What's the best Moroccan gift for kids?

When I shop for children, I look for things that are colourful, near-indestructible, and cheap enough to buy several. Hand-stuffed felt and wool animals are my favourite — fuzzy camels, the ubiquitous Moroccan cats, little lions — at 30–100 MAD ($3–10) each. They are soft, light, and survive being dragged around an airport. A small pair of babouche slippers in a child's size is the other easy win; kids love that they curl up at the toe, and they cost 50–120 MAD.

Dress-up is a strong category because Moroccan children's clothing is genuinely charming. A miniature embroidered djellaba or a little felt fez (tarboosh) turns into both a souvenir and a Halloween costume, and they run 80–250 MAD depending on size and detail. I steer parents toward buying a size up so the child grows into it rather than out of it on the flight home.

For toys, look for the hand-carved and hand-painted wooden pieces — camels, little trucks, simple animals — and the painted tin or wooden boxes shaped like tagines, which kids use as treasure stashes. These are 40–150 MAD and feel special without being fragile. I tend to avoid anything with tiny glued-on beads or sequins for younger children, both for the choking risk and because they shed in a backpack within a day.

Honest practicalities: skip anything breakable for under-eights, and skip the cheap toy 'jewellery' with unknown metal content for little ones who put things in their mouths. The felt animals and the babouches are the safest, most universally loved bets, and you will find rails of them in the Marrakech souks and around the Jemaa el-Fnaa. Buy a handful — they make perfect small gifts for the school friends back home too.