What a mess.
The UK Embassy folks can't even get their shit together !
Keep us posted. I'd be curious to know whether that Tanger-Algesiras ferry is going to run or not. You must have heard that Spain will quarantine any foreigner coming in until May 25th, at least...
Good luck.

Something doesn't sit right with this too me.

German overlanders and campervan people posting tomorrows ferry has already been changed to the 18th. The 2nd post with the price included an email address that is @foreignoffice.gov.uk not the normal @fco.gov.uk.

Others sayin that UK Embassy is chartering a whole ferry, yet the ferry's are running for freight so why charter when they could just arrange for people to use an existing ferry.

I hope its all legitimate for those planning to catch it.

Certainly smells fishy! Is there a link to pay for tickets in the email? Account at the National Bank of Nigeria???

Googling foreignoffice.gov.uk returns a "can't find that server" response. I'd assume the link is a redirect to people whose interests don't align with yours.

The latest check-in time for the ferry on Thursday 14 May (in my post #199 above) was 1300, I understood the departure was 1500. The information came in an email from the British Embassy that arrived just before midnight yesterday, saying,

"Thanks for contacting the British Embassy to register your details and to express your intention to depart Morocco on the next available ferry departure from Tangier Med Port. I wish to inform you that we have now received approval from the Moroccan authorities to allow you to move from your current location to Tangier Med Port. You are now instructed to visit the Municipality (wilaya) of your current location and request to get the authorisation to travel document. It is very important that you are present at the office at 0930 in the morning and take along with your passport. If you encounter any issues or problems, please contact Xxxxx or send a message to +212xxxxxxxxx leaving your name and your current location. Once you have collected your permission to travel document, you MUST leave immediately and travel to the Tangier Med Port. You should aim to be at Tangier Med Port by Thursday 14th May and no later than 1300 hours."

You will note that with typical efficiency, the message didn't say where the ferry was going to !!

However, yes, it was supposed to be going to Algeciras, but in any case it has now been cancelled due to forecasts of high winds and thunderstorms in the Strait of Gibraltar for Thursday.

Why was it organised with such short notice? It could be because from Friday morning, Spain is introducing mandatory 14-day quarantine for all international arrivals, see https://english.elpais.com/society/2...travelers.html

So yes, I have also heard the ferry will now be on Monday 18, but none of the people I am in touch with (who were notified by the Embassy as above) have been told about this from the British Embassy, it's all come from German motorhomers. But will it still run given the new Spanish quarantine rules?

On another subject, the GNV ferry from Tanger to Sète on the 19th May has been rescheduled for 26th. Any registrations for 19th remain valid for 26th.

In the meantime, the twitter and facebook feeds for the British Ambassador and UKinMorocco are primarily focused on how well the staff are doing running marathons in their gardens for charity. No useful information anywhere for people stranded in Morocco.

There will be lessons to be learnt from how the embassy has reacted during this period. From friends in Zagora comparing the efforts of the staff of various embassies , "The running order of competence is the German embassy way in front. The French gasping to finish, and the Dutch and British struggling to get out of the starting gates. "

Just goes to show how conflicting the information is

A large German motor home group has been saying how bad the German embassy has performed, compared to the UK embassy, the French are saying the germans have performed the best etc etc.

There are 17 brits here, all registered with the embassy, no one received any emails and I've been having regular phone calls from them over the last fortnight.

Non of the phone calls or emails from the embassy we have received recently made any mention of registering for a Algeciras ferry, it was all for yesterdays ferry to Sete and the one on the 19th or if we wanting permission to move campsites. 2 vans from here caught yesterdays ferry as planned although slightly late leaving.

4 of the other EU vans here are on the GNV ferry on the 26th, but its going to Genoa, maybe theres 2 sailings that day, hard to tell.

My earlier post with the quoted text is from a Brit campervanner who says the info came from the Embassy, even though it also has a suspicious email attached to the post. The same group has people reporting they have been told they cannot get the next Sete ferry despite holding valid tickets.

I have friends in Mhamid who have medical reasons for moving some where cooler, its taken several days to get permission to move with lots of back of forth to the Governor, it seems without a ferry ticket getting the exceptional movement permit issued is not as easy as one would hope. They finally got permission today.

adding to the confusion, just has a call from the Embassy people.

Ferry 9am Monday, we are to try and get authorisation near Agadir somewhere tomorrow and then get tickets for the ferry if we want it. I had booked with GNV following info last week from the Embassy

God knows why they can't make this simple

The news of the rescheduled sailing came from Thierry Vallet, French Consul General in Tanger, who wrote, "La ferry Tanger-Sète, initialement prévu le 19, partira finalement le 26 mai. Inutile de se réinscrire. Les inscriptions pour le 19 restent valables pour le 26."

Very confusing indeed.
Was it fake news or what :helpsmilie:?
I know of quite a few stranded French tourists who are still hoping that the regular Tanger-Algeciras crossings will resume soon...
I am trying to persuade them to make the next May 26 Tanger-Sète one.

Well the Tanger-Algeciras crossing is apparently going to take place Monday 9am.

John from Camping Palmeraie d'Amerzou (Zagora) was allowed to leave for Moulay Bousselham. He seems to be going for the Monday boat and writes, "everytime we have tried to get off the motorway to get food we have been sent back. Now at services at Asilah and just stopping where we can until Sunday. Trying to suggest to the Embassy (if anyone has any influence) that we cannot leave here at 5am for Tanger Med. Why not put the boat back until the afternoon allowing those from Moulay and further to arrive? OR reopen the overspill place at Ksar el Sguir for everyone to collect for Monday morning. No facilities but extensive parking.. Simples.

I presume (dangerous) that they have taken into account the Spanish quarantine, do you think travelling through Spain in a motorhome can be counted as self isolation?"

Asilah is only about 90 minutes in a motorhome to Tanger Med, so a good position to be in.

I had already posted that it was Monday at 9am.

But it seems all is not clear with this ferry. The destination is no longer Algeciras, might be Malaga and if that doesn't work possibly Sete. The is an issue for the Embassy to resolve with the Spanish around the quarantine restrictions, they are also trying to source a new ferry as the deal with Intershipping seems to have fallen through as did Algeciras as a destination. It now might sail on Monday at 9 or Tuesday or maybe Wednesday.

So a brief recap on the Embassy's process for those just catching up :)
Asked to register details with them, done 6 times no response
Part way through the stop monitoring the email address they asked everyone to register at
Set up a new email for registration, but don't tell anyone the old email address isn't being monitored or the new email address to register
First contact from Embassy 30th March about the ferry to Sete organised by the French, great value for money at 1200 euros plus 200 for a cabin
5 weeks of silence
email 5th May regarding 2 more ferries arranged by the French but also telling us to book tickets via GNV on any dates available
48hours ago they contact some people telling them to get to Tanger Med asap for a ferry today
Last night change the info and contact more people, ferry no leaving Monday 18th May at 9am
Tell everyone to get travel authorisation and get to Tanger Med asap, but the don't tell you how to get it (great fun driving around random offices today with no support)
Inform people that the shouldn't have booked with GNV despite last week telling people to book with them GNV tickets non refundable
Now telling everyone hat a ferry might leave next week to somewhere, but they don't when or where
Lots of people (who got travel authorisation) now in the north of Morocco struggling to find somewhere to stay for the next few days.

