Using a Local SIM Card to Stay Connected on Your Phone in Morocco

Using your phone in Morocco on arrival You will find local operators on arrival at any airport. Not only do these local operators have booths and small shops, but they often have promotions where they have representatives with clipboards handing out free SIM cards with 20 Dh of credit. It’s now easier than ever to get in touch with family and friends back home when visiting Morocco. With a highly strong network that supports 4G and 5G cellular service in most major cities and rural areas, you should have no trouble staying in touch with loved ones using apps like Facetime and WhatsApp. If 4G or 5G is not accessible, a surprisingly fast 3G connection can usually be discovered. There aren’t many dark areas in the coverage, but some may be found in some of the nation’s most remote locations, such as Mount Toubkal, North Africa’s biggest peak.

Using Your Phone Before Arrival in Morocco:

• If you are using an international plan with your domestic carrier, your phone should function flawlessly in Morocco. Before you go, verify again with your provider that you are covered.
• If you plan to switch SIM cards with your home phone, make sure your phone is unlocked. If you’re not sure about this, ask your nearby phone provider.
• In order to ensure that you have coverage as soon as you land and don’t have to worry about locating a wifi hotspot, it’s helpful to set up and activate your eSIM card (embedded SIM) at home the day before or the day of your trip. (Learn more about eSIM cards, including their uses and functions, at this link: https://www.pcmag.com/explainers/what-is-an-esim-card

Getting Your Phone’s eSIM Card

The introduction of the eSIM in recent years has simplified staying connected more than before. There’s no need to bother with tiny, twitchy plastic inserts for your phone. Concerning “unlocking” your phone from your carrier, you don’t need to worry. Additionally, you don’t need to bother trying to obtain a safety pin or tiny needle to pry open the SIM card tray. These days, all you have to do is download an eSIM from a provider, choose the desired level of coverage, and you’re good to go! You have a second line for your cell phone that is for a different nation. Going forward, an eSIM will be the most sensible option for the majority of passengers. Plans are extremely affordable, and coverage is generally good. We have personally utilized these in Morocco and other global locations. The following businesses should be looked into as they provide coverage in Morocco:

Holafly

• Airalo
• Most major operators are planning to offer eSIM for international travel

Using Your Phone When You Arrive in Morocco

In every airport, local carriers are available when you arrive. These local carriers not only have booths and small storefronts, but they frequently run promotions where representatives with clipboards hand out free SIM cards with 20Dh of credit. Orange, INWI, and Maroc Telecom are Moroccan carriers.

Almost everywhere, if you don’t acquire a free SIM at the airport, a SIM will cost you 20Dh. This credit is only usable for a few phone calls at this time.

Make sure they are charging your Internet when you charge your phone. Stupidly, in Morocco, there are two alternatives for charging a phone: telephone and Internet. Charging one does not affect the other. The majority of tourists are content to simply charge their Internet and stay in touch via widely used internet apps like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

In Morocco, Using Your Phone While You’re in the Nation

Many of the hotels and guesthouses provide free wifi, however, due to the ancient, thick walls and lack of powerful routers, the Internet connection in the rooms can be very poor. You can use your phone as your hotspot by tethering it, which is possible with most phones. We frequently link our iPads, computers, and other gadgets to the Internet via our phones. With my iPhone 13 Pro, I can work online while in the field by utilizing my phone as a hotspot, uploading high-resolution images, and occasionally streaming movies.

• There are a few, rather small black patches scattered throughout most rural roadways.
• In certain regions of the Sahara, modest 4G coverage may be achievable with Orange. Nothing compares to video calling your loved ones back home shortly before dusk while riding a camel!
• Watch carefully what you bring with you if you’re working at a café, especially if you’re using your phone to connect to another device. Thieves may find this to be an alluring “snatch and run,” particularly in large cities.
• It is feasible to acquire a replacement phone if yours breaks but keep in mind that Morocco levies 20% VAT (value-added tax) on imported items, which means that a $500 mobile might end up costing $700 or more. Additionally, we typically lag behind Morocco’s most recent technological advances by many months.
• Almost all small grocery stores (Hanoot) sell phone credit if your phone runs out of credit. If necessary, you can request assistance from your driver or place of lodging to obtain additional credit.
• To make it simple to stay in contact with them, your hotels, all of us at Sahara Morocco Travel, and the rest of your group, our drivers are equipped with telephones.

• Get in touch with us and we may make arrangements if you require a cell phone for your travels.
• We, along with almost everyone else, utilize the WhatsApp app. Before your trip, we strongly advise you to download and familiarize yourself with this program. It functions using data (rather than regular cellphone connections) and is similar to texting with a phone and SMS. It is effective for grouping people who can participate in the same discussion thread about your travels, as well as for exchanging images and videos!

Here are a few more broad notes regarding phone use in Morocco:

• Although Orange’s speeds are substantially better in the desert, we find Maroc Telecom to be the most dependable service with the strongest network.
• With rather significant Internet usage, we typically charge our phones 100Dh (about $12), which provides enough credit to last a month, sometimes longer. While we upload and download a lot of images and occasionally have family video calls, we hardly ever stream more than one or two movies or TV series each month. You may require a little extra credit if you use video. In every major city, there are local carrier branches.

Naturally, we’ll try our best to meet your connectivity demands if you travel with us. Your driver can assist you with any SIM card or connection that you may require. Even while getting an eSIM or SIM card at the airport might be useful, if you’re exhausted from the flight and don’t want to deal with it or can’t figure it out, just tell your driver what you need, and he’ll take care of it as soon as possible. Since all of our drivers carry hotspots, you will always have a backup option available even if you decide to rely solely on free public wifi.

Now that you have these pointers in your pocket, you may connect to your world from the blue metropolis of Chefchaouen to the shady labyrinth of Fez and beyond!