number of Moroccans now wealthy enough to take holidays, as well as benefiting from a steady stream of international visitors. Set in the hills with excellent views down to the town and coast below is Laguna Park camping. It has decent modern facilities, an outdoor swimming pool in the spot with the best views (sadly shut in winter when we visited), and best of all, lots of space and real grass to pitch tents or sit on. Letting the children play freely and safely on the grass made for a pleasant contrast to the usual dusty or concreted sites experienced elsewhere in Morocco.
#5 Camping Mimosa, Mohammedia
Nothing overly flash here, but cheap and cheerful and conveniently positioned close to the motorway for an overnight stop on the journey south. Good showers, good washing machine, lots of space and chickens running around for company. Also, no extra charge for small children (all 3 of ours were free) so very reasonably priced (€7 a night without electricity). Located in an upmarket neighbourhood with a Carrefour supermarket nearby, as well as more upscale cafes and restaurants and even a children’s playground in the near vicinity (unusual for Morocco).
As a negative, the nearby beach has about the most rubbish I’ve ever seen on a beach, so sadly not currently worth a visit (hopefully someone will see sense to sort this out once all the exclusive new appartment blocks being built in the area have been finished). I wouldn’t want to spend my holidays here, but a good option for an overnight. We liked it enough to stay a night going south and again when returning north.
Wild Camping
This is forbidden and seems quite difficult to do (compared to a lot of Europe), with the law most enforced all along the coast. That is not to say that people aren’t doing it – we saw plenty that were – we’d just heard tales of being moved on late at night by local police. That’s fine if all adults, but we didn’t fancy having to move once all the kids were asleep in bed, so it’s not something we attempted. The attitude towards wild camping seemed to improve as we moved inland from the coast, with evidence of it being tolerated to a greater extent, particularly in out of the way locations.
Overnighting in Semi-Official Locations
Although wild camping is forbidden, we found that paid for car parks will sometimes allow you to stay overnight, at the discretion of the attendant. This is an option we took up on several occasions. The reason I class this as only ‘semi-official’ is that when we were parked in one such car park in Essaouira, we were told by the attendant that if the police knocked on the door in the night, to just stay quiet in bed and not answer the door – make of that what you will!
We found that around the major cities, campsites tended to be a good distance away from the city centre, so staying in these alternative car park locations presented a better option for city sightseeing. This was particularly true in Fes, where the only campsite in town (or rather way out of town) we found to be run down and over-priced. In comparison, we had a very pleasant, cheaper (and permitted) nights stay on a car park much closer to the centre, within easy walking distance of the famous blue gate entrance to the ancient medina.
Other than Fes, two of our other favourite overnight stops of this type were:
#1 Tafroute, ‘Van Valley’
Tafroute is located in a valley at the heart of the Anti Atlas mountains, surrounded by impressive red granite mountains and unusual rock formations and boulders. It’s a great base for walking or biking around the local area. Within the valley there is a large wild parking area designated for motorhomes and Campervans. There are no services, but many locals circulate from time to time to offer various goods and services, from cooked food and morning bread deliveries, to mechanical work or painted van murals. It’s a great place that feels wild but safe, and all for €1.50 a night. There looked to be a few long term guests, some in intriguing van conversions (we saw one with a built-in chicken coop!), and I can see why.
#2 Legzira Beach, near Sidi Ifni
Located down towards the south of the country is Legzira beach. It is a favourite for paragliders who take off from the cliffs (complete with a natural sea arch feature), riding high on the thermals before landing on the beach below. It’s a lovely beach with only small, local businesses present, including a few cafe/restaurants and surf hire. We parked in the beach parking for a couple of € and they were happy for us to stay overnight for no extra cost. It was probably the best non-campsite location that we found next to a beach.
In Summary
In general, standards of campsites in Morocco vary greatly. That said, I guess you could argue the same is true anywhere. Compared to staying in guesthouses or hotels, they still present great value for money for touring the country and provide decent, safe places to stay. Although wild camping is sadly prohibited (despite being in evidence in some places), we did also find some good alternative (and cheaper) options for places to stay along the way. Keeping an eye out for a good opportunity, bargaining with parking attendants, and making use of parking smartphone apps such as ‘Park4Night‘, allows for endless possibilities for anyone willing to explore.
It’s so awesome you are doing this with your children. Definitely an inspiration.
Thanks. It has its moments but for the most part it’s a great way of family living
Camping in Morroco looks incredible! I have 2 teenagers, this would be the trip of a lifetime! Love your pictures too!