A shining beacon of efficiency the whole way throughdoh

ah almost forgot, but the Spanish have announced they are running ferries to Spain for Spanish citizens doh

Ferry is now Tanger to Malaga, 250 euros per campervan 75 per passenger. Leaving on Thursday

To expand on post #212 above... From Tony and Jan in Zagora, "The Spanish are said to be organising a ferry from Tanger Med to Malaga on Friday 22 May for Spanish nationals and residents only. There may be others later. This will involve a strict 14 day quarantine for all arrivals."

Although Tony and Jan qualify for this ferry as Spanish residents they are currently planning to stay in Zagora.
______________________

>Tell everyone to get travel authorisation and get to Tanger Med asap, but don't tell you
>how to get it (great fun driving around random offices today with no support)

As you can see on post #205 the embassy did give instructions on how to get travel authorisation including a contact person and telephone number in case of difficulties. The problem is that the email wasn't as widely distributed as it should have been.
______________________

Whilst I don't like to join in the criticism of the Embassy without knowing their circumstances (staffing levels, other commitments), I do feel they are making a pigs ear out of this with their poor communications. At the very minimum they could have established a simple Facebook 'noticeboard' page that only they could post to, that gives up-to-date information and clear instructions. This would take minutes to achieve.

The UK embassy have established a WhatsApp group for those of us actually still in Morocco, many people reporting the same issues with lack of clear information and no information about where to get the travel authorisation.

Neighbours here from the UK had an email this morning asking if they had got he authorisation, I haven't had one. Neither of us have been given any information about where to get this from. We were told on Wednesday that we need to get it yesterday from near Agadir and we would be emailed with details. We went to Agadir and sent several messages requested the details and have still received nothing from the Embassy.

Currently the embassy seem to have 2 staff members coordinating the information and ferry but no consistency with the information provided.

Swiss nationals with us have just been told their ferry on the 26th to Genoa has been cancelled.

Oh, how frustrating.

It is indeed, those of us here appreciate the embassy staff are doing what they can and working hard but frustration is growing with everyone still here. (I'll hold my hands up to some posts being due to frustration ;) )

Hopefully Morocco's announcement on Monday re the lockdown will mean information becomes a bit more positive and accurate News that the UK and Spain are arranging ferries can only be good thing

State of Emergency just announced as extended to June 10th.

More later ;)

Yeah, just heard... :(
Keep us posted.

Morocco's state of emergency has now been extended by three weeks from 20 May to 10 June and ALL restrictions currently remain in place.

Although the country has done extremely well in preventing a wildfire spread of the virus, there remains 27 hotspots of high transmission. The total number of identified and tested cases is now at almost 7,000 however more than 3,750 patients have fully recovered and deaths have been restrained at just 192 in total.

The number of active cases (identified cases less recovered, less deaths) has dropped by 10% since 10 May and is now 3,002.

If the number of new cases continues to drop and testing is successfully ramped up with results in <24 hours, the government has said it plans to gradually lift some of the restrictions, with initial moves in the less affected areas.

Casablanca-Settat, Marrakech-Safi, Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima, and Fez-Meknes regions are described as "still worrying”, but the remaining regions have more or less contained the pandemic.

From @UKinMorocco tweet 21 hrs ago, "If you have already sent us your details you will be contacted by the ferry company Balearia shortly to book a ticket. Please note that this ferry departure is still subject to approval from the Moroccan and Spanish authorities which the British Embassy is urgently working on."

However... from @TSAReilly tweet 5 minutes ago, "For British nationals in campervans who wish to leave, we are organising a ferry (Tangier-Malaga) on Thursday"

So it looks as if it is going to happen.

They still don't have permission for the ferry and theres been some issues with the booking process. Its being left very last minute.

The Spanish organised ferry with Balearia has a online booking system set up, seems a bit odd when the UK organised ferry hasn't got the same. The UK gang have also been unable so far to resolve the issue of refunds for people who booked with GNV following their advice on the 5th of May.

Over the last few days several camper here have been able to obtain exceptional travel permits to allow them to move campsites without breaching the travel restrictions. Some people didn't realise how hot it was going to get in the south it seems

So do you think the Ambassador is tweeting this morning even though permissions haven't been obtained?

Yes, they have just posted in the WhatsApp group that final decision will be 13:00 today either to run the ferry or postpone it.

If it gets postponed it'll be the 3rd time in a week. I think they have also underestimated the number of UK vehicle here. Ok those who haven't registered won't be on the list but I've heard from people who have registered who haven't been contacted.

After 8 weeks in a very comfortable lock down its too uncertain for me to run too the port and potentially end up in a worse position. I also have a ticket I've purchased following the embassy's advice that at the moment I can't get a refund on. In total I hold 3 current ferry tickets, 2 I can't get a refund on and 1 I have a voucher for.

Breaking news, the ferry has approval now

Ambassador was a bit premature but maybe he had more confidence than those of us outside of the embassy. The experience with the Embassy has made some of us a bit wary about getting our hopes up too much.

I won't make this ferry but now the UK and Spanish have got Balearia into the mix with GNV hopefully the ferries with be a bit more certain.

58 places left on the ferry (I think that's about half capacity). People registered with embassy not contacted etc. They were posting at midnight last night trying to find more people to fill the ferry. Its great news for those with tickets but a fiasco organisation wise.

With over 120 bookings, it's two-thirds full, but the Embassy's inability to manage communications seems to be a repeated theme both during the coordination of air travellers and now with vehicle owners.

Many vehicle owners have felt unable to engage with this ferry crossing due to uncertainty as to whether it will take place plus an inability to get travel permissions. Tony and Jan in Zagora only received travel permission an hour or so back. If they had booked they would have lost their money.

The Embassy seems to have just woken up to the fact there's many dozens of non-vehicle owners still in the country yet people have been reporting this in responses to twitter feeds for weeks.

I heard that the ferry only takes either 120 or 150 campervans.

Communication has been shocking, inconsistent and contradictory In the last 2 weeks they told people to book with GNV, then told people they shouldn't have booked with GNV but the embassy has arranged full refunds and the email tonigh they state that refunds are nothing to do with them. All this came from 1 person in the embassy.

When I was contacted about this ferry last week I was told to go to Agadir immediately to get permission to travel and they would email details. So off we went, spent the day they running around, sending messages about getting the permission and got repeatedly told that they would email details.

3 days later they admitted they didn't know where we had to go and we only found out through other people here the location or the correct office.

1 lady with young children was in Dakhla waiting for permission yesterday morning with a 24 hour drive ahead of them to get to the ferry on time. Not sure they'll make it.

WhatsApp group members also reported inconsistent pricing on the ferry but I suspect they got confused between pounds and euros.

