Why I’ll NEVER Take Morocco’s Overnight Sleeper Train Again… (Tangier to Marrakesh in Couchette)
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- Опубликовано: 8 фев 2025
- Today, I am taking you onboard one of Morocco’s few night trains, traveling in the couchette carriage from Tangier to Marrakech. Unfortunately, this turned out to be one of the worst night train journeys I’ve ever had. While nothing exactly went wrong, the general state of the train was disgusting, and the poor air quality made it impossible for me to sleep. Best to avoid this train if you ask me!
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Train type: ONCF E1400 + various passenger wagons
Route: Tangier Ville to Marrakesh
Train: TM
Distance: 654km
Journey time: 9h16m
Average speed: 71 km/h
Price: 35 euro (Bed)
Took the same train just opossite direction. Had really good sleep there. All felt like grandma cozy room😂
Guess you were luckier with the cleanliness of yours :D I deffo relate to the grandma vibes
The weird design of these Corails might come from the fact that these were originally seating carriages, which were later rebuild into couchettes and sleepers. Although it is a shame that their condition is not that great compared to the Al Boraq trains and the main stations, they are supposed to be replaced by up to 40 new intercity EMUs by 2030 as part of a larger tender for up to 150 EMUs for intercity, regional and suburban traffic. The tender is apparently still open with applicants being Alstom, CAF, CRRC and Hyundai Rotem. I couldn't find out if these include sleeping compartments, but they should still provide an improvement compared to the current trainsets.
Aaaa, so they are converted, that explains why the wall is basically just a covered up compartment. Looking forward to seeing what the new EMUs bring, but that sounds like it could potentially bring the end of all sleeper trains and not just this one, big loss for places like Nador and Oudja with no real prospect of high speed trains.
No they are not they were ordered in 1990 never renovated since only repainted . The seating coraiks were indeed completely refit but sadly the high traffic put the interiors in fast decay since 2021 too much demand and need more corail coaches for more daily trains
This is the train made famous by the 1969 Crosby, Stills and Nash song "Marrakesh Express". You complained about the stuffyness, but back then (according the song) they were still transporting livestock on the train as well, so it could've been much worse.
That's right ! I was and I AM a fan of that band . " now we are riding on the Marrakesh Express ... " 👍 From Portugal 🇵🇹
I had no idea! It didn't reach us younger kids from the 2000 😅
Having some livestock run up the corridor sure would have made for an interesting video 😂
@@Simon-AndersenAre you gay?
I have a feeling these sleeper trains were primarily designed for the European market where soft touch materials such as carpet, fabric and wallpaper are more commonplace. The problem with these materials in a hot climate like Morocco is that they tend to rot and decay quite rapidly, especially when there’s little to no care for these service items. They really should be using vinyl flooring, stainless steel, hard plastic cladding and roof liners in the cabin which are easy clean, allowing for better maintenance of such areas.
The Marocco double deck Train (regional, the Orange and white one ) is the same as Italian
Hi Simon, a good video. To be honest, I have some better experiences with Moroccon Nighttrains. I've toke the Nighttrain from Oujda to Casa Voyageurs reclently, and it was great. It was a single person sleeper cabin, wich has a lot of space for luggage. It has also the best bed I've ever had on a Nighttrain. It wasn't more noicy than other Nighttrains, in which I've travelled. For example a Bulgarian from the BDŽ, and the Nighttrain to Bar were even noicy than this Morocco one.
If you ever go back to Morocco, you should try this service to Oujda. You can book those tickets online from the ONCF. It cost me around €65 for a single ride, wich is quite cheap (compared to ÖBB Nightjet...)
Yeah I've heard they have some much nicer sleeping stock, which sometimes seems to get used on this service. It's a shame their couchette carriages are not up to the same standards by the sounds of your trip and my experiences on the Al boraq and the daytime services.
سنعدل كل شيئ بمناسبة كاس العالم
I got a chuckle out of the wallpaper
Sounds like this train is a bad lemon. Most train in Morocco are nice and clean
Hmmm... had an idea to take the same train northbound, after arriving in Marakesh from Casablanca on a day train....finishing up back in Casablanca on a high speed train from Tangier
I'd stick with the day trains or one of the night trains with actual sleepers and not just couchettes. They seem up to the usual good standard of the Morrocan railways
If a train is so dirty it actively impedes with your ability to sleep onboard (the whole point of a sleeper train) then I think you're more than valid to tell people not to ride on it. Being "less wealthy" is NOT an excuse to be lazy and not clean a damn train. They clearly have modern and clean-looking infrastructure anyway so what does wealth have to do with the state of cleanliness.
And you can be sure, there is cleaning crews, they probably lazy mofo doing the bare minimum and that the company barely enforce their rules.
Trust me, i work for a national company, i was cleaner then now manager, if it was like that not even a decade ago in western european countries, it's most likely the case in north africa still.
