Morocco Activity Holidays for Families

Taking your family away on holiday can often be stressful especially if you have boisterous children who need constant attention which is why we recommend a family activity holiday. By choosing a holiday complete with organised daily adventures, whether that's white water rafting or something more sedate like camel rides in the desert, you'll ensure everyone is entertained and your family can share new experiences. We aren't talking about a kid's club though, get involved and take the plunge alongside your children and not will they have more respect for you, you might just enjoy yourself.

So what's our top recommended activity trip? A Morocco holiday. That's right, stay fairly close to home but have a massive adventure on a small budget. Flights to Morocco start from as little as £50 per person if you book early enough and small, group tours from as little as £339 per person. A short flight later and you could be riding camels across the Sahara, hiking in the Todra Gorge, sampling sweet mint tea in the bazaars of Marrakech and mountain biking in the Draa Valley.

An activity holiday in Morocco is ideal for a family new to adventure holidays as it is a laid back, warm destination which welcomes families. All year Morocco enjoys pleasant temperatures, although in summer it gets hot, especially in the desert. Ideally you should visit from March to June so during Easter or May half term, to enjoy good temperatures and have the chance to white water raft in the Ourika Valley. At other times of the year the river is too strong to be safe or it's too cold. Away from the water sports, the Sahara desert is a giant playground all on its own. From sand boarding down massive sand dunes, to camel rides and camping under the stars, the desert is a great place to visit. The resident Bedouin tribes are more than happy to show you their way of life and tell tall tales of their adventures around a campfire and waking up to the still of the desert is unforgettable.

If sand isn't quite your thing then the Draa Valley near Agdz is simply stunning and mountain biking past local villages on dirt roads is great fun and you can choose your pace. For those not wanting to ride you can walk the valley and share tea with the people you meet. This is a calm environment very different to the colourful life of Marrakesh.

Whatever you choose to do on your Morocco holiday, remember there is something new to explore on every corner. North you'll find roman city ruins and to the south beach resorts complete with ageing harbours. Our number one is the activity holiday but if you're more sedate and like to eat and relax then try a week at Essaouira or take meandering walks in the stunning Atlas Mountains.

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Buying a Home in Morocco

Morocco in North Africa is a popular part of the world for tourists, home buying and new development hunters as Morocco welcomes overseas property & home buyers. With next to no nt, leading the way to revitalising Morocco. Stable country coupled with booming home buying andrestrictions on foreigners home buying, property development areas are being erected to fuel the demand of second home owners and invest opportunity.

Popular, Morocco government is keen to drive through change throughout the entire country and home buying and property development is attracting foreign direct investme property market Morocco can offer a range of opportunities for all budgets and tastes. With Morocco being a warm climate and a country close to the equator it offers many months of sun with much less expensive property in comparison than other similar countries in the region.

With Morocco having a history of home buying & property ownership without deeds it is always best to check title deeds with older property. Older townhouses and land in Morocco tends to present a small problem when it comes to transferring title ownership as it takes much longer to secure deeds for a home & property without deeds. A new built home tends to provide a straight forward home buying ownership opportunity as new deeds and home ownership legal issues can arranged by your lawyer.

Buying Process

- Viewing trips to Morocco looking at potential property and homes.

- Deal direct with home owners with older property as this tends to be the normal practice. Also a good idea to consult with a good English

- English speaking estate agent that will provide suitable property and homes for you to look at.

- View property developers new built apartments and homes.

- Decide on a final price when home buying, which is another custom in Morocco.

- Agree a final price for the property or home.

- Gain the agreement of the home owner or owners to sell the property and accept the terms. - Appoint a lawyer to conduct a survey, legal checks, title deeds check and home ownership of the property.

- Preliminary contract is drawn up when both parties agree the change of home ownership that will detail all terms and conditions.

- Pay a deposit at the initial agreement stage which tends to be higher than other countries.

- Lawyer will also check to see if there is any outstanding debts on the property, as the new owner would inherit all debts when home buying in Morocco.

- In general a bank account in Morocco is required for the payment of property.

- When your professional lawyer and you are happy with the property and all documentation then the final agreement to transfer is initiated by paying the final outstanding balance owed on the purchase of the home.

- Your lawyer will then officially enter the property home buying sale with the government officials. Time period from agreeing a home buying or property purchase to registering the property under your ownership can take as little as a week or months depending on if there are any issues that arise through paperwork or planning.

Fees and taxes are charged around the rate of 6.5% for buildings and land at 1% of the total sales price.

Communicating

Morocco in towns & cities have all the modern means of communication such as broadband and dial up internet, fax, telegram, telephones and mobile telephone signals. Rural areas and the desert at times a mobile telephone signal is weak or no service available and you are very advisable to plan all living and travel in mind of health & safety. Post in and out of Morocco can be slow at time, although sending international or express postage or packages should be the same service as other countries offer. Travel

Airport

Several airports in Morocco, although not all service international flights and can be difficult seeing Morocco by plane with specifically chartering a pane yourself privately.

