Casablanca

May 18, 2026

They say one never forgets how to ride a bike. This is true, but one can forget how to want to ride a bike.

I started riding regularly at home in Portugal.   It was good to get out and explore my new home.  I tell myself I will go on some multi-day trips there, but haven’t.

This Moroccan adventure is my first multi-day bike trip this year. I was in danger of losing my nomad status.  Or worse, losing my desire for this kind of thing.  So, I launched into the unknown.  It’s working! 

Casablanca is my halfway point down the Atlantic coast, and I have surpassed this.  The routine of bike touring has filled my space once again.

Morocco was a good choice.  There are many places of majesty and grandeur here.  Some  of them become tourist magnets for this reason.  I like to find the ones that aren’t.

For the majority of this trip.  I am the lone tourist.  I stick out.  In Marrakech, I would be one of the many tourists, the feed stock for the tourism industry. 

There you quickly learn when someone draws your attention, it will be followed by an obligation to pay for something.  Out here, the story is very different.  For instance, if you take a picture of a donkey cart in the street you are not asked to pay for that.

Many times a day pedestrians and motorists alike, take time to wave to me.  They simply want to congratulate.  They call out ‘Bon Route’ or ‘Bon Courage’.  I feel genuinely welcomed.

In the market, I get lots of help from merchants, and locals who see me stumbling over my limited knowledge of French. 

Here also, the cost of living is remarkably lower. A sit down meal for one at a local restaurant is less than 10 USD. Shopping for bread butter and tea at a local bodega is less than 1 USD.

The Route

Going south from Larache, there is a noticeable void of hotels. This is due to a sizable wildlife preserve there.  It is 150km to get to Kenitra where the hotels are once again plentiful.

I do carry a tent and sleeping bag for these situations.  I could find a spot on the beach to spend the night if I need to. But I don’t know what the bivouacking rules are here.

For me, 150km ride in one day would be a stretch.  I do not like being forced to set up my tent along the side of the road, which is what would happen if I failed to make this agressive goal.

I found a solution. 

Out in a tiny village of Moulay Bousselham there is a campground.  They have rooms to rent there too.  Going here is a little out of the way, but it is only 100km from here to Kenitra. I can do this.

The road out to Moulay B. was sketchy.  It traversed à lot of agriculture.  The simple dirt roads were muddy in places, due to irrigation.   There was much truck traffic along some spots. But it was only 50km.  I made it during daylight hours.

The next day, I got up early for the big trek to Kenitra.  Fortunately I had better roads.  There was lots to see

I made it to Kenitra and continued on to Mehdia Plage.  The extra distance was well worth it. Kenitra was too much inner city.  It didn’t seem worth stopping.  Mehdia Plage was a great beach town.

The route south from Mehdia to Casablanca was without any real challenges except for one.

There is a great deal of construction, mostly apartments or condominiums.  It seems  this is between the towns and there is not much in the way of city planning.

The result is, there is an enormous pool of rooms to rent in places that are a long way from other services, like restaurants or taxis. 

Airbnb and Booking.com shows dense clusters of rooms for me to rent.  This leads me to believe there would be someplace to eat, after my shower and change into street clothes.

I guess this problem is self correcting.  Eventually the missing services will pop up, once the population is there to support them.

At the moment, it is awkward.  The few locals that are there frequently hitchhike to meet their transportation needs.