What do French travellers need to know about Morocco?

The French are by some distance the largest group of visitors to Morocco, and the connection runs deep — which makes this one of the most comfortable trips a French traveller can take. French passport holders enter visa-free for stays of up to 90 days, with a passport valid the standard period beyond arrival and blank pages for the stamp. The formalities are quick. I still advise checking France Diplomatie's Conseils aux voyageurs for Morocco before booking, as it's the official source kept current with any changes.

Flight options are unmatched. There are very frequent direct services from Paris (Orly and Charles de Gaulle), Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Bordeaux, Toulouse and many regional airports straight into Marrakech, Casablanca, Fes, Agadir, Tangier and beyond — operated by Royal Air Maroc, Air France, Transavia and the low-cost carriers. The flight is only around three hours from Paris, with a minimal time difference, so Morocco genuinely works as a long weekend. You can fly direct into whichever city your itinerary starts in, rather than routing everything through Casablanca.

On money, the dirham is a closed currency, so withdraw it from ATMs after you arrive rather than buying euros' worth at home. Bring a small reserve of euro cash as a backup, then draw dirhams from a bank machine at the airport or in town. French Visa and Mastercard cards work well in city hotels, restaurants and larger shops, and contactless is common — choose a card with sensible foreign-transaction terms. As everywhere, the desert, the mountains and the souks deal in cash, so keep small dirham notes on hand for taxis, tips and market stalls.

The biggest advantage French travellers enjoy is linguistic. French is widely spoken across Morocco — in shops, hotels, restaurants, with guides and drivers, and on signage — so you'll navigate menus, negotiations and directions with an ease most other visitors never have. That said, a few notes still help: it's worth learning a couple of words of Darija (the Moroccan Arabic dialect), which delights locals; tipping is customary but modest; and dress more modestly away from the resorts than you might on the Côte d'Azur. The shared history means a familiarity on both sides — lean into the warmth, accept the mint tea, and enjoy the friendly back-and-forth of the souks.