What should I download and prepare before a Morocco trip?

The single most valuable thing to download is offline maps, because medinas defeat live navigation. Get Maps.me or download your Google Maps regions offline before you fly — the alleys are unsigned, GPS wobbles between the high walls, and being able to see your blue dot creeping toward your riad saves real stress. Pin your accommodation, your arrival airport and a couple of landmarks in advance. I also have clients screenshot the walking route from the nearest taxi-accessible point to their riad door, since the last hundred metres on foot is exactly where people get lost.

Next, sort communication and translation. Buy an eSIM before departure or a local SIM (Maroc Telecom, Orange, Inwi) at the airport — data is cheap and plentiful, and it powers your maps, ride-hailing and translation. Download Google Translate's offline packs for French and Arabic; French is widely spoken and gets you a long way, while the camera-translate feature is gold for menus and signs. Have WhatsApp ready, because it's how riads, drivers and guides here communicate by default. A currency converter app and an offline copy of your itinerary round out the digital kit.

On the admin side, prepare your money and documents before you leave. Tell your bank you're travelling so your card isn't blocked, bring at least one backup payment card stored separately from your main one, and arrive with a little foreign cash to change on landing. Photograph or scan your passport, travel insurance, flights and hotel confirmations, and store them both in the cloud and offline on your phone. Check your passport has six months' validity and the blank pages you may need, and confirm your nationality's visa situation (many get 90 days visa-free, but check yours).

Finally, prepare yourself, not just your phone. Pack a power bank and a universal adapter, since you'll lean on your phone hard and sockets vary. Sort travel insurance that covers the activities you'll actually do — camel trekking, quad biking, hiking. Learn five or six Arabic phrases; the goodwill they buy is out of all proportion to the effort. And mentally prepare for a cash-first, relationship-driven, slower-paced place where plans flex. The travellers who do this light groundwork glide through the first 48 hours that catch everyone else out, and start enjoying Morocco from the moment they land.