Mark_C, Aug. 2022
This is a long review, but Karim was that good. He was awesome from the time we booked the tour all the way until he dropped us off at the pier to hop back onto the ferry. He knows what he is doing and how to do it right!
We learned a few things from him to make it easier should we ever make the trip again -- which we very well may. For one thing, if one is coming over from Spain on the ferry, make double sure that the ferry is docking at the port in Tangier itself, and not in Ceuta, which is technically part of Spain, and an hour plus drive away from Tangier.
Now to the tour itself. Karim and his staff (they called themselves the driver and the bodyguard) were all very welcoming and even worked things into the schedule that we had previously set to arrive and depart Tangier. We had originally planned to arrive the afternoon before the scheduled day of the tour, take the tour, and then head back to Spain in the evening. Karim offered to pick us up at the port, take us to the hotel to check in, and then do part of the tour the day we arrived. As it turned out, it worked out perfectly, largely because it made it much easier for us to make our next hotel stop.
He and his staff were very careful not to leave us alone at all (being a 3rd world country, some of the local street vendors would have been all over us if we had tried to do it on our own, and it may have been a little dangerous for us, even though I've spent extended time in other 3rd world countries before and know how they often operate.) But at the same time, they weren't in our faces. They were guides. And excellent ones at that.
Had a wonderful time seeing many parts of the city, including the food markets, which for me, was very nostalgic, because I frequented similar places on a regular basis in Indonesia many years ago. It was great to show my wife a taste of what fun places markets like that can be.
The camel ride on the beach. Hey, what can I say? It wasn't just a five minute ride, snap a picture, and on we go. We rode for a good half mile plus (about a kilometer, maybe a little more) along the beach drawing a lot of smiles and curious looks. And, great pictures.
The restaurant Karim took us to was fabulous. A funny thing happened there, however. My wife asked what the traditional way was to eat one of the entrees, but the language barrier got in the way, and the staff thought at first that she didn't like it. We all got a good laugh out of it. One thing to be aware of, is that Morocco is a country that expects tips, much like the USA. We were expecting to just add the tip to the receipt at the end like we do in the USA, but found out too late that it needs to be added before the payment total is added. When we gave Karim a well deserved tip at the end of the tour we asked him to give some to the restaurant as well. They deserved it.
Back to the tour and how Karim accommodated us. My wife has a hard time walking long distances, so when we went through the old part of the city where we walk through a maze of alleyways, (very cool!) he drove us up to the top of the hill, which is normally not allowed. He just told the cops that kept stopping us that we were important dignitaries. He treated us like we were dignitaries, so maybe we were! Then, we only had to walk down hill instead of both up and down. We were privileged to see inside several bed and breakfast places, and a nice Jewish synagogue.
He also took us to a pair of places that have area rugs and furniture, respectively. Very beautiful. Be aware, however, that these folks are also salespeople. So I will say tongue-in-cheek that the visits were awful for me and awesome for my wife! In all seriousness, though, she has always wanted an area rug of the styles there, and a divider of the style of the area, too, so why not? And, I really didn't mind. I enjoy that kind of stuff, too. But if you just want to look, don't feel obligated to buy.
Karim even treated us to a traditional Moroccan breakfast, which was not actually on the agenda.
All in all, a wonderful day. Karim and his staff are the best!