Roads

Major highways from city to city and towns and other minor roads throughout morocco are mostly usable. Driving around some parts of the country requires four wheeled drive vehicle as the road can range from a rough uneven surface, dirt, rocky and sand. Hiring a car is no problem and driving round major towns & cities which are well sign posted. Toll road payments are present in Morocco and are payable in advance if you wish to use a toll road.

Taxis

Petit Taxi Cheap and most affordable around morocco cities and major towns. Petit taxis are only permitted to ferry passengers in one specific town or city and are not allowed outside the city limits. Grand Taxi Usable for all over Morocco and can take you most places you wish to go. More expensive and comfortable and generally are all Mercedes cars. Good idea in tourist cities to ask for a set price before starting your journey.

Buses

Transportation by bus in Morocco is fairly cheap and in major towns and cities for is set cheap for people to use the bus and afford the fare at the same time. Getting around Morocco is possible by bus and all tourist and a lot of non tourist routes are serviced every day.

Trains

Reliable trains and almost always come on time are the best mode of transport to get around at an affordable price. As like other countries there is first and second class and standard differ according to the choice of carriage you choice to travel. Moroccan national railway company (ONCF office national des chemins de fer) is taking really good care of its customers: train stations throughout Morocco are well-equipped and clean and the personnel are very friendly.

ONCF Call center: 090 20 30 40 Website: http://www.oncf.ma At present the 3 main routes services are: " Tangier-Kenitra-Rabat-Casablanca " Casablanca-Marrakech " Oujda-Fes-Meknes-Kenitra There is also a train line which connects Casablanca to the Mohammed V international airport. Plans are in place to expand the rail network to service more towns and cities throughout Morocco.

Sea

Tangier from Spain, Casablanca and other ports on the coastline of Morocco can be accessed by the sea.

Medical Assistance

Always advisable to have comprehensive medical coverage before leaving home. Morocco has good hospitals, private clinics and doctor available 24 hours a day, although in some parts of the country it is difficult to access medical care. Remote areas and the desert could mean hours before medical assistance arrives and a means of summing help such as a mobile phone is ways advisable.

Ray Blanchett RC Property Worldwide

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Real Estate Property Investment Series: Focus Morocco 2007

The Moroccan government realised that the way forward for their nation in terms of creating employment and boosting the economy significantly was to increase tourism and to create an environment so attractive for investors that they would come in their droves and buy up real estate stock.

To that end the government has been promoting Morocco around the world - there is a permanent stand at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida heralding the virtues of this North African nation that practically touches Europe across the Mediterranean Sea that divides it from mainland Spain for example, and now the skies over Morocco are open to cheap flight operators from across Europe and the UK. The nation has year round sunshine and is directly south and a short flying time from affluent Western Europe and all of these factors are starting to affect Morocco positively.

In 2006 in the first nine months alone tourism traffic was up almost 10% on the previous year with revenue generated from tourism up almost 30% which proves that the government are targeting the 'right' sort of tourist - i.e., the ones who come, stay, enjoy and spend money in Morocco! Looking to the longer term the Moroccan government has plans to increase tourism until 10 million visitors annually enter the nation by 2010. There are even plans afoot to build a tunnel under the sea to connect Morocco to Gibraltar in Europe...

'But why all this information about tourism' I hear you ask?

Because it is the tourism market that property investors in Morocco are targeting. On the one hand they are targeting those seeking villa and apartment rental and on the other hand they are aware that today's holiday maker is tomorrow's second, retirement or holiday home buyer. And investors really are in Morocco buying up and developing real estate stock. Already six brand new coastal resorts are in the planning and development stages, money is flooding in from Dubai and Qatar based development companies and European buyers are purchasing off plan knowing full well that their real estate assets are appreciating even before they are completed and handed over. Buyers in 2007 have a chance to buy in ahead of the continued predicted rise in tourism and before Morocco is established in many people's minds as a place to invest in real estate.

Consider buying off plan and flipping stock or better still, simply buying and renting to the tourism market on the Atlantic or Mediterranean coasts or in the mountainous ski resort of Oukaimeden. Rental income is earned tax free in Morocco for the first five years and those who hold property for ten years or more pay no capital gains tax when they resell, furthermore one is not subject to local inheritance tax in Morocco either. In conclusion - Morocco offers an investor a wealth of opportunity. Basically an investor needs to consider his preferred investment approach and his target market and then seek suitable real estate with room for growth or with prospects for returning good yields.

Rhiannon Williamson writes about property investment worldwide, to read more about property investment in Morocco [http://www.amberlamb.com/index.php/property/morocco/] in 2007 and beyond visit her site [http://www.amberlamb.com]

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