Passports & Visas
It is the participant's responsibility to have a valid passport and all visas required to enter Morocco. Please give yourself sufficient time to apply for any necessary visas. Only the consulate or embassy of the country you are visiting can advise you on the necessity of a visa and the time frame needed to apply for it.
Morocco Passport & Visa Requirements
Entry requirements for Americans: United States citizens require a passport, but no visa for a stay of up to three months.
Entry requirements for UK nationals: British citizens require a passport, but no visa for a stay of up to three months, providing the passport is endorsed British Citizen or British National (Overseas).
Entry requirements for Australians: Australians must have a valid passport. No visa is required for a stay of up to three months.
Entry requirements for European community countries: citizens require a passport, but no visa for a stay of up to three months.
Entry requirements for Canadians: Canadian citizens require a passport, but no visa for a stay of up to three months.
Arriving into Morocco
Most students arrive in Témara via Casablanca airport or directly into Rabat airport. We offer airport transfers from both airports for an additional charge however the train service is excellent between Casablanca & Témara run directly from Casablanca airport to Rabat (with one train change in Casablanca), they run every hour, are comfortable and cheap! The train will take about 50 minutes from central Casablanca and 1.5 hours directly from Casablanca airport.
Morocco's national airline is Royal Air Maroc (AT). Airlines serving Morocco include Air France, Alitalia,British Airways, KLM, Sabena, Lufthansa, Swissair, Easyjet, Iberia and check the charter companies as they are always adding new connections.
The main International airports:
Casablanca (CAS) (Mohammed V) is 30km (20 miles) south of the city about 35 minutes in travel time. There are bus and taxi services into Casablanca and coach services available to Rabat.
Tangier (TNG) (Boukhalef Souahel) is 11km (7 miles) from the city about 20 minutes in travel time.
Sea ports & ferries from Europe:
The 3 main ports are Tangier, Casablanca and Ceuta with several lines serving these ports: Transtour Compañía, Trasmediterránea Limadet Bland Line (from Spain and Gibraltar). There are cheap and regular passenger-ferry links between southern Spain and Tangier and the Spanish enclaves on the north Moroccan coast. Most links are roll-on roll-off car ferries except where shown. The routes are from Algeciras to Ceuta (Sebta) (car ferry); Algeciras to Tangier (hydrofoil and car ferry); Tarifa to Tangier (hydrofoil only); Gibraltar to Tangier (hydrofoil and car ferry); Almería to Melilla (car ferry) and Málaga to Melilla (car ferry).
Getting Around Témara
With the city of Témara being very compact, all the points of interest are in walking distance. Local Bus services can be very useful and they are marked very clearly. Petit and grand taxis can be found at the airport, the train station and at Boulevard Hassan II where we are in the center of this avenue. Take note that petit taxis are not authorized to operate between Rabat and Témara.
The Témara main train station is right in the middle of the heart of Témara Center, and the best way to arrive in Témara is by train or by bus number 17 with blue colour. There is even a bureau de change or in banks and a car rental In Témara . The main bus terminal is situated in Rabat in the down town- in every main avenue in Rabat you will find a bus stations to Témara.
Airports:
Rabat-Salé Airport is 7 km northeast of Rabat and 12 Km to Témara and the only connection with the city is via Grand Taxis. The price should be around 150dh for 6 people. Arriving from Casablanca’s Mohammed V Airport, the best connection with Témara is by train with a journey of less than 1.5 hours.
By Train:
Rabat Ville and Témara, is the train station in the centre of the new city with frequent trains to Casablanca, Meknes and Fez as well as 4 trains to Tangier. There are another three stations in the area of Rabat-Salé, although they don’t have great tourist importance:
Grand Taxi:
The Grand Taxis can be for short or long journeys and can take up to 6 people. For long journeys, to Fez and Marrakech, they start from the coach terminal. Those to Meknes start from Hassan II Boulevard in front of the Bab Chellah, while those to Kenitra and Khemisset start further east behind Boulevard Hassan II.
Petit Taxi:
The petit taxis, recognizable from their blue in Rabat and green of Témara to move within the city. They are meter operated and can be found on Boulevard Hassan II and by the train station.
City bus service:
City buses are a good transport system to get about in Témara. Bus stations clearly indicate routes and bus numbers.
Accommodation
The majority of students choose to stay in local hotels or local hosts are also available. Private households: A fabulous experience and a real cultural insight but please note, hosts are not "standarised". You are expected to participate in your hosts lives, respect their values and not bend their ways to suit your own. If you feel that lack of privacy, unfamiliar meals, noise from a TV or radio or lack of private study space would not suit you, this is not the option for you. However, the positive experience of living in the heart of a Moroccan household comes highly recommended by past students, who were willing to accept the limitations on personal freedom that comes with.
Local Hotels: You can choose to stay in a cheap, medium or good standard Hotels we are in collaboration with.
A sample of a Week's cultural program:
Monday: Lecture or film session arranged at the center.
Tuesday: Calligraphy or Belly dancing lesson for ladies and sports to men at our sport club.
Wednesday: downtown vistit to Rabat.
Thursday: visit the beach or do horseback riding
Friday: Traditional Couscous, tagine or local delicious food lunch arranged by our center.
Saturday: Tour of the Old Medina or an excursion to a cultural site.
Sunday: Free day to relax and soak up the atmosphere.
Travel
Arrive: The day before the course starts
Depart: The day after the course ends
We recommend students to fly to Casablanca airport and then we have our facilities to provide the transportation onwards to Temara (by our bus or the trains are also good). Our center assists its students in transportation to the center and wherever they need to go, we are in assistance. All students are recommended to stay in a Hotel to begin with, report to the center for the first day of classes and then course timetables and accommodation can be sorted.
Public Holidays: whatever a religious holidays or national holiday we are in touch with, we let our students be part of it and of our glorious traditions.