Other rumours are a Campervan club have begun legal action against the Spanish Authorities for only allowing Spanish nationals on the next 3 ferries to Malaga, and the plight of the French nationals was discussed on French national TV today. Reportedly over 5000 French campervans still in Morocco.

I've been chatting to a couple of contacts in the diplomatic service trying to get them interested in the idea of setting up a proper computer system that can better handle situations like this in the future, anywhere around the world.

I've not managed to get any interest so far but I've been pointed at a mailbox for people who have used consular services and would like to give feedback. Apparently they are processing replies, so it's actively monitored, the address is feedback.consular.services@fco.gov.uk

If you feel sufficiently motivated, I'd suggest you compose a blow-by-blow account of your experiences in dealing with the Embassy, and give it a few days before you submit it so you have chance to add in things you think of later.

You could usefully pass this email address on to others who are similarly affected.

Its almost like the Embassy has no crisis management system.

We all know that entries into and out of the country is logged into a computer system so any Embassy should be able to obtain a list of who is in the country at the start of any even and then its just a case of crossing people of as they are repatriated. With this situation people have had to register several times, details have been lost and people registered not contacted. Massive room for improvement.

Ferry has boarded and should be departing soon. Now we will see what happens with those still left. The next scheduled departure from our campsite is Wednesday heading for a ferry on the 1st June

>>"Its almost like the Embassy has no crisis management system."
That's my whole point. It seems to be scraping info from incoming emails and sticking into a spreadsheet or something equally basic.

Travellers from 20 countries are now boarding today's ferry from Tanger Med to Málaga (capacity 180 vehicles).

There's a ferry for British nationals to Gibraltar tomorrow, tweet from the Ambassador, @TSAReilly, "We are organising a ferry from Tangier to Gibraltar tomorrow for British nationals. There are four places left. You will need to book overnight accommodation on Friday & Saturday night in Gibraltar and book into the BA flight to London on Sunday."

There's a 'La Méridionale' ferry open to both vehicle owners and foot passengers leaving Tanger Med on 27 May heading for Marseille. Application form is at https://framaforms.org/meridionale-d...mai-1589903490

I think even a spreadsheet is a advanced concept for the way they are operating, I think its limited to looking at what emails are in the top of their Inbox and no further processing than that.

A while back I contacted my MP, who has been fantastic so far (and I didn't even vote for him)

Yesterday he forwarded an email from the FCO stating I have a ticket for the 26th, well that's news to me. Either they've done something and not told me or the 5 times I've informed them I have a ticket for the 13th June hasn't been registered anywhere.

The State of Emergency will be extended until 10 July. The government says it hopes to gradually ease the lockdown restrictions and some more details may be provided tomorrow.

The annual influx of ex-pat Moroccans returning overland for the summer holidays normally starts around 15 July and many will be hoping they will be able to visit as usual this year.

There seems to be a spike in the number of new infections. After a week of daily figures ranging from 33 to 81 new cases per day, the government announced 135 new cases of infection for the last 24 hours which is the highest figure for 28 days.

From 11 June some restrictions are being released nationwide with resumption of economic activities in industries, shops, local activities and trades and souqs. Not included in this are cafes, on-site restaurants, hammams, cinemas, theatres.

Morocco is being divided into two zones that have differing amounts of restrictions. In zone 2 people still need authorisation to travel and shops will close at 8pm. Public transport will reopen with a capacity of 50%. As you can see from the map below this zone includes most of the Atlantic coast from Tanger to El Jadida, plus Marrakech, Fez and El Hajeb (NW of Azrou).

In the least infected zone 1 travel within the province no longer requires an exceptional authorisation, ditto local circulation. Public gardens will reopen, walking and cycling is permitted.

Tim, do you know if "The Warden" ever made it out of Morocco, or is he still stuck there?

Michael

I don't know. He writes above that he had a ticket for yesterday which I think was to Algeciras or Málaga.

I have friends in Essaouira with a Defender who are looking to cross to Spain in a week or so.

Another couple made it back to the UK several days ago, taking Brittany Ferries boat from northern Spain to the UK. They were one of only four non-freight vehicles on the boat—bars and food outlets closed, but food brought to the cabin if needed.

Thanks Tim.

Michael

Michael, are you back in Toronto, or still stuck in Tunisia? I've been feeling guilty for months now about downplaying your concerns, then added a portion of survivor's guilt when I baled on my own trip and narrowly escaped getting stuck myself.

Mark

I'm still here

Been having a bit of a nightmare week

Ferry got cancelled, no refund voucher only :nono:

Got a travel permit, not quite as smooth as should have been but its in hand

Embassy still shockingly incompetant

GNV Ferry tomorrow to Sete, I have a voucher for that route, can't use it, can't get a place on the ferry

Balearia sail to Malaga Wednesday and Thursday, can't get a place

Left the coast to head north as the embassy said they could get me on the GNV or Balearia Ferry

Met a very shouty angry gendarme, who made us go to a hotel in Khenifra, no hotels open doh

Met nice police to gave us permission to camp anywhere in the city. Carrefour carpark was great, and we could buy beer in the morning

Great day in the middle atlas (avoiding coastal Zone 2)

Arrived in Chefchaouen, told city closed despite being Zone 1 and having a permit, told campsite was closed and full, got angry with the police, allowed in, campsite deserted except 2 French yoghurt pots

Police on campsite gates, and driving around with megaphones, seems Chefchaouen didn't get the memo about Zone 1 :oops2:

Embassy sent a link to register for Baleria ferries, 36 hours after registration closed doh

Embassy don't respond to emails or messages, no news on ferries 600 miles driven looks to be wasted :(

But friends drove to the port last week, no ticket or permit, bought a ticket and got on the next ferry so I'm trying that tomorrow and Wednesday, if it doesn't work I'll head south again and join up with some friends

I was in contact with Michael the other day and he is back home.

As you said you were feeling guilty I was sorely tempted to say that he was still there and he just been thrown in gaol and having to do hard labour but I am a good person. Sometimes.

Thanks for the update. I will release my guilt to the universe (which, by some accounts, could use a boost), at least until I hear details involving significant suffering and deserved, proportional blame.

Hi Mark:

I escaped Tunisia on April 4th, after passing about 3 weeks' time in lockdown in hotels in Djerba.

The Tunisians arranged one repatriation flight (only!) from Tunis to Canada - I was able to get a ticket on it.

All things considered, I was very, very impressed with how Tunisia coped with this pandemic. Their lockdown was swift and brutal - as a result, the country of 11 million has only suffered 1,000 infections since the pandemic began. On the 500 km ride from Djerba up to Tunis, I think I saw less than a dozen other vehicles on the motorway - I did the whole motorway trip at wide open throttle, about 190 km/h.

Tunisian customs were very kind and understanding - normally, you have to take your vehicle out when you leave, but due to the pandemic, all they asked was that you leave your name, contact information, and the vehicle key with the customs office at the airport. The vehicle itself could be left anywhere in the country, you didn't have to tell customs where you left it. I left my bike in a diplomatic compound, and hope to go back and continue my ride in Tunisia sometime this fall.

