Travel

With my IES Rabat cohort, I have travelled to Meknes, Fez, Chefchaouen, Tangier, Merzouga, and Marrakech. On my own, I have travelled to Casablanca a couple of times and once to Marrakech. My biggest trip while based in Rabat was my week travelling around Europe during fall break. At the beginning of the semester, I was still nervous about travelling alone within Morocco since I had only been to Casablanca independently. Because of this, I tended to choose destinations where the culture felt more familiar to me. Casablanca, as the financial capital of Morocco, feels similar to cities I have spent time in before, such as Washington, D.C., which made it a comfortable starting point for solo travel.

The IES Rabat-organized trips have been very fun and well structured. My peers and I are very close with Fatima, the student coordinator, who leads the student trips, and her presence makes travelling as a group much easier and more enjoyable. The IES Rabat trips typically consist of a guided city tour, time for shopping, and provided meals at a good hotel. I enjoy this setup, especially because it works well for a large group of students with different interests and comfort levels. Everything is organized, which removes a lot of stress and allows us to focus on enjoying the experience and spending time together.

One of the most important things I would want to tell someone going on an IES Rabat trip is to be aware of how shopping works during guided tours. Anytime you have a guide taking you to a shop as part of a city tour, the guide will usually be receiving a commission on anything you purchase. This does not mean you should avoid buying things altogether, but it is something to keep in mind. If you have the time, I would recommend doing shopping on your own instead. Beforehand, it is helpful to talk with IES Rabat staff about what prices to expect and how to bargain appropriately, as this can make a significant difference.

When I first arrived in Morocco, I assumed that I would be travelling every weekend to a new part of the country and that I would spend Fall Break travelling around Africa. Unfortunately, these plans did not come to term, although I am still very happy with what I was able to accomplish. In my experience, travelling every weekend was simply not feasible. I took more classes than recommended and was also studying for the LSAT, which made my weekends important for completing homework and taking time to rest. Additionally, classes run from 9 A.M. to 5 P.M., and even though that is only if you take every course, I always seemed to arrive around 8:45 A.M. and leave closer to 5:15 P.M..

My plans to travel around Africa were also limited by the high cost of plane tickets, especially when compared to flights within Europe. RyanAir, in particular, offers some of the best prices for getting into Europe from Morocco, with some tickets as low as 20 USD.