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  #1  
Old 27 Jan 2017
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Urban motorhome parking banned in Morocco
There's a rumour going round social media at the moment that wildcamping has been banned in Morocco!

Has anyone heard anything?

Personally I very much doubt this and the rumour seems to involve wildcamping in unsuitable built up areas


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Last edited by Chris Scott; 1 Feb 2017 at 19:31.
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Old 27 Jan 2017
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Not heard of anything, can you link your source or provide more info?

I wouldn't be surprised if some controls are initiated for motorhomes who bring practically zero to the local economy.
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Old 27 Jan 2017
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It's a Facebook overlanding group Tim. Heard about this from 2 people now but both are in large "camper" trucks and one has been trying to wildcamping around Fes and Agadir.

I know around agadir there used to be huge numbers of campers on the coast north of Agadir staying for free but the authorities clamped down on it a long time ago.

Apparently the latest person was told by the police that this is new rules. I'm sceptical as it was Agadir area and a camper truck


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Old 28 Jan 2017
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As I thought then. Wild to me means somewhere remote, such as Azrou's cedar forest, not a bit of waste ground next to shops. As you say, "unsuitable built up areas".

The owners of Camping International in Agadir (who also owns a site in Tiznit) and Atlantica are believed to be behind the crackdown in their locality. There's a couple of campsites in Fez and it might be the same situation with owners complaining to the police.
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Old 28 Jan 2017
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Wild camping is officially banned in many countrys even to sleep is the most normal thing in the world. Being friendly, not leaving waste and hiding after dark I never had any problems with this in more then 80 countrys http://afrikamotorrad.eu/?report=en_westkueste



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Old 28 Jan 2017
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tim Cullis View Post


As I thought then. Wild to me means somewhere remote, such as Azrou's cedar forest, not a bit of waste ground next to shops. As you say, "unsuitable built up areas".

The owners of Camping International in Agadir (who also owns a site in Tiznit) and Atlantica are believed to be behind the crackdown in their locality. There's a couple of campsites in Fez and it might be the same situation with owners complaining to the police.
A bit more detail on the latest rumour. 5 campers and trucks moved on from a site in Agadir listed on iOverlander.

iOverlander only lists 2 locations within Agadir. the first is guardian parking just off Av Mohamed V by the promenade. The second is listed as an unofficial campers parking lot just off Av Hassan II. Based on the description posted and mention of a Guardian I'm assuming they were moved on from the location next to the promenade. If so this is about 200m from the front door of Camping International!

Now too me neither of these are wildcamping Its an unsuitable place to even consider it when theres plenty of legal places to camp/stay in Agadir.

Like Tim, to me wildcamping is camping in remote areas enjoying the beauty of the area and leaving no trace of the camp. Not trying to stay on a carpark in the middle of the city free of charge.
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Old 28 Jan 2017
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Hi Mark/Tim,

Probably aimed at large groups of motorhomes. Overnight camping at the harbour in Asilah was common for a long time with vans arriving late afternoon and moving on the following morning. The local authorities had a clampdown as vans began staying for a week or more and turning the car park into a campsite. Have seen the same in other towns.

Regarding wild camping in remote areas, whenever we've been visited by police or military the've been invariably polite, welcoming us and advising they are there for our security. We were moved on once on the Rekkam plateau during torrential rain as the authorities were concerned that the river was about to burst its banks.

Happy trails,

Peter
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Old 29 Jan 2017
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Wild Camping
My 'navo' and I are in our late 60's and still enjoy the freedom of the desert and our L110 ensures we carry enough creature comforts to ensure there is no hardship on camp.

The lure of a mobile home has been very strong from time to time but,the last time we hired one for a Perth-Adelaide-Darwin trip 3 years ago, convinced us that we were still not ready to give up the freedoms offroading has to offer.

It is quite natural to look for more comfort but unfortunately the ever increasing requirements to put mobile campers/homes into organized sites totally detracts from the 'joys' of camping and overlanding in the first place, especially in Maroc where most site facilities are still not up to European standards....and why should they be
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Old 31 Jan 2017
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it's happening in more and more countries where the ever increasing numbers of motorhomes are problematic. I can see why. Having hundreds of motorhomes parked on your doorstep isn't what everyone wants. Be discrete and it's unlikely to be a problem
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Old 31 Jan 2017
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They're their own worst enemy! bad practice by campervanners leads to clamp downs on campervanners!

I'm sure more than a few of us remember the Campervan City just north of Agadir, staying for months on end not paying a penny before the authorities put a stop to it.

A bit of an update with the original question, the person who passed on the information alleging bans, has thrown their toys out of the pram a bit and posted elsewhere about how dangerous Morocco is and how much violence they have been exposed to but hasn't provided anymore information about the actual issue when asked!

General consensus is that there has been no change in the law, wildcamping is fine at the right place and the right time
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Old 31 Jan 2017
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No problem camping in Tendrara in the old train station.







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Old 6 Feb 2017
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Originally Posted by Peter Girling View Post
Hi Mark/Tim,

..... Overnight camping at the harbour in Asilah was common for a long time with vans arriving late afternoon and moving on the following morning. The local authorities had a clampdown as vans began staying for a week or more and turning the car park into a campsite. ........
Peter
Is there an acceptable place to camp with motorhome in Assilah for a week?
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Old 6 Feb 2017
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If you search for ian and Carol Moore on the members list, they are in morocco at the moment, in the camper van and are poss only second to Tim re knowledge of the country given that they live there for six months of the year . Failing that pm me and I will WhatsApp them on your behalf and ask the question.
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Old 6 Feb 2017
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Mark
Have asked the question and will post their reply
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Old 6 Feb 2017
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OK so u can't park by the harbour as the area is being redeveloped . Far end of the seafront may b OK
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