Michael

Excellent news, thanks! Any remnant feelings of guilt have now been expunged. Enjoy!

Churchill, speaking to the House of Commons in 1942 about the victory at the Battle of Alamein and what it meant for the war is recorded as saying, "Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning."

And so it is with Morocco.

From Thursday 25 June Fez, Casablanca and some other regions will move into the zone 1 (less affected) category leaving ONLY Marrakech and the northern section of the Atlantic Coast (Tanger, Asilah, Larache, Kenitra) in more restricted zone 2.

Also from 25 June, domestic life is restarting. Many of the zone 1 restrictions are being released. Hotels, cafes, restaurants, hammams, beaches and gyms will be allowed to operate at 50% capacity. Domestic flights will resume and travel will be allowed on autoroutes and main roads between cities without the need for authorisation documents. You can read more about this here: https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/202...ls-on-june-24/

We still don't know when we, as visitors, will be allowed back in the country. But with the relaxation of Spain's borders we can hope that those motorhome and 4x4 owners still stuck in Morocco can at last bid farewell and join their friends and families back home.

Morocco still has a way to go in fighting the pandemic. There's been a major spike in new infections this week, but the country is working to contain these and still seems well positioned. All patients across Morocco needing hospitalisation are now being treated in two specialist locations, one to the east of Casablanca at Benslimane, the other to the north of Marrakech at Ben Guerir, freeing up other hospitals to resume their normal caseloads. Fatalities have thankfully been extremely low, with only 13 announced in the last three weeks.

At the moment the Moroccan authorities are focused on bringing home an estimated 30,000 citizens still stranded overseas. On their return the travellers are undergoing mandatory 14-day isolation in holiday apartments close to airports such as Tetouan and Oujda.

Next month the annual Operation Marharba will start, welcoming ex-pat Moroccans back for their annual summer holidays. Most of these will travel overland and 23 ferry boats have been identified landing ex-pats in Tanger Med, Tanger Ville, Nador and Al Hoceima. This year's traffic volumes is expected to be lower than the 2.5 million passengers in 600,000 vehicles of normal years.

Various dates have been bandied about for the start with most plumping for 15 July. In previous years, arrivals have peaked in the last week of July, with return traffic peaking towards the end of August. Clearly this second group of travellers can't be expected to self-isolate for 14 days.

This *may* give some indication as to when Morocco will start to allow foreign visitors to enter the country. On the other hand, the authorities may decide to only allow Moroccan citizens and families to enter.

Well that glow of hope didn't last well.

Despite planning going on for the past few weeks, Operation Marharba 2020 has now been cancelled.

It was decided that the current health protocols couldn't be bypassed and these would have required placing Moroccans coming from abroad in a nine-day quarantine period. And in order to leave quarantine, the person concerned would have to take two consecutive COVID-19 screening tests that both yield negative results.

Still spiking which may set things back.
https://www.worldometers.info/corona...ountry/morocco

Steadily rising number of cases in Mauretania also doesnt look good for travel for quite a while
https://www.worldometers.info/corona...ry/mauritania/

Got back from Morocco to the UK yesterday via a GNV Ferry to Sete, a drive through France and then the ferry to Newhaven.

Very noticeable as I travelled further north that the virus issues in the worse hit countries simply aren't being taken seriously.

Tanger Med departure was similar to normal but with 3 searches of vehicles for some reason. Lots of security people reinforcing the wearing of masks and social distancing. Before boarding the captain of GNV Cristal was personally checking temperatures of passengers.

On boards masks were required out of your cabin but this was ignored by many people, alaramingly more by the Europeans than the Moroccan nationals. The people travelling with dogs also roamed freely around all area of the ship letting their pets leave mess wherever the did their business..

Arriving in France, French fire brigade completed a questionnaire wih each person basically asking is you had COVID-19. No temperature checks and obviously nobody would admit if they had symptomsdoh.

Then we were free to leave and go wherever we wanted. I don't know france terribly well but many towns and villages looked like business as normal. Hug numbers of campervans around from across Europe, I saw French, german, swiss, Austrian and dutch vehicles as I travelled north.

Before getting the ferry from Dieppe I had to sign a disclaimer saying I don't have COVID 19 and fill in the UK's idiotic online form about where I was doing my 14 day isolation. Arriving in the UK there was no screening or checks for the virus at all. Wearing of masks for passport control was required but then your asked by Border Force to remove it so they can see you facedoh

Absolutely stunned by the behaviour of people as I dove home from Newhaven. Given the UK is one of the worst hit European countries it was astonishing to see people behaviour.

If it wasn't for a few personal reasons, I think I would have turned round and gone back to Morocco, much safer.

Oh and as I arrived in France our Embassy contacted me to say they had got me a place on a ferry with Balearia on the 1st despite them getting a ferry via them with GNV and me confirming that with them last week. The incompetence is staggering.

I've been asked by the Ambassador to provide feedback on the Embassy performance so I will be writing a detailed report with areas for improvement shortly

As of yesterday there's apparently still upwards of 20 British owned vehicles in Morocco.

Is that the figure the embassy are aware of, or from Moroccan customs?

Personally I know of over 20 vehicles there and 75% aren't registered with the embassy

Glad to hear that you made it back to the UK.
Yeah, lots of folks here in France are not taking the virus seriously, and it is a shame.
What next ? A few days days off by the ocean to recharge your batteries :innocent:?

Welcome home. That was quite an ordeal you went through, my 3 week quarantine in Tunisia & subsequent 2 week quarantine in Canada pales by comparison.

Michael

Thanks, to be honest the lockdown in Morocco wasn't an ordeal but an absolute pleasure. We had a great group of 38 refugees at the campsite who all got on fantastically, lots of freedom as well.

The ordeal was dealing with the Embassy and all the bad information circulating on social media and forums.

Whats next? well that depends on Covid-19 now, after 3 months relaxing by the ocean (and I live next to the ocean in the UK) I could do with some desert R&R. But hopefully I will be back out in Morocco in October with some customers

Welcome back:rolleyes2:
We've been lucky as we live in a rural area but some people's actions (encouraged by Billy Bunter telling them to return to "hustle and bustle" has been shocking) However we live on the border of England and Wales. So as of July the 4th when the pubs open in our local town things could turn nasty. For non UK people, Wales remains in lockdown but England is a free for all:-( more so from July 4th.
Anyway at this rate I may see you back in Morocco in October, but who knows!

And thanks for your updates (and Tim) on here, as you say lots of junk, rumour, weird opinions around.

Although Spain plans to open its borders and ports with Morocco from possibly as early as 1 July, I doubt that Morocco will reciprocate. It's currently in the middle of repatriating 30,000+ Moroccans who've been stuck overseas for all this time. They are being flown into minor airports such as Beni Mellal and then being strictly isolated for a nine-day quarantine.

