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MoroccoMoroccoVisited Oct 2025 · 1 week

Casablanca

Little to love about Morocco's biggest city.

Great value
Average7.8
Accommodation8.9
Coworking7.8
Value8.7
Excitement5.6
Living costs, excl. rent~$788
Mild and dry
JFMAMJJASONDMild and dry: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
Nomad visaNone
Population3,200,000
Fly into

CMN

The nation's economic and commercial powerhouse.

Throughout history, the city has passed through Berber, Portuguese and later French colonial rule. Morocco's largest city and economic capital, home to Africa's tallest minaret at the Hassan II Mosque, it continues to serve as the country's primary port and financial centre.

Worth it if you're nearby

An underwhelming city by global standards with very little on offer to warrant a stay longer than a week. But with incredibly affordable accommodation, it could be an ideal base from which to explore the rest of the country.

At a glance

Accommodation

Great · #3 of 62

8.9/10

The price of accommodation on Airbnb is one reason why you should consider a month-long stint in Casablanca. For under £800 a month you can find a modern, well-furnished apartment in a good, central area of the city without too much effort.

You can even spot viable options for under £500, which puts it at price levels that even major cities in SE Asia cannot compete with in 2025.

Compared to any of the cities I visited in the country, Casablanca felt like it comfortably had the best building stock when it comes to the availability of modern, high-quality apartment blocks.

How it compares

Coworking

Good · #27 of 62

7.8/10

As would be expected as the country's main commercial hub, Casablanca comfortably has the best options for coworking spaces both in terms of quality and quantity across the country.

How it comparesWhere to work

Value

Great · #7 of 62

8.7/10

Like most places throughout the country, day-to-day living costs are unparalleled across Europe. Expect to pick up a hearty local meal like a tagine for well under £5, always served with plentiful bread as an accompaniment.

An espresso from a traditional café costs around £1, whilst a simple breakfast with eggs, bread, olives and an orange juice can be found in most places for around £3. Prices for more international items can begin to creep up, but if you are interested in primarily exploring traditional Moroccan cuisine, you can live very well on a modest budget.

Taxi rides via InDrive are inexpensive, with most journeys within the city costing no more than a couple of pounds at a time.

Local beers from bars start at around £1.70 for a small bottle, with prices scaling up considerably when looking for imported items from more sophisticated outlets.

With good availability of affordable apartments and low day-to-day costs, if you are looking to operate within European working hours and remain within an hour's flight of the continent, there are few better options for those seeking to minimise their monthly expenditure as dramatically as possible.

How it comparesCosts breakdown

Excitement

Ok · #49 of 62

5.6/10

Considering both its size and its stature as the major cosmopolitan hub of the country, Casablanca is underwhelming.

What lies at the heart of this is the layout of the city. Over time, commercial development has built away from and out of the old urban core, which can be found towards the docks, with something of a concentration of development occurring either side of the arterial road of Bd Mohammed Zerktouni.

No one area feels like it's particularly riveting to walk through. The more modern commercial developments, spread out in areas like Anfa, are somewhat separated from the true urban core and don't carry the pace and ambience of a downtown.

From a cultural perspective, if you are looking to experience a historic medina, given the city's one was rebuilt in 1755, you're better off in one of the other cities, and for conventional tourism it's always going to fall short compared to the allures of Marrakesh, Fes or Essaouira.

Like other cities in the country, the nightlife is close to non-existent, and what is there exists in a capacity which personally holds no interest.

As a result of all the above, you are left with a city that carries all the baggage of being a large metropolitan area, but with none of the fun or spark which they generally possess. Passable for a week, but very little to inspire you to book a longer stay.

How it compares

Plan

Summary

After what could be best described as a subdued couple of weeks in neighbouring Tunis, Casablanca was the first stop on a month-long trip through Morocco.

This was my second trip to the country. I'd visited the southern cities on a road trip a decade earlier and wasn't eager to return as a base for remote work.

I had great memories. But it was chaotic, noisy and lacked the qualities I typically seek in a workspace.

I targeted the northern cities as potentially better suited, work-focused destinations, with the country's biggest commercial hub an ideal starting point.

The area around El Hank Lighthouse, to the west of the Hassan II Mosque, is a scenic backdrop for an evening run and a popular location for locals to bring along a deckchair and take in one of the great sunsets stretching far across the Atlantic.
The area around El Hank Lighthouse, to the west of the Hassan II Mosque, is a scenic backdrop for an evening run and a popular location for locals to bring along a deckchair and take in one of the great sunsets stretching far across the Atlantic.

Cost of living

$788a month, before rent

Basic living costs, rent not included

Day-to-day spending for a month: two meals out and a coffee every day, three taxis and two nights out a week, a gym and a coworking desk. Add your rent on top.

