1

Hello,

I hesitate to advise, not knowing enough about the type of person you are, but why not take a walk on the wild side, as I did on a one night stopover in Casablanca, by trawling alone around some of the streets of the old quarter, just behind and parallel to the CTM bus station.

You could easily jump in a taxi at the airport and give the driver instructions to the CTM bus station, Rue Leon Africain.

The night life, especially at weekends, is very lively in the tapas bars, Casa is a relatively wealthy city, compared to other parts of Morocco, an industrial port and on the outskirts a visibly commercial presence of big factories with international names.

Have a look at my previous recent post on the backpages " One Night in Casablanca" and see if it appeals to you, don't worry if you don't drink alcohol, it's quite acceptable to have a soft drink or coffee, no one will care or even notice you, and from my observations, there is always a plain-clothes police presence in the bars, looking for " the usual suspects ", their night shift uniform is black leather jacket and jeans, or tailored black trousers if drinking in " posh bars ".

My favourite bar?..........difficult decision between Bar Peau de Vache, Rue Ben Abdallah, or the CTM bar itself at the bus station. I guarantee you won't have much time to read that book instead, especially at the weekends !

2

Take the train to Rabat and do all the above in much better surroudings - IMHO.

Dave

3

BTW, are you flying RAM? If so you get a free night in the Atlas Hotel.

Dave

4

Thanks, Dave. RAM did say that I would be able to stay at the Atlas, I heard its a simple place, do you know if they will store baggage there for the day?

Melanie

5

Thanks miguelreposo,
If I was wandering around during the day, would you still recommend the bus station area? Do you know if there is anywhere to store your luggage?

Thanks!

6

The Atlas is a typical business hotel with decent facilities. They will store your bags. The drawback is that to take the train to Casa or Rabat you must first return to the airport or pay for an expensive taxi ride.

Dave

7

Meldog,

There are luggage lockers at the CTM bus station, but the overnight hotel sounds like a good idea if it's free and included in your plane ticket, no problem getting around the city, the small red taxis are plentiful. You could also book your own hotel room just for one night, there are plenty of inexpensive hotels and restaurants in the back streets around the bus station......good luck.

Miguel.

8

Hello again, I forgot,

The CTM bus station is situated centrally, close to the port and the main city around Bvd Mohammed V, the main Central Market, interesting to explore during the day as well as doing the 'mandatory' night trawl. The only problem is the chaotic traffic, some of the worst I've seen anywhere in the world, it becomes very tiring trying to cross the wide boulevards, so evenings are better when it eases off a bit.

Miguel.

9

catch a train from the airport down stairs and go to Rabat and spend your day there chilling out.

10

Hey,

I was in Casa about 10 days ago.
A walk on the corniche near the huge Hassan II mosque is nice. From there, a petit taxi to the nice-looking beaches near Morocco Mall is only about 30 Dirham ($4). Some sort of witches Island (they tell you your fortune) is on the beach across the street from the mall.
Walking in the centre-ville area is quite nice currently, because the work being done on the tramway has closed a lot of major streets ... it means you can walk down the middle of some major urban streets ... it feels quite peaceful.
If you like beers ... it's quite cheap in Casa and two places I recommend are Bar Atomic on Avenue Mers Sultan and Cafe des Negotiations on Muhhamed V ... although the second place gets rather adventurous at night.

Also, many cafes on the closed streets are peaceful enough to quietly read a book, which I did every morning I was there.

Good luck.