I should have thought the authorities would want to take the same precautions with other arrivals. If asked to guess I would put end July as the earliest date for opening up for tourism without quarantine, but it could be weeks or months longer.

Spanish sources in Ceuta are being even more pessimistic and talking about the borders being closed for the remainder of 2020, see https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/202...-until-winter/

However Morocco World News doesn't have a good track record of properly investigating stories before publishing, and this comment may well be related to the separate issues regarding the land borders of Ceuta and Melilla. Morocco is looking to halt the long-established procedure of women 'mules' bringing smuggled items across the border.

I would take a MWN report based on statements from the Mayor of Ceuta with a big pinch of salt.

As you say there are long term political issues around these borders and recently the right wing Spanish parties have been stirring the hornets nest on the issue in Spain.

The Spanish ferry operators aren't going to be happy to see their customer base switch to French or Italian routes if the border doesn't reopen.

I suspect that what may happen is the border with Spain reopens between the mainland and Morocco but the borders of Ceuta and Mellilia could stay closed for longer with the political wrangling.

When the UK Embassy emailed people about ferries to Spain a few days ago they stated Spain was still trying to repatriate 16000 nationals stuck in Morocco. A figure that is hard to believe after 3 months of closed borders.

Conversation 2 weeks ago with the POrt Director at Tanger Med revealed that the EU arranged repatriation ferries that week were prioritising Moroccan nationals with EU residency over EU Citizens (a point raised with the UK embassy and FCO, who failed to respond). Theres a lot more politics going on over the border closure and who gets in or out than any media outlet is reporting.

There were 2 Tanger Med-Algeciras ferries this week ( yesterday and today, I believe ).
Both were ( are ) full. A ( European ) friend of mine couldn't get a ticket.
Next one to Algeciras is scheduled for July 8.

Ferries on the 1st and 2nd July with Balearia to Algeciras. UK Embassy had 4 vehicle spaces on them I think and some Danish friends are on the one on the 1st (they seemed to have non of the problems getting on itthe UK people have)

Thanks for correcting me. These are the ones.

News just in

EU has agreed to opening its border with Morocco from the 1st, now we wait to see if Morocco opens its border to the EU:thumbup1:

Here's a link to an article on BBC News that documents the EU reopening on July 1 to travelers from a number of countries deemed "safe", including Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia:

Coronavirus: EU to allow in visitors from 14 'safe' countries

Presumably this will be reciprocated by the above 3 North African countries... but that is not yet confirmed.

Until the end of this year, UK citizens will be treated as if they are residents of the EU. After that, nobody knows - maybe ask Boris.

Michael

If the UK had left by now, me and many other travellers would still be stuck with no way home until Morocco decides on borders opening

"Please post useful info here which will can be of use to other travellers.
Not all who use this forum choose to post, but they made need info.

Please limit chit chat or speculation to other threads or websites."

Ah, fair cop :D I'll edit my post.

But it is valid in a way. Its only that UK is in transition that UK nationals have been able to benefit from the repatriation services run by other EU embassies. If we were out we would be stuck like other travellers still in Morocco.

I heard some Canadians, managed to get on a ferry to Barcelona, but on arrival were given 3 choices, 14 days quarantine at their expense, 3 days quarantine in a police cell and then deportation back to Morocco, or stay on the ferry and see if Italy let them in.

Tony and Jan Johnson are heading for Tanger right now, with a ticket for the Baleària ferry 2pm tomorrow (1 July). So fingers crossed.

As previously noted, I doubt Morocco will open its borders to accept holidaymakers for quite some time.

if you manage to get in to Morocco, coming back to the UK (as opposed to EU)...

You will still have to isolate for 14 days if you arrive from anywhere in North, Central or South America - plus Africa, the Middle East and most of Asia.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-53283375

Were you told to do this Mark? Probably not.

Yes I was told briefly.

Its ludicrous that Morocco hasn't been included in the list.

Leaving we were screening and temps checked before boarding the ferry. Arriving in France theres a 10-15 question list basically asking if you've got the virus and medical staff greeting arrivals.

I had to fill in the ridiculous online form 48 hours before arriving in the UK, most of the questions were to collate personal data the government already have before the quarantine info. You then need a copy of that form to enter, electronic is ok but they email you a link to a pdf version but the link doesn't work.

Before boarding the ferry to UK I had to sign a form declaring I didn't have the virus. On arrival in the UK at Newhaven there was zero screening or concern about the virus. Masks are mandatory but then border force ask you to remove it.

Both on the way out in March and the recent return, the countries with the worst number of cases performed the worst and trying to control things at borders, no wonder they got hot hard compared to Morocco.

Still no news (or facts) about Morocco's borders just lots and lots of unfounded rumours circulating the internets.

Updated information in Morocco and a few questions.
 

My husband and I have been stuck in Morocco since the external borders closed with our US registered Sprinter van. We have been following the news to see when we can hopefully get back to the EU and ship back to the US from Antwerp.

From what I have read, this is what is current as of yesterday.

1) Morocco's external borders are still closed. No announced scheduled date of reopening of the border.

2) The Council of the EU recommended opening it's borders to 15 countries outside the Schengen area and Morocco was on the list. Spain, Germany, & The Czech Republic have banned entry from Morocco since Morocco's borders have not opened. But, it appears that it was based on reciprocity. There is a list of exceptions to this ban, one of which is "transiting passengers".

3) Americans are not on the list of 15 approved countries allowed to enter the EU / Schengen areas.

4)We were able to book a ferry ticket from Tanger Med to Algeciras for July 11, 2020 on AML, but are assuming the Moroccan border will not open and / or the EU will not let us in.

5)I am starting to look into shipping from Morocco to the US. Does anyone have any recommendations? Although this is a bit less appealing as we can's fly back to the US from here at the moment either. The only repatriation flight in the future is on the 15th and it's full.

I don't know if this information assists anyone, but if you have questions about the above, please let me know.

Thank you.
LeeWhay

Thanks for your info.

Have you not thought of leaving your van and flying back to US until it's all cleared up?
You can do so easily with Customs at the airport for up to six months.
Van can be left anywhere you choose. See sticky thread on this topic.
That's what I did with my bike back in March.

Shipping vs storing...
 

Chris,

Thank you for your response. We have thought about that option multiple times over the last few months, but don't want to leave our van in Morocco when we don't know when we will be able to return to Morocco and continue to travel. Temporary import is also limited to 6 months. We are aware that the whole lockdown has changed the timeline, but exactly how, we don't know. We have already been in Morocco with this vehicle almost 5 months.

With all that has been happening around the world, we feel that "overlanding" will be heavily effected by COVID-19 for the next year or two. It may be best for us to pause our travels and return to the US. Our van is our "home" and we don't want to leave it behind.

Too bad our paths didn't cross while you were in Morocco. We have used your book, "Morocco Overland" when we have been able to move and have found it very useful. We planned on sending you some tracks we did between Icht and Samara with some comments on current information if you are interested in it. Thank you for sharing your information.

