Golf in Morocco from the USA & Canada: A Planning Guide

Morocco is closer to North America than most golfers assume, and it fills exactly the gap in the American and Canadian golf calendar. From October to April, when courses at home are closing or covered in snow, Morocco is warm, green and at its best. It has more than 40 courses, from Robert Trent Jones Sr.’s Royal Golf Dar Es Salam to Kyle Phillips’s clifftop Tazegzout.

This guide covers the practical side of a golf trip from the USA or Canada: entry rules, flights, jet lag, timing, how long to stay and the itineraries that work best when you are crossing the Atlantic.

Do you need a visa to play golf in Morocco?

No. US and Canadian passport holders can visit Morocco visa-free for up to 90 days as tourists. Your passport should be valid for at least six months from your arrival date. Entry rules can change, so check the current requirements for your nationality before you book flights. The Moroccan National Tourist Office is a good starting point.

Which airport should you fly into?

Casablanca is the natural gateway from North America. It has non-stop flights from the continent, and from there the best golf is within a few hours by road:

• Rabat and Royal Golf Dar Es Salam, about an hour north.
• El Jadida and Gary Player’s links at the Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort, about an hour south.
• Marrakech, with around ten courses within 30 minutes of the city.
• Fez and Ifrane, for golf with the medina and the Middle Atlas.

Marrakech and Agadir have the biggest choice of golf, but they are usually reached from North America with a connection, either through a European hub or through Casablanca. Arriving in one city and leaving from another is often the smartest plan. For example, fly into Casablanca and home from Marrakech, so you never drive the same road twice. We arrange the private transfers either way.

How do you beat jet lag on a Morocco golf trip?

Morocco is five to six hours ahead of US Eastern time, depending on the season, and more for golfers from the West Coast. Eastbound flights are usually overnight, so you land tired. Our advice, based on the golfers we host:

1. Do not book golf on arrival day. Take a private transfer to the hotel, walk, eat early and sleep.
2. Make day two a gentle round. Choose a forgiving course, such as Soleil in Agadir or the Fairmont Royal Palm in Marrakech, rather than your bucket-list round.
3. Save the big course for later in the trip. Play Royal Golf Dar Es Salam, Assoufid or Tazegzout from day three onwards, when you are swinging well.
4. Use the early tee times. Your body clock will wake you early anyway, and the first tee time of the day is the best one in Morocco.

When is the best time to go?

October to April. Temperatures are mild, the courses are in their best condition, and it is the North American golf off-season. A few rules of thumb:

• December and January: Agadir is the warmest reliable golf in Morocco, with daytime highs around 21°C.
• October, November, March and April: everywhere works, and Marrakech is superb.
• July and August: avoid inland Marrakech and Fez, which regularly pass 38°C. If you must travel in summer, stay on the Atlantic coast.

Our month-by-month guide to golf in Morocco has temperatures for every region.

How long should you stay?

Because the journey takes a day each way, we recommend at least 8 to 10 nights for golfers from North America. That leaves a recovery day, four to six rounds and time to see something of the country. The itineraries that suit transatlantic golfers best start in Casablanca:

• Rabat & Mazagan (7 nights): Royal Golf Dar Es Salam plus the Mazagan links, the simplest one-week golf trip from Casablanca.
• Imperial Cities Golf Tour (10 nights): Rabat, Fez, Ifrane and Marrakech, with Michlifen’s Jack Nicklaus signature course on the way.
• Morocco Grand Golf Tour (14 nights): the imperial cities, the Atlas kasbahs and a night in the Sahara, with rounds in Marrakech before a final night in Casablanca.

All three are on our Morocco golf tours page, with downloadable day-by-day programmes, and our guide to seven Morocco golf tour itineraries compares them in detail.

Can you combine golf with sightseeing?

You should, because it is a long way to come only for golf. Morocco’s best courses sit next to some of the most interesting places in North Africa, and every itinerary we build mixes the two.

In Casablanca you can see the Hassan II Mosque on your way out of the airport. Rabat has the Hassan Tower, the Chellah and the Oudayas kasbah, a short drive from Royal Golf Dar Es Salam. Fez has the medieval medina, its tanneries and medersas. Marrakech pairs around ten courses with the medina, Jemaa el-Fna square, the Majorelle Gardens and day trips into the Atlas Mountains. The longer tours cross the Atlas by the Tizi n’Tichka pass to Aït Ben Haddou and the Sahara dunes at Merzouga.

If some of your group do not play, our excursions and leisure tours give them their own programme while you are on the course, and everyone meets for dinner.

What does a Morocco golf trip cost?

Prices are quoted in euros, per golfer. A multi-round golf pass is the simplest way to pay green fees: Marrakech and Agadir passes start from €280 for three rounds, green fees only. Hotel-and-golf packages are priced per hotel, and tours are quoted individually based on your dates, hotels and group size.

Typical green fees run from about €55 at a resort course to €120 at a championship layout in high season. Caddies, buggies and trolleys are paid locally, and caddies are compulsory at Royal Golf Dar Es Salam, Royal Golf Marrakech, Royal Golf El Jadida and the Fairmont Royal Palm. See our golf passes for current prices.

Practical tips for North American golfers

• Clubs: most courses hire out clubs, so you can travel light. If you bring your own, our transfers carry them door to door.
• Dress code: collared shirts and tailored shorts or trousers; denim is usually not allowed on course.
• Language: Arabic and French are the official languages, but English is widely spoken at golf clubs and hotels, and our team speaks English.
• Money: the local currency is the Moroccan dirham, useful for caddie fees and tips. Hotels and tour costs are paid in euros through us.
• Closures: Royal Golf Dar Es Salam is closed on Mondays, and we plan around it.
• Handicaps: most Moroccan courses do not strictly require a handicap certificate, though a few championship courses may ask for proof of ability in high season. Bring your handicap card or app, just in case.

Why use a local golf specialist?

When you are travelling this far, the details matter: consecutive tee times, a driver waiting at the airport after an overnight flight, and someone local to call if a flight is delayed. As a Marrakech-based DMC, we book courses and hotels directly and support you on the ground throughout the trip. Our answers to common questions cover booking and payment.

Send us your dates and home airport and we will suggest the best routing and a costed itinerary.