Moderate
  • Meal in a casual restaurant$5.40
  • Speciality coffee$3.51
  • Pint of local beer$4.01
  • Cocktail$8.03
  • Taxi for 2 miles$2.81
  • Men's haircut$7.23
  • Women's haircut$15
  • Gym membership, monthly$34
  • Coworking, monthly$151

Prices as of Oct 2026. Confidence: low. Sources: workin.space, jobsquare.ma, livingcost.org. Always check locally before planning around them.

Duration & season

The weather was close to ideal during October. Not quite hot enough to carelessly enjoy the beach but perfect for exploring outdoors in shorts and a T-shirt late into the evening. The peak seasons for the country generally tend to be during spring, with autumn slightly quieter, both periods avoiding the intensity that comes with midsummer heat.

How long do you need in Casablanca? If you are just passing through on holiday, two nights over a weekend would be sufficient. It's a big city, but it's not necessarily the most riveting place to explore on foot.

A month-long stay could work well if you are planning on using it as a base to explore the rest of the country from. It has the most energy and metropolitan feel of any of the cities I visited on this trip and, given its geographical position in the country, makes many destinations candidates for weekend excursions.

However, in a similar vein to neighbouring Rabat, it doesn't have enough going for it to warrant a month there in isolation.

By month

Typical temperatures and rainfall by month
MonthLow °CHigh °CRain mmNotes
January102037
February112036
March1121113wet month · peak season
April132439peak season
May14249peak season
June192910
July20291
August21309
September18277peak season
October172633peak season
November122447wet month · peak season
December101991wet month
Wettest months Peak season

Typical daytime highs and overnight lows, from the last two years of observations (Open-Meteo). Rain icons mark the wettest months.

Visitors a year
800k2024
Crowds
Medium
Peak season
Mar–May, Sep–Nov
Low season
Dec–Feb

Remote work visa

No digital nomad visa

Working hours

Morocco operates on GMT+1 throughout most of the year, making it one hour ahead of the UK during winter months when the UK is on GMT, and perfectly aligned with UK working hours during summer when the UK observes daylight saving time (BST).

The exception is during Ramadan, when Morocco temporarily switches to GMT for approximately six weeks, though the dates vary each year as Ramadan follows the lunar calendar.

Safety

I didn't see anything to be concerned about from a safety perspective.

I walked around the city extensively and it felt safe and secure at all times, with a visible police presence.

Drivers' disregard for pedestrians is likely your biggest real concern.

Pay extra attention when crossing the road, even if a light is flashing green.

Use InDrive.

I never experienced anything longer than a four-minute wait for a taxi. Sometimes the car that arrived didn't match the registration plate shown in the app, though I wouldn't worry too much about this. Ensure you have small change on you.

Maintain a degree of caution for anyone who appears overly friendly.

The overwhelming majority of Moroccans you'll encounter have good intentions and some might be simply very enthusiastic to speak to you. However, you will inevitably encounter individuals who will strike up casual conversation before it transitions to selling carpets or other goods. You'll naturally pick up an intuitive sense of this, but it's something to be wary of if you're new in the country or in a particularly saturated tourist area.

Live & work

Where to stay

Casablanca is a huge city with an enormous variety of building stock, from the romantic but crumbling old city to the more modern and European-feeling Maârif.

With a strong amount of choice via Airbnb, you should be able to find a good selection in the area of your choosing.

Anfa

Recommended

Anfa is where I most recently stayed. Part of Casablanca's upscale "Golden Triangle" alongside Racine and Gauthier, it felt like the most modern, Western and cosmopolitan part of Casablanca, if not the entire country. The drawback was that whilst it contained more international cuisines and some better options for coffee, there appeared an almost complete absence of local food, specifically close to where I was staying near Rue Ain El Aouda. In fact, with the exception of one tagine, I ate every cuisine other than Moroccan over the seven days I was there, in complete contrast to every other city I visited. Likely your best bet as a base for working, but definitely not somewhere which feels authentically Moroccan.

Work from KOWORK ANFA

Maârif

A very pleasant, green neighbourhood which officially covers a huge expanse. Particularly nice around the areas like 'France Ville II' and 'Oasis', which you'll find listed on Google Maps. As good as these areas felt, these more southerly parts felt too far from the core of the city centre, so if only in town for a few days I would aim to be further north towards Bd Mohammed Zerktouni.

Work from Mow Coworking

Old City (Casablanca)

Would avoid

If you are passing by for a couple of days and want somewhere which is going to feel more traditionally 'Moroccan', then this could be a valid option. For most other people, especially if planning an extended trip working from the city, I'd strongly suggest you would be better off in one of the more modern southerly neighbourhoods with a more contemporary selection of food options at your disposal.