-LeeWhay

In that case I think Casablanca port is your best option for shipping to North America.
The advice is choose the busiest port – Casa or Tangier I'd guess.
If it doesn't fit in a container and needs to go on a rack, try and seal off the cabin, lock gear in screwed down trunks, then sprinkle it all with holy water for good measure.
It may be an idea not to leave Mk before your van does.

Glad the book was useful.
New routes and updates always welcome.

Chris,
Thank you for your assistance. We appreciate your thoughts.
LeeWhay

Rumour has it that the Government will discuss the state of Emergency tomorrow.

So we can probably expect an announcement at 17:59 on Fridaydoh. Gut feeling is the State of Emergency will be extended again after the increase in cases and the need to lock Safi down last weekend.

What this means for the borders remains to be seen

My musings posted yesterday on TripAdvisor...

"Whilst the number of detected cases continues to rise, with a recent spike in the Atlantic coast town of Safi, the overall situation remains under control with many of the cases being asymptomatic and only detected through test-and-trace procedures. Total recorded infections are around 14,500 and active cases are about 4,000. Deaths thankfully at a low figure of 237.

Since the state of emergency was declared, Morocco has assisted with the return of tens of thousands of European, American and other tourists to their home countries. The majority of those with vehicles have also been enabled to leave.

More than 45,000 Moroccans living abroad who were stranded in Morocco when the borders closed have been assisted to return to their country of residence, whilst additional repatriation ferries are being organised 13-20 July to allow 1,800 Moroccan families with vehicles to exit to Spain and France.

Initially Morocco asked all citizens who were away from the country to stay in place and more than 30,000 were affected. In the last three weeks 10,700 have arrived home on 74 repatriation flights. At the moment these passengers are being checked for Covid-19 on arrival and if positive the passenger would be removed to hospital. Those testing negative are housed in otherwise empty tourist hotels across the country for nine days and if they remain negative for a second test, they are then allowed home where they are expected to self-isolate for a further five days.

Many thousands more stranded Moroccans are expected to be repatriated and plans are afoot to change the procedure. Those who test negative will be allowed to return home to self-isolate for 14 days. They will have to sign a declaration agreeing to honour the terms of the quarantine, have to download and activate the Wiqaytna tracking application on their smartphones, and also repeat blood tests every day of the quarantine period.

The current state of emergency is due to end 10 July though restrictions may continue after this date even if the state of emergency is not extended.

Morocco has not announced or even given any indication when it will open its borders for foreign tourists by ferry or airplane. Some days of notice will be required by the companies concerned before they can resume flights."

____________

I know many businesses in Morocco are really hurting and desperate to welcome visitors once more, but I still feel this can't happen just yet.

Firstly, I can't see the government, on one hand saying the thousands of Moroccans returning from abroad in the next couple of weeks have to quarantine for 14 days, and then on the other hand allowing tourists in without quarantine.

Secondly, Morocco cancelled Marharba Operation which was pencilled in to start 15 July, and which would have welcomed probably in excess of 1.5 million Moroccans living abroad, returning for their summer holidays. Why would they do this if the borders were likely to be opened?

I would love to be proved wrong on this, but can't see much change before the end of July.

And then today...

"From midnight 14 July, which I take to mean from 00:01 on Wednesday 15 July, Morocco will reopen its border, allowing foreign residents normally living in Morocco who have been unable until now to return, to enter the country. Moroccan citizens currently out of the country will also be allowed to return.

Ferries will only be allowed from Sète in France and Genoa in Italy. Airlines will be allowed to operate. All passengers will be required to be screened for Covid-19 with 48 hours of boarding ferries or airlines.

Foreign tourists will NOT be allowed to enter the country at this stage."

More information:https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/202...dents-july-14/

___________

There seems to be some reluctance on the Moroccan side to restart ferries with Spain, or to reopen Ceuta and Melilla borders. Not sure what's behind this.

News coming out from this mornings meeting that the State of Emergency will be extended until the 10th August.

Not really a surprise given the number of active cases has risen sharply since the easing of lockdown measures since the 12th.

Yesterdays news on the border restrictions easing for Moroccans and residents of Morocco is timed nicely for Eid at the end of the month, giving MRE's time to get to family and quarantine before the festivities, and give certainty that they can leave again afterwards. The relaxation also corresponds to the planned start date for the cancelled Operation Marhaba.

Still a lot of tourists with vehicle waiting for news. I've been helping quite of few Brits still out there the last couple of weeks. 6 vehicles out this week to Algeciras and Sete, and another 10 trying to get ferries next week. The heat wave of the last fortnight has pushed things for many, 47 degrees at Terre D'Ocean overnight reported by friends there.

It's certainly been unpleasantly hot overnight, but 47ºC would be impossible. After all, that's close to the historic record for Morocco of 48.9ºC which was set in Marrakech in the early afternoon of 17 July 2012.

The highest overnight reading in the past fortnight at Taghazout was 31ºC at 2am on 7 July. Highest daytime temperature was 36ºC.

But nevertheless, sticky. I could handle the daytime temperature but 31ºC at night is pretty hard.

So ferries are currently running to Algeciras?

Chris, the Spanish have been running ferries to Algeciras for a few weeks now but these are repatriation ferries so not straight forward to get onto. You need to complete an online form with Balearia, then inform the embassy and hope you name comes up in the list. It has been getting easier to get on these as a no Spanish resident as time comes on. 2 more ferries this week scheduled.

Of course, no one can get into Morocco unless you hold residency or a citizen

Agadir Al Massira recorded a temp of 49.5 on Monday evening, 0.1 degree of the record of 49.6 at Marrakech.

Ta. I was hoping I might get my bike transported to Algeciras, but from what you say repat ferries sound too complicated or not applicable.

To get it to Sete or Genoa will cost loads.

Freight services are still running to Algeciras, so theoretically if you could get it on a truck heading to Spain then it would be possible without the headache of the repat services.

But I'm not sure how you would deal with the TVIP side of things

As predicted above by The Warden, the state of emergency which was due to end today (10 July) has been extended for another month until 10 August.

@Chris: Tony and Jan's 'experience' on a repatriation ferry to Algeciras (they are Spanish residents)...

Thought we'd share the chaos of the ferry with you as we enjoy our glass of wine looking at our clearing pool! Spain Embassy reported a load of 800 people and 200 cars. At the wharf the resto was closed but there was a great carnival atmosphere. Clearly most people were Moroccans travelling on Spanish plates. However on the ferry there could be no attempt at social distancing. There were horizontal bodies everywhere. Very few masks and a cacophony of noise that would have woken the devil. Against all of this there was the amazing sight of 2 Spanish dolly birds at the shop. One controlling the queue and one taking the money. Surreal. Needless to say the shop was ravaged. On disembarkation the crew were risking their lives trying to control the exit flow. In the end it was a free for all so the Defender ruled supreme. Aviva Balearia

interesting article on Bladi this morning regarding border opening.

The Moroccan authorities are reported as saying this week partial opening is a trial run to see how things go before a full opening.

