Planning a month in Morocco
 

Hello all.

Sorry if i've posted this thread in the wrong place, but i've looked around the site for somewhere to stick it and have also looked for answers to my questions but to no avail.

I'm planning a short trip (a month or so) to Morocco next year and basically need some ideas on cost. I have a Honda CBR600FS1 that i'm plannig to sell for around £2700 to buy a traillie such as an XR650 or an Africa Twin or something similar.

My questions are:

Will £2700 get me a decent, reliable bike that will last me for this and other slightly longer trips in the near future? The plan is to buy a standard one and not have to upgrade/replace parts (shocks, etc). I can spend a few hundred more on kitting it out with luggage/small upgrades/tyres, etc, if necessary. I've looked on biketrader and other websites but the prices seem to fluctuate hugely for bikes of similar age/condition so i am unsure of cost.

I've been to Morocco before, but not with my own transport, so i have no idea of costs for shipping/carnets/fuel/insurance etc. I know this is a bit of a 'it depends on...' question, but does anyone have any idea on average overall cost for a month's riding in Morocco (including shipping from southern spain, insurance and fuel)?

Also does anyone have any advice on which bike to buy? I was going to stay with Honda because of the good reliablility, but any other advice would be appreciated. The bike should ideally be easy to sell again as i have other non-motorcycling travels planned within the next couple of years.

I haven't bought the Adventure Motorcycling Handbook yet but will do very soon, so i expect to find some answers in there. Sorry if this post is asking FAQ's or if it's in the wrong forum, but i've tried to find the answers elsewhere...

Any help would be greatly appreciated...

Hi
unless you intend to ride off piste or in the desert there is no reason why you cant use your 600 . I was intending to take my blackbird this april but one of the party blew up on the way down so we never made it :(
Im told by visitors to this web that most of the roads are fine for sports bikes etc .
As for costs etc i would browse the GSERS web site and put in morocco , there is shed loads of info .
Safe trip :thumbup1:

Welcome to the site Don.
I'd have thought your budget will be quite enough but have a search around the site and I'm sure you'll find the answers to your questions.

Red Shed
 

Hi Don, there are some great riding roads there for sure but I imagine you want an XR/AT to explore the dirt. There's even more of that.

[deleted XRL details, someone bought it]

As for costs, no shipping/carnets required for Mk, just work out fuel prices + ferries + food and lodging. You could probably do a month for under a grand if you camp remorselessly.

Ch

The best deal for ferry crossings is probably Algeciras to Ceuta. Prices vary with season, you should probably budget €100-120 return. If you buy a return it's normally cheaper than two singles.

You'll need either a green card valid for Morocco or to purchase third party insurance when you arrive which will be about €90 for a month. If you stay in cheap hotels you can get by on £20/day accommodation/food. Then there's fuel which in May was about 80p/litre.

Absolutely any bike will do on tarmac, from Honda C90 to a GoldWing.

Read the knowledgebase in my signature.

Tim

Thanks for the help chaps.

Chris, where is this bike and how do i find out more about it? I was considering going there on my 600 but would really like a bit of rough and a bit more upright comfort than my 600 can offer.

Having been to Morocco before, i'd like to go to Chefchaouen again. We arrived there in a coach from Fes last time, so avoided all the hassle that people normally encounter when travelling there with their own transport. I know that it's at it worst on the Ketama-Chaouen route. Does anyone know if there's much grief to be had on the Fes-Chaouen route or if there's an hassle free way into Chaouen from Tangier or anywhere else?

Does anyone have any other suggestions for bikes on my kind of budget? Would i need to make many mods to a standard traillie?

Cheers,

Books
 

Hey Don,
Get the books mate, 'Adventure Motorcycling' and the 'Sahara Overland' that Chris wrote, well worth the money. (Thanks for writing 'em Chris!) Them two helped me a lot for my trip in Morocco last year and even to the Arctic Circle, so much so I'm going to attempt a RTW in September and get the hell out of Iraq!! Going to try and get in time for the Malaga meet.
I'm off on an XT600E which you can pick up for less than 2 grand, but the roads are good for road bikes if you stay off the piste. As for boxes, the Moroccan trip (two weeks) I didn't take them but opted for 'dry bags' (ortleib) and a small tank bag. I found them easier to take off the bike when going into hotels and the like.
Again, not blowing smoke up anyones arse but the books really helped!

Have fun

Cheers, Geoff, gonna buy the books at the weekend.

Chris, do you think you could PM me that info? Cheers.




......aah you just did. Cheers for that, haha I understand. This bloody thing won't let me reply to PMs until i've got 8 posts under my belt. 4 more to go....

[quote=Don Logan;196999]Does anyone know if there's much grief to be had on the Fes-Chaouen route or if there's an hassle free way into Chaouen from Tangier or anywhere else?


Hi Don

I came to Chaouen from Tetouan and, if by hassle you mean drugs hard sell, we saw a few guys by the side of the road yelling as we rode past but that was it. Don't forget, on your own bike you are able to just keep going! A couple of guys in Chaouen itself tried it on but just smile and repeat "non merci" till you're blue in the face - did the trick for us. No hassle as far as I remember from there to Fes.

Re mods - get a decent bashplate (lots of rocks) and make sure your head bearings are sound, mine disintegrated near Tangier on the way back!

Hi Don,

For choice of bike, it's the old on/off road compromise again. Chris Scott's book refers to this question. If you're riding down to Morocco, you might want the Africa Twin (or others), and if you mostly want to ride the pistes, you'll want something lighter etc, though the AT will do dirt tracks well enough. But a single will do the roads well enough. If you want good reliability, that's another factor. No choice will be perfect for all your needs so don't worry about finding the "perfect " bike.

I wouldnt dream of inflicting my prejudices on you! Different people will tell you different things. Narrow it down to a couple of possible bikes, one tending to piste use, the other tending to favour road use, then hunt the adverts for the right price. There's a current HUBB thread named "Honda twins" (or is it singles?) which discusses an aspect of this question.

I think you'll get the bike of your choice for that money. Prices do seem to fluctuate a lot (especially for ATs) and I dont really know why.

good luck