Work from Boostix

La Gironde

There's little to get excited about in the immediate area around the Commons coworking space. I wandered the neighbouring streets and found nothing to warrant staying here beyond proximity to the workspace. Lots of local cafés, a surprising number of Chinese restaurants, and a particularly chaotic market area towards 'Zone Commerciale Derb Omar'. Not a great area to spend your entire work week.

Work from Commons Zerktouni

Where to work

As would be expected as the country's main commercial hub, Casablanca comfortably has the best options for coworking spaces both in terms of quality and quantity across the country.

I opted for the Zerktouni branch of the Commons chain, which I've written about in greater detail below.

From my research, Mow Coworking and 133 also looked like other solid, high-quality options worthy of further investigation.

When you're looking on the map, most of these sites are pretty spread out across the city. This dispersion reflects a lack of one core central hub or a proper downtown you may want to gravitate towards. I wasn't overly enamoured with any particular area of the city, so I'd seek to align your Airbnb within a good distance of the workspace and avoid an unnecessary commute.

Commons Zerktouni coworking space

Commons Zerktouni

Quality fit-outOutdoor space

On first look at Google Maps, there appears to be a wealth of coworking options in the city. On closer inspection, there aren't many that would excite you if you've been accustomed to the luxuries provided by higher-end options elsewhere in the world.

The space offered by the Commons chain looked like the best option, so I opted for a week pass there. There are two large open spaces for coworking on the second and third floors. Most of the seating consists of small rectangular desks and booths, but there are some dedicated desk spaces which are free to use if unoccupied. A week pass costs around £55 and gets you 24/7 access to the space.

On each floor there are several sofas and booths for making calls, and there's a traditionally ornate shaded patio area outside which is ideal for taking lunch. There's a good ambience on each floor and it doesn't feel a million miles away from what you'd expect in a WeWork. Each floor has a small kitchen with an espresso machine and water, and it's well maintained throughout the day.

The one drawback would be the scarcity of attractive options for lunch or coffee in the surrounding area. There are very few options for Moroccan cuisine, with more choice for a chow mein from one of the many Chinese restaurants than a tagine. I walked around exhaustively on foot and considering how central it is in the city, it's a rather uninspiring area to spend your entire week in.

However, on the whole, it's a solid option if passing through for a short period and I'd feel fairly confident that it's one of your best options in the city (if not the country). They don't accept payment by card, so be prepared to make a foreign bank transfer.

179, Angle des Boulevards de Londres et de la Résistance, Quartier, Av. Mers Sultan, Casablanca 20250, Morocco

DirectionsWebsite

Food & drink

Coffee

% Arabica Casablanca

Top ratedLaptop friendly

This branch of the multinational chain was about the best place I could find for a coffee in the entire city. Nice interior and somewhere more than acceptable for a few hours' work.

Food

Kamoun

One of the few contemporary casual options I could find for Moroccan food in this part of town. Reliable place to sample a tagine or other local dishes, with a cosy, local inspired interior. Attentive service and can pay by card.

Nomo

Top rated

Modern, casual dining restaurant specialising in poke bowls with a range of other Asian-inspired options on the menu. Good value, large portions and a well-designed interior.

La Baguette du Relais

Top rated

If you like the idea of a freshly grilled French-style steak sandwich served with chips, look no further. Solid quality, sizeable dessert menu, friendly staff with card payments also accepted.

Drinks

Napoleon bar

A classic Moroccan 'sports bar'. Expect a hazy, smoke-filled environment, exclusively occupied by men over the age of 40, several TVs playing European football and cheap local beers starting from around 18 MAD. Would bring cash and some clothes you don't mind immediately putting in the washing machine afterwards.

Off the clock

Exercise

Run

El Hank Lighthouse

This is a solid route running along the coast, starting from the Hassan II Mosque in the east and looping up onto the observation point by the lighthouse. The area by Plage El Hank is currently undergoing construction work, so unless you fancy walking along a thin strip of concrete, take the road route to loop around.

Walk

Anfa / Racine Loop

What felt like the most upscale areas for residential and retail, with some of the best-quality building stock I found throughout the city and wider country. If weighing up staying in either area, would recommend being within walking distance of the main arterial road of Bd Mohammed Zerktouni.

Run

Arab League Park

Perfect place to escape some traffic in the centre of the city. Well-landscaped, home to a vast quantity of cats and popular with other runners in the early evening. Shuts by 7pm.

Run

Plage Lalla Meryem

This felt like the most accessible beach to the city centre, around a 20-minute walk further down from El Hank Lighthouse. In all honesty, not the finest beach I'd ever visited, but it was compact enough to actually run along.

People

Casablanca isn't near the top of most people's wish lists when visiting Morocco, and this was reflected on the ground, with a conspicuous absence of foreign visitors. I'm confident I was the solitary non-Moroccan national in the coworking space I visited.