While this is a sensible strategy, they seem to be entirely focussed on internal tourism, often saying the 2020 tourism season is finished.

However, its the international tourism that accounts for 80% of their tourist income. Peak season for international travel is April and October and also good numbers over the Christmas/New Year period. If they sdon't make an announcement soon they risk losing the autumn season as Europeans are looking to book holiday now. Even if they said they will reopen on a certain date subject to the virus being under control and will be reviewed, it'll give the tourism industry some hope that 2020 isn't completely dead.

Other news, Tangier has been locked down again as of 12:00 today

Moroccan customs have extended the Temporary Vehicle Import Period due to the Coronavirus restrictions. All TVIP's will be extended until the 31st December 2020

https://fr.le360.ma/economie/la-doua...ulees-a-219421

There is also a lot of unconfirmed rumours circulating the internet and particularly social media about people on Tourist Visas being required to leave by the 10th of August.

At this time the only official statement from the Moroccan Authorities was made on the 17th March stating overstays on visas will not be fined during the State of Emergency. The current State of Emergency is due to finish on the 10th August so this situation stays in place until then.

The UK FCO Travel Advice has confirmed there is no requirement to leave before the 10th of August. This was reconfirmed with the UK Ambassador meeting with Moroccan authorities recently.

At this time there has been no further statement regarding Visas or the State of Emergency from the Moroccan Authorities. I will of course post an update as soon as we hear more

The news about having to leave by 10 August was released a couple of days ago. Due to the lockdown, the Moroccan government allowed non residents to remain in the country past the 90 day limit that is normally given to visitors. The government has now announced that with the relaxation of travel restrictions from 15 July, non-residents are now permitted to leave the country and indeed MUST LEAVE BY 10 AUGUST.

This should not be a problem for most visitors still in the country, except those wishing to exit via ferry to Spain as the borders are not open and ferries are not running.

I am aware of a couple of people who have tried to get an extension until after 10 August and they have been turned away by the authorities in Casablanca.

MoroccoWorldNews report: https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/202...-by-august-10/

Not sure how much I would make of the fact there's no mention of this on the FCO travel advice. Was the reconfirmation with the UK Ambassador after 16 July?

Thats not the case, Morocco has made no official announcement about visas since the 17th of March statement that overstay will not be penalised during the state of emergency.

MWN's original headline stated that people had to leave but the article content didn't say anything like that. It said that there will be no fines for overstaying if you leave before the 10th of August, the same as the situation has been for the last few months. Following a lot of criticism they eventually edited the headline to the one linked above which cites the US embassy as a source.

It goes on the say people MAY have to go through the process of legalising their visa states.

Even the US Embassy information does not say people must leave by the 10th. The other source sometime posted allegedly saying people have to leave is the German embassy. But again the statement from the german embassy doesn't actually say people have to leave.

Neither the French, Spanish or UK embassies have changed thier information about visas or having to leave the county.

Despite this "news" circulating for several days now, nobody has been able to provide an official statement from the Moroccan Government that confirms it.

The reality of the situation (ignoring MWN's poor reputation for accurate reporting) is that overstays will not be penalised during the State of Emergency. The current SOE ends on the 10th. At the moment no one knows what will happen after the 10th until Morocco decides. So they are just stating the same situation as things have been for the last few months.

The UK Embassy have stated officially that people DO NOT have to leave by the 10th. The confirmation of this following the meeting between the UK Ambassador and Moroccan Foreign Minister was made YESTERDAY. The Foreign Minister confirmed that while the borders stay closed there will be no fines for overstays.

Other news
Reports yesterday that a ferry from Genoa to Tanger Med has been stopped from docking after 3 cases of CORVID-19 were found on board. The reports state that the ferry is anchored somewhere between Malaga and Morocco, however searches on Marinetraffic.com have failed to locate the ferry. There was a ferry from Sete anchored of Tanger Med which late last night docked at Tanger Med

One of the fascinating things about this pandemic is the terrible job many countries have made of communicating decisions and public information in a clear and precise manner.

I see the MWN report has changed its wording since I first linked it, and it now says, "non-resident foreigners who were unable to leave Morocco within the normal 90-day limit will be permitted to exit without penalty until the end of Morocco’s state of emergency on August 10. Those who do not leave before the specified time may need to go through a legal process of fixing their immigration status and could be subject to fines or imprisonment."

The US government site states, "The Government of Morocco has also announced the partial reopening of its borders... starting on July 15... to allow Moroccan residents to return and foreign citizens to depart the country. Under this special operation, U.S. citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs) in Morocco will be permitted to depart the country. According to the Ministry of Interior, non-resident foreign citizens who were unable to depart Morocco within the normal 90-day limit will be permitted to exit without a fine until August 10."

My reading of both of the above is that foreign non residents MUST leave the country by 10 August to avoid a fine and possible future exclusion. I can only pass on what I read. If anything I post is my personal view I make this clear.

________________________________

A little taster of the real world situation for Moroccans trying to take a ferry back to Morocco... https://www.h24info.ma/maroc/pagaill...tion-du-maroc/

A more positive report: https://www.h24info.ma/maroc/nador-a...nance-de-sete/

________________________________

In the meantime, Morocco is moving today (Sunday 19 July 2020) to the third phase of gradual lifting of the lockdown. It is not clear whether this affects the whole country, but I imagine the regions currently most restricted (Tanger, Asilah, Larache, Kenitra, Safi and Marrakech) are NOT included, but if you are likely to be affected you should check my supposition.

Under the third phase, tourist establishments such as hotels are able to operate at 100% capacity however at only 50% capacity in common areas such as restaurants and swimming pools. Small gatherings of less than 20 people are allowed. Public transport may now operate at 75% capacity. Museums and other cultural institutions can reopen at 50%.

I really don't see how either statement can be interpreted as a MUST leave when its dependent on the SOE finishing. We've already seen it extended several times now and it could well be extended past the 10th August. For the requirement to be a MUST leave then the borders need to be fully open and the SOE finished.

Also a bit weird how the Moroccan Authorities are advising the US one thing and the UK another, and there's still no official statement from the Moroccan Government on the matter.

Then theres the stories emerging over the last 48hours of people trying to leave and being denied travel or sent back to Morocco because of their nationality. US citizens in particular seem to be having a hard time. One reported landing in Europe yesterday to transit back to the states and getting put straight back on a flight to Morocco.

France has now stopped the Sete ferries running until the 22nd, something that was rumoured yesterday. Leaving people the only option of a repat ferry to Spain or a GNV ferry to Genoa, leaving limited options for people with vehicles to leave.

The problem is, we are trying to make sense of a situation in which the information being supplied is incomplete, possibly inaccurate and put together by amateur journalists at Morocco World News who seem incapable of following up stories (I say this as an NUJ press card-carrying journalist of more than ten years).

The British Embassy in Rabat has been lamentable throughout this crisis with no clear means of communication with citizens—it would have been SOOO easy to set up a Facebook account dedicated to announcements. And in the middle of this confusion about whether or not foreigners should leave I can't find a single message from the Embassy trying to clarify this one way or the other. And even if I could, I don't know if I would trust it to be true based on all the c*ck-ups from the Embassy so far. So this is my current reading of the situation...

