Abdelouhed

Abdul nos ha tratado bien y ha sido simpático. El recorrido por la medina ha sido fluido, porque solo estábamos mi pareja y yo. Quizás nos ha faltado más información y datos históricos sobre la ciudad, y le animamos a que siga mejorando su español para mejorar la experiencia.

It is with regret that I write this review, and it is not my intention to denigrate the guide in any way, but hope he will take on my feedback. I booked the walking tour for the morning slot for my son and myself, but asked straight after the booking if I could change to to the afternoon slot if he had no Spanish tourists (the later one was listed as a Spanish tour and I speak English). He replied straight away to say that was fine. On the day, he messaged to ask if we could start an hour later, and I obliged. When he arrived 15 minutes late, he came across as very friendly and warm. He took us to a panoramic spot and told us about the layout of the medina. It was very interesting and we learned many interesting things. He then took us through some back streets of the medina, again very interesting, and then led us towards to the tanneries. The first hour was excellent and then it went downhill from there. We left the main area to head towards a date market in the Andalus quarter. I asked if we would see the Kairaounine and the other historic sites near there. He got annoyed and said we would see it on the way back. Fair enough. He was mostly on his phone as we walked behind him to the Andalus area. The street was packed and polluted. When I asked him if he could explain a bit about where we were going, he got angry and said he had been talking throughout and was fasting. I said I was happy to end the tour if he was tired. The walk to the date market wasn’t interesting at all, but he said he wanted to show us things we wouldn’t see in London. After he had purchased his shopping at the date market (I suspect that’s why he dragged us there), we saw another scenic spot and we walked through the Chinese market. I asked about the history of the Chinese in Fez and he said it was a market of imported Chinese goods. Utterly dull and pointless. As we approached the Kairouine, he asked which handicrafts I was interested in. He mentioned a women’s cooperative a number of times. “Cooperative” is an overused word in Morocco to get you to buy. I told him I had visited Morocco 4 times and didn’t want to do any shopping. Again, he got angry and demanded to know when I could have shopped when I only arrived the day before. It then occurred to me that the tour was a rouse to get people to shop. I said I didn’t want to visit any handicrafts but wanted to visit the Kairouine and we could end the tour after that. He took us there and he said to take pictures. When I asked for some history, he got very angry and said he already gave me the history at the panoramic spot and was I not listening. I felt very intimidated at this point. He went to locals and loudly telling them about us. He then started talking loudly saying he was very upset that we were not happy and that nobody had ever been upset with his tour. He used a lot of emotional manipulation to make me feel bad, including asking my child to confirm he’d done a good job!! He said that I messed him around by changing the time (which he agreed to but turned up an hour late). Gaslighting 101. Locals were now looking at us. I paid him very generously for his time. If you are a woman alone or with a child, do not use this guide as he is prone to getting angry and aggressive if you question him. Understand that this tour is a way for him to take you to shops to spend money (presumably he gets commission). I suggest you shop independently and take your time to negotiate prices. Agree the itinerary beforehand. I have done walking tours across the world and never experienced anything like this. It is entirely possible he was having a bad day as he has many positive reviews. He said he wouldn’t take my money as I’d write a negative review. I did pay him, however, for the safety of others, it’s important I share my experience. Experiences like this do no favours for Fez or tourists.

Abdul nos ha llevado por lugares a los cuales no hubiésemos sabido llegar por nuestra propia cuenta. Nos ha explicado la historia y anécdotas de Fez de forma entretenida. En cualquier momento nos ha dado sensación de seguridad y nos ha parecido una persona muy agradable al trato. Altamente recomendable. Muchos saludos Xavier, Gemma y David!

I appreciated that he didn’t cancel on the account that I was the only one on the tour! Thank you Abdul! He was very knowledgeable and passionate about the Mèdina and the craftsmen. Be prepared to do some shopping… I wasn’t as I was down to my last few dirhams! The people were very understanding though and I think it was because of the respect they had for Abdul. All the best Abdul! TLT