MA12: Tiznit & Ouijjane

Morocco as a first-time traveller can be tricky at times. Not because it’s difficult to travel or constantly throws obstacles in your way — quite the opposite. It’s because the options for what to see next seem endless, and making a decision feels almost impossible.

Leaving Tafraout was one of those decisions. In the end, we tossed a coin and headed further west towards Tiznit.

Tiznit itself doesn’t seem to have many campsites, which is how we ended up at Camping Aglou Plage. What we didn’t expect was what came next: we had apparently entered France. At least judging by the number plates on all the other campervans.

We actually counted:

• German plates: 3 (including ours)
• Swedish plates: 1
• French plates: everyone else!
• Other plates: none!

… and the campsite was fully booked.

The receptionist, however, seemed particularly fond of Germans. The moment he realised we were from Germany, he switched to our native language and proudly explained that he was currently working towards his B2 level. We were impressed — and rightly so.

After parking our home, we headed towards Tiznit. Buses apparently existed, but nobody seemed to know when they came or whether one would actually return later. A taxi felt like the safest option.

“You might have to wait a very long time though — there are hardly any taxis here!” we were warned.

Two minutes later we were sitting in a taxi on our way into town.

Once again, language proved to be a bit of a barrier. This time it was our lack of French that made things difficult. But with the help of translation apps and Kathrin’s vague memories of school French, we somehow managed.

We asked how we could get a taxi back to the campsite later and — looking slightly shocked — the driver told us there would be absolutely no chance due to Ramadan. He must have noticed the look of panic spreading across our faces because, after a brief pause and what was clearly his inner businessman taking over, he quickly offered to pick us up himself.

For double the price, of course.

Still, the fact that he was upfront about it — and apparently willing to delay breaking his Ramadan fast for us — felt fair enough. We shook hands on it, exchanged numbers, and wandered off into the medina.

For the first time in Morocco, we were genuinely disappointed.

The medina was incredibly busy and packed with shops. Most of them, however, sold cheap plastic items or “authentic” luxury-brand clothing with highly questionable authenticity. The remaining shops were mostly butchers or tobacco stores.

We had also underestimated Ramadan and hadn’t realised that Tiznit is a particularly conservative area, where Ramadan is observed even more strictly than in other parts of the country. Most restaurants were closed — even for tourists.

After only two hours, we called our taxi friend, who appeared within five minutes. Before we got in, he reminded us once more: double the price.

We confirmed again that it was fine.

Twenty minutes later we were back home and paid our driver around €14 in total. Back where we live, that probably gets you about 200 metres in a taxi 🤪

After watching our lovely neighbours empty their chemical toilets into the grey-water disposal — conveniently located about one metre from the sinks where everyone washed their dishes — instead of using the actual chemical toilet disposal, we decided it was time to leave little France behind.

Instead, we headed to a campsite that had been on our list for a very long time.

Sous les Palmiers Bleus had been recommended in several travel magazines and we wanted to see for ourselves what all the fuss was about.

It’s a small campsite beautifully tucked into a palm oasis. The owner, an older French lady, welcomed us warmly and immediately invited us over for tea. She also bakes dangerously sweet treats and regularly gathers all the guests for cosy little get-togethers.

We finally caught up on our overdue laundry, enjoyed a few relaxing days… and a bit of rain.

A German couple camping next to us recommended a walk through the neighbouring villages and the impressively green fields nearby.

What a fantastic recommendation that turned out to be.

After a couple of rainy days, the sun returned and we decided to move on. Just before leaving, the owner wished us safe travels:

“You are leaving with the sun — how wonderful.”

If only she had known what would happen some 45 minutes later.

And if only we had known that those next 45 minutes would be the last enjoyable moments of our Morocco trip…