On 17 March the Moroccan Ministry of Interior announced that "foreigners who recently entered Morocco and were unable to depart the country within 90 days due to the closure of borders and airspace will be permitted to exit without a fine when the borders and airspace reopen."

The borders and airspace have now been reopened for non-resident foreigners and they are being asked to leave.

IMHO I believe choosing a date of 10 August as the day by which these visitors must leave the country confuses the situation as people then think it's to do with the State of Health Emergency. The declaration of emergency merely gives the government additional powers, it's not directly related to the timing of any of the decisions the government makes.

Yes, this won't run smoothly—Royal Air Maroc has refused boarding to a couple who bought tickets to Istanbul (to where they were legally able to travel), one person who is in Morocco to get married has been refused an extension, you've noted others.

We are both aware that some visitors still can't leave with their vehicles, and some ferry services are said to be affected by infections amongst the crew. But the authorities are allowing an extension of the temporary importation until the end of the year so it sounds like they are expected to fly home and return to collect their vehicle towards the end of this year—if they are allowed back in by then!!

And yes, some may now have limited funds for the flights, but their Embassy may be able to help. Some Embassies hold onto their passport as surety for any loan and issue temporary documents to travel back home on. This is the UK government's page on assistance: https://www.gov.uk/government/public...istance-abroad

Whether it's the 10 August or a later date, there's the issue of how do the authorities inform all the non-resident foreigners currently in Morocco of the need to leave? Will this require individual visits from the police using the information on the accommodation registration card system?

All of this is my reading of the limited information currently to hand. I could be wrong on some or all of it. I'm not the only one who is confused, Moroccans are also complaining on other news sites about the lack of clarity on this issue.

A frustrating situation for all.

Our embassy continue to be useless for those trying to get out. I've spent a lot of time over the last few weeks helping those still there with info. So far 1 family with young children and the rest of my Imsouane lock down gang are either out or leave this week on repat ferries to Spain.

But I have another contact who has been trying to get a place via the embassy for 8 weeks and has been completely overlooked. The contact at the embassy doesn't respond and then, if they do lies about the information. I've given the people looking for a ferry another way of reaching more senior people and it seems to be having some effect.

Theres still quite a few Brits ambling around morocco in vans etc who seem quite happy at the moment

Swedish, Australian and Candian Embassies have all confirmed that ther is not requirement to leave before the 10th of August now. Several people have also had this confirmed when trying to extend visas with local authorities.

Today the Morocco Desert Challenge have decided to postpone the 2020 event (rescheduled for September) until 2021. This is a decision made by the competitors and organisers rather than due to the situation in Morocco, mostly because of uncertainty with further outbreaks. Full announcement on th MDC Webpage and social media

New lockdowns in the big Cities this week starting last Sunday at midnight prompted unprecedented scenes as people tried to get out in time. Massive traffic jams and lots of bad accidents on the roads as a result.

The new lockdowns were implemented as a result of the increasing number of active cases over the end of last week and the weekend. Unfortunately the mass exodus as already resulted in Coronavirus cases being discovered in areas which had remained free so far. 2 cases brought into Boudenib yesterday by people fleeing Tangier.

UK Embassy has changed its position on the rumoured 10th of August deadline as of Friday. However they decided not to publish the information widely. I had to email embassy contacts to confirm the change and remind them to update the Social Media and FCO pages doh

Yesterday the French Embassy updated their advice, but no mention of the 10th of August deadline (nor any official statement from the Moroccan Gov yet). Several reports online of people asking the authorities and getting contradictory information.

At face value it seems Morocco maybe heading for a 2nd lockdown having lost control over recent weeks and I certainly expect the SOE to be extended after the 10th August now. As ever its hard to 2nd guess what they will do or what will happen with the pandemic

Thanks for the update.

At a glance the graphs here look grim:
https://www.worldometers.info/corona...ountry/morocco
Looks like a 3rd spike in active cases, but worth remebering how tiny the actual numbers are.
Much less than 1% of UK deaths, for example.

So it's the strict restrictions/controls holding back the return of tourism rather than an actual risk of contagion.

Very valid point Chris, and something many people overlook. Certainly some of the expat orientated groups seem to think that Morocco is a war zone when it comes to the virus and over look just how low the numbers are.

IMHO the SoE will get extended again but hopefully at around the 10th they may make some statements about international tourism. Any longer and I think they will lose the October peak season completely and pretty much the whole 2020 business.

They country has got a bit lax over the last few weeks with mask and distancing and combined with the partial border reopening ahead of Eid would account the rise in cases. Optimistically they can regain control over that with these latest lockdowns and avoid another country wide one.

Quick update on the 10th August Deadline.

I've just had a message from a friend who had lunch to day with the Wiliya and Head of Police for Er Rachidia region. They confirmed the is nothing official regarding the 10th August deadline from Rabat.

Asking Loc, the rental agency I work with, they tell me they hope frontiers to be opened in September.

Morocco has extended its state of emergency until the 10th September.

No further info at the moment
https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/202...8PaGkL5zaKR6oY

Morocco is an example of a country where the actions taken are many times more destructive than the virus by itself.

To be fair, Morocco is struggling to contain the cases within the limits of its relatively small healthcare infrastructure, so hasn't had much choice but to severely lockdown. A few days ago it was reported that the specialist field hospitals established to handle Covid-19 cases are starting to approach capacity with Benslimane at 99% occupancy, Casablanca at 80% and El Jadida at 72%.

The situation in Casablanca has been described as "explosive" and further sharp increases in cases may be on the cards. A number of factors are seen to be the cause including increase in family contacts in the lead up to Eid, and disregard of the rules regarding social distancing and mask wearing, the latter not helped by the rise in summer temperatures. Legislation is being introduced to ease the issuing of fines for those flouting restrictions.

Saad Eddine El Othmani, the Moroccan Head of Government, has expressed concern at the rapid spread of the virus. It took four months of the pandemic for Morocco to record 14,379 cases and 237 deaths to 6 July. In the following month to 6 August these figures more or less doubled to 29,644 cases and 449 deaths.

Looking at the statistics from another angle, the number of active cases (those detected, less those since recovered/died) almost doubled in a week from 2,073 on 21 July to 3,994 on 28 July, and then more than doubled again to 8,071 in the eight days to 5 August.

The European Union yesterday removed Morocco from its list of countries deemed “safe” for non-essential travel. Travellers from countries that don't have the COVID-19 pandemic under control are not allowed into EU, so from today (Saturday, August 8), non-essential travel between the EU and Morocco is no longer permitted. No mention has been made of the 'repatriation' efforts currently underway with airlines and ferries and it is not known whether these will be allowed to continue.

The normal progression curve for pandemics is a quick rise and slow downturn. At the moment Morocco is still rising, so I don't hold any hope for the resumption of foreign visitors before November at the earliest.