With a number of consulates and multinational businesses based within the city, you are more likely to encounter expats residing there than a typical remote work community.

Whilst areas like Anfa and Racine have building stock and infrastructure where you might think you're in Europe, Casablanca is still rough around the edges in much of the city. This was one of the few drawbacks of working from the Commons Zerktouni coworking space, where the streets surrounding Place de la Victoire are a world away from the modernity you'll find elsewhere in the city.
Whilst areas like Anfa and Racine have building stock and infrastructure where you might think you're in Europe, Casablanca is still rough around the edges in much of the city. This was one of the few drawbacks of working from the Commons Zerktouni coworking space, where the streets surrounding Place de la Victoire are a world away from the modernity you'll find elsewhere in the city.

Notes

Positives

It has a palpable big-city energy.

Make no mistake: it is the undisputed commercial centre of Morocco, the very heart of business in the country. The problem, however, is that it doesn't contain anything on the leisure side to truly back this up for tourists. There is a reason why it has never been a city stapled to people's tourist itineraries. Nightlife exists in a capacity that I assume is of little relevance to those accustomed to Western equivalents. Aside from the coastline, there is no truly compelling nature on the doorstep. I was drawn to it, hoping for the hustle and bustle it undoubtedly has, yet it fails to build on that in any way outside of work.

Hospitable people.

Like other destinations in the country, I found Moroccans to be friendly, welcoming and more than accommodating in their efforts to speak English, assuming your French or Moroccan Arabic is not particularly strong.

A good variety of international food.

Especially around Anfa, you'll find what felt like the widest array of international culinary options at your disposal, compared to anywhere else in the country. Mexican, Greek, Thai and Japanese are all well represented, albeit of varying quality.

Fast internet.

Internet speeds at Airbnbs, coworking spaces and even through cellular connections on my eSIM were routinely excellent and a world away from the frequent dial-up speeds I encountered in nearby Tunisia. Better connection and speeds than I routinely find within the UK.

Negatives

It's unlikely to be somewhere that will sustain your interest.

I never felt bored and wasn't in a particular rush to leave Casablanca, but I felt I'd struggle to remain engaged over the course of a month if I was planning on primarily staying within the city. With few appealing nightlife options and no real central focal point for shopping and socialising, the city lacks the gravitational pull needed for an extended stay.

Casablanca was the hardest place to engage with Moroccan food.

If you are staying in one of the more modern areas in the city, like Anfa, there are sparse options for traditional food like you maybe expecting. In every other destination, I felt inundated with choices for tagines and took great interest daily in sampling my way through each variation of Harira soup and Poulet frites. Thats not to say I didn't eat well in Casablanca. It's just that it was an entirely international mix of foods where I had to proactively seek out local cuisine in a way which was entirely unfamiliar in the other cities.

A poor array of decent coffee options compounded the issue.

The same criticism could be levelled at both Rabat and Tangier, yet this gap feels particularly glaring in Casablanca. With so many options for international cuisine and a comfortable claim to the most cosmopolitan feel of any city in the country, having only a solitary store of the Arabica brand sort of exemplifies how culturally far away the city is from what you may be used to in Europe, or practically anywhere else in 2025.

Particularly terrible drivers.

Crossing the road is truly perilous in Casablanca. Only the naive would assume any form of priority at pedestrian crossings because a green man is showing on the sign. Multiple times per day I felt as if I narrowly avoided a paralysing car crash, with the fleeing driver offering a customary apology wave as they sped off around the corner. Everyone appears to be in some form of hurry in Casablanca, with pedestrians feeling the brunt of this.

Tips

If you're looking for a male haircut, head to Barber Lounge by Anwar.

A cut costs around £10 and they speak English well. Cash only.

If arriving at the airport, get the train to the city centre.

Tickets cost under £5 and the train terminates at Casa Voyageurs, which also serves the high-speed connections. It's a better option than battling with local taxi operators, especially if you lack InDrive, small denominations of Moroccan dirhams, or reliable phone signal having just arrived in the country.

A small amount of French and Arabic will suffice for day-to-day communication.

Moroccan Arabic (Darija) is the main spoken language within the country, with some official documentation and road signs presented in French. You may also see a third peculiar-looking Berber script (Tifinagh) on government buildings. If you can recall a few phrases from your secondary school French education, they may prove useful, though English is generally spoken to a reasonable standard in many places.

An eSIM from MobiMatter is good value.

10GB costs around £12 and gave strong coverage and speeds wherever I was in the country.

Head to Al Barid Bank for ATM withdrawals.

These are often attached to Maroc Post Offices and reliably give fee-free withdrawals. I withdrew around 300 dirhams every couple of days, with card availability mixed.

Planning a trip to Casablanca?

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