We're aware that some users are experiencing technical issues which the team are working to resolve. See the Community Noticeboard for more info. Thank you for your patience.
📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!

Morroccan currency-is this legal?

Options
2»

Comments

  • dmg24
    dmg24 Posts: 33,920 Forumite
    10,000 Posts
    hollydays wrote: »
    THanks. Glad i checked because I have been offered them for my daughter by Thomas Exchange Global. She hasnt got a Nationwide Card (only Lloyds who charge quite a bit for using abroad) and probably wont get one for just one trip so i think i may get her travellers cheques,if the hotel accepts them (I shall email them).
    Thanks for the advice. She is arriving at Agadir though ,not Marrakech.

    Agadir is (arguably) more touristy than Marrakech, so she'll have no problems. Just spoken to a friend who has been there, he says they just chucked everything on the card (great until you get the bill at home!).

    Is Lloyds part of a wider ATM network? I have a Barclays Connect, and that can be used FOC at certain machines across the world. Worth having a look at their website!

    If your daughter is in Agadir for long enough, she can get an overnight trip to Marrakech if she fancies it ... not that I love the place or anything?!! ;)
    Gone ... or have I?
  • hollydays
    hollydays Posts: 19,812 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Thanks just rang Lloyds to ask-they said she will always be charged,however they also told me it was £2 for cash and no charge on retail transactions-er -wrong on both counts-I had to quote MSE figures at them and they admitted they were wrong-muppets!
  • I live and work in Marrakech and can offer some good solid advice...

    Just to dispell the confusion here, you CAN buy MAD currency outside Morocco at some money exchange points in various countries. Don't ask me exactly where (Thomas Cook rings a bell) but we have clients who have bought dirhams outside the country before visiting Morocco. I too was surprised because officially you are not supposed to be able to buy it. But like all things about Morocco... Surprise!!

    Anyway for taking it OUT of the country, still officially a no no - although I've had several hundred bills leaving the airport and told security I was returning in a few weeks (which was true), so no problem.

    Just to let you know, you can only change foreign CASH at the airport money exchange in Marrakech. Cash machines are sometimes down or out of money especially the cash points around the square in Marrakech.

    Bring some Euros in the smallest bills you can buy. Euros are always good in Morocco just about anywhere. And they are easy to change into dirhams. There is no black market for cash in Morocco.

    Hope this helps dispell the confusion.
  • dmg24
    dmg24 Posts: 33,920 Forumite
    10,000 Posts
    you CAN buy MAD currency outside Morocco at some money exchange points in various countries.

    You can, but doesn't mean it is legal.
    you can only change foreign CASH at the airport money exchange in Marrakech.

    I'm not sure what you mean by this?

    If you mean that you cannot use cards at the exchange at the airport, this is definitely not the case.

    If you mean that you can only exchange foreign notes at the airport, this is not the case. The hotel I stayed at had no problems changing Sterling for Dirhams.
    Gone ... or have I?
  • Well what's legal or illegal in Morrocco is irrelevant when you're in the UK. I've beena few times, great place, used Natiowide card. Thomas Exchange on the Strand is the next best thing to a Nationwide card. I've taken Dirhams in and out, as well as spent Pounds and Euros there. Indeed, if you want to take it one step further, you can buy up cheaply Scottish and Northern Irish sterling Morrocan shopkeepers have taken mistakenly and aren't able to exchange. I've done this, it helped pay for the trip and they're happy to get rid of them
  • hollydays
    hollydays Posts: 19,812 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    This thread is from 2007
  • SINBAD_2
    SINBAD_2 Posts: 46 Forumite
    Apologies, was trying to help you and in my enthusiasm to do this, I didn't see the date. Next time I will pay closer attention to the dates on posts. Really sorry again. But my advice was the best, and anyone else searching for this topic will be able to use it. Since writing it, I have been back to Fez with a few thousand dirhams bought in the UK- no problem.
  • gordikin
    gordikin Posts: 4,422 Forumite
    SINBAD wrote: »
    Apologies, was trying to help you and in my enthusiasm to do this, I didn't see the date. Next time I will pay closer attention to the dates on posts. Really sorry again. But my advice was the best, and anyone else searching for this topic will be able to use it. Since writing it, I have been back to Fez with a few thousand dirhams bought in the UK- no problem.


    16 months to reply...you've raised an old thread again!
  • SINBAD_2
    SINBAD_2 Posts: 46 Forumite
    Yes, I have had better things to do in between! But I still think it's a fair point, don't crticise those who try to help you, but thank them instead!
This discussion has been closed.
Meet your Ambassadors

🚀 Getting Started

Hi new member!

Our Getting Started Guide will help you get the most out of the Forum

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 351K Banking & Borrowing
  • 253.1K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 453.6K Spending & Discounts
  • 244K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 598.9K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 176.9K Life & Family
  • 257.3K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 16.1K Discuss & Feedback
  • 37.6K Read-Only Boards

Is this how you want to be seen?

We see you are using a default avatar. It takes only a few seconds to pick a picture.