casablanca?

Only been there on land, so can't comment on the harbour. The rest is sprawling and charmless. And devoid of atmospheric gin joints as far as I could tell. (Further to Mark's comment, Wiki reckons that filming never got as far east as Pasadena, let alone Morocco.)
 
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Tried sailing there in 2004 but they wouldn't let us in the harbour.
Was told later that it is due to a very large mosque near to the old marina
and they don't want visitors there. May have changed now but worth checking.
 
Noonsite gives this info dated 2013

Casablanca Yacht Club has been pulled down and the area is not accessible to yachts. The marina is currently being re-built and latest information December 2013 is that it's still not open; at present yachts do not seem to be welcome, even to anchor inside the breakwater wall as was previously possible. Contact the Port Authority before attempting to enter the port; they will probably advise to continue to Mohammmedia, 12 miles to the north.
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Have heard more recent accounts from people who have cruised the coast of Morocco that this is still the case.
 
I've just sailed down the Moroccan coast from Gib to Lanzarote. Before setting out I looked at possible diversion ports to bolt to if the weather went absolutely silly. Once away from Tangier there are few stopping places.
Larache to the north is offers good shelter but minimal facilities, difficult entrance in severe swell.
Rabat, still to the north but south of Larache is a reasonable stopping place but very subject to swell. More than 2m swell and the port is closed. Also reports of shallow depths in the channel, to the extent that the marina usually sends a boat out to guide you in...
Mohameddia seems to be the default setting when Rabat is closed. It's a few miles to the north of the main port in Casablanca and offers shelter and easy entrance in most winds. However, little information is available about it. Looking at google map pictures, there are a couple of pontoons with yachts moored to them, not much evidence of anything else.
Hope that helps.
 
After being refused entry to Casablanca we were directed to Mohameddia.
Got there and could not get to the pontoons. It was too tight for our catamaran.
We were directed to tie up to the quay used by the massive tugs. Quite a climb up
the wall at low tide!
Found the town quite interesting.
 
Worth a visit but from Mohameddia - easy journey by train. Large and, in places, dirty city but the kasbah is a maze worth visiting and the mosque is extraordinary. I like exploring places beyond the tourist attractions though. If you like sanitised marinas etc then probably not your thing.
 
We visited Mohamedia just over a year ago on the way to the Canaries. We were lucky to find a berth at the end of the yacht dock where we could just float at low tide (2.5m draft). There is limited room on these docks for visitors. It is possible to anchor just outside the inner harbour but exposed to NE. Town has adequate shopping, but also excellent rail connection to Casablanca and Marakech, fast and cheap by European standards.
 
beausoleil said:
Making plans ....Casablanca
Any comments or views most welcome.
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Cassablanca is closed to yachts, it is a dump of a place anyway. Go to Rabat/sale marina up the coast. RIGHT NEXT to the old souk, features in Robinson Cruiso and is a 3 minute walk to the main train station where there are several an hour to Cassablanca and most other places in Morocco. We went there intending to stay a few days spent 2 months there exploring...... But forget Cassablanca by yacht.
 
duncan99210 said:
I've just sailed down the Moroccan coast from Gib to Lanzarote. Before setting out I looked at possible diversion ports to bolt to if the weather went absolutely silly. Once away from Tangier there are few stopping places.
Larache to the north is offers good shelter but minimal facilities, difficult entrance in severe swell.
Rabat, still to the north but south of Larache is a reasonable stopping place but very subject to swell. More than 2m swell and the port is closed. Also reports of shallow depths in the channel, to the extent that the marina usually sends a boat out to guide you in...
Mohameddia seems to be the default setting when Rabat is closed. It's a few miles to the north of the main port in Casablanca and offers shelter and easy entrance in most winds. However, little information is available about it. Looking at google map pictures, there are a couple of pontoons with yachts moored to them, not much evidence of anything else.
Hope that helps.
Click to expand...

If Rabat is closed then so is Mohameddia, and often the later has no space anyway.
 
temptress said:
If Rabat is closed then so is Mohameddia, and often the later has no space anyway.
Click to expand...

I took a Sunseeker 65 into Mohammedia. Size matters! Also took on nearly 3000 litres of diesel. Their pump was busted so they did it by jerrycans. Took nine hours.

Safi is amazing but further south. Also Essouria. But for pukka Marina, try Agadir. You can also sing a song about it and annoy your crew.
 
At some times of year, there is also lots of fog. You can bar prop and tell your audience that it was so thick, you couldn't see to light your cigarette.

Clears bars quickly.
 
capnsensible said:
At some times of year, there is also lots of fog. You can bar prop and tell your audience that it was so thick, you couldn't see to light your cigarette.

Clears bars quickly.
Click to expand...

Like that :o

Only time I visited Casablanca, we flew in and it had no redeeming features. Not least, was the (IIRR) a Russian plane that had not quite made the runway and was scattered just short of it, seemed to have been left there for a while. Bit creepy.
 
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