Exactly. Both their regular daytime Al Atlas trains and Al Boraq, which I have traveled on before and released positive videos about, were in perfectly good condition. Clearly, ONCF knows how to maintain its other trains well, so I don't see why this occasion should be excused by saying that Morocco is a "poor country."
Excellent work
❤ good video ❤ subscribed
as a moroccan pls people never take those trains just take the normal ones if u care about your health also alboraq service gonna be extended to marrakesh and agadir in this order probably will take 10 years or more till launch such a scammy monopoly the oncf has since it's state owned
Nice vlog! You had a hard day bro😅
"Up to 81,000 hp"?!? I'm sure you mean 8100hp! Interesting review. Looks like just a little money could make it a better service.
Ah yeah, I meant to say 81 hundred 😅
even moroccans dont use that, they use boras train
How do air fares between Tangier and Marrakech compare to the sleeper rates?
You can fly with Ryanair on the route from about 15 euro depending on the day and how far in advance you book.
On a morning from a Bogart movie, in a country where they turned back time (except the engine) you go strolling down the crowd like Peter Lorre, contemplaining a crime....
The Year of the Cat. Mr Bill
@janetlewis7145 right, no isn't it from Al Stewart? I've sang that song rather long ago
@@FBAV Al Stewart is correct! I remembered when it came out in the mid-1970s. I also saw the movie , " Casablanca." I have it on DVD at home. Mr Bill
@janetlewis7145 oh yes indeed saw the movie too once I guess, but online or something. Well anyway, that's why those lyrics popped up
Did you try Boraq one?
Are the sleepers better than the couchettes?
I've heard so-they're newer and better maintained-but I didn't try one myself. They only run on this train sometimes, but are common on the ones from Casablanca to Oudja and Nador
No dining car? Good video.
No food at all in the sleeper. Can get lucky with a trolley in the seated carriage
Ugh... That toilet!!! 🤢 Plastic bag is a better option 😂
Does that train have septic tanks or do they just flush onto the tracks?
These are Eurofima coach car, french sold their old one to the ONCF, i think the metal plate on the floor is where the mecanical flush used to be, the second one would be for the faucet, so i guess it's renovated to have a septic tanks.
I could take some pics tonight at work, we got non-renovated UIC-Z with the same flush system, you press with your foot, it open the flap and water come and since these UIC-Z were made 10 years later, i guess the Coach car used to have similar system.
Well unless if these PoS shitted the bed during the day, then they won't be there.
They are smart trains; they collect the waste of the wise and discard the waste of the foolish. The next time you use them, request the train's weight before departure and upon arrival, then compare. You can inquire about the subtraction process by calling the company’s number or seeking advice from the children at the station
Hi Simon, are you Danish?
A train from the past 😂😂
I'm sure your dry eyes and stuffy nose was as usual problem these days of having no fresh air ventilation in your cabin. I don't know why this situation is allowed in any public area where germs are spread eailly where you have to breath the air just expelled from the people next to you. Just a vent in your cabin for the outdoor air to seep in is all you need it should be a legal right.
8:23 what does this guy do there?
Just down from the (slow) moving train haha. It was two guys by the door actually, and train was empty, so probably they were workers.
Helping with the shunting operation
Next try some trains in India. If you loved those Moroccan trains, you'll love those Indian trains even more.
I'd have lower expectations for Indian trains, but i would not expect any train to make me sick from being dirty. Also keep in mind that the other trains I took in Morocco were pretty similar to my experiences in Europe :D
You're exaggerating man....
I think "horrible" a bit of a stretch. How about unpleasant?
Perhaps my language was a little bit strong. - But It's hard to pick up the microdust and dirt that made my nose runny nonstop and turn scratchy red on camera. I got off that nighttrain feeling horrible at least and that's what I remember from the trip.
@@Simon-Andersen Yeah, I get it. I'd have been annoyed as well.
So why you will not take the train again at night? 🤔 😤
Because there were so many dust particles in the air, it made me sick, as I mentioned in the video. It's a bit hard to pick up on a video camera (or even with the eyes) because they are small. When I took the daytime Al Atlas train and the Al Boraq, I didn’t have this issue, so I think ONCF maintains and cleans those better or more often.
I am pretty sure that those morrocan pepole were staring at you because of the colurful eyes you have ( i am just joking with you sorry )
Bro! There are many wrong things in your video, including the title!
First of all, that locomotive is not a Prima 2 E-1400, that one is a 30 locomotive series of Prima M4 E-1450 that came to service in 2020...
Second, the price of the trip compared with the quality is a great deal, and the train is clean and safe.
Those trains are disinfected before every trip, so change the impression you give about this experience, because for me it was just fair and interesting!
Best of luck.
I'm familliar with these carriage (Eurofima Coach car) and cleaning is my expertise, i've been train cleaner for 10 years and now crew manager for 3 years.
This carriage hasn't been properly maintained at all, if you check at 5:50, the floor didn't got properly cleaned for years there is literally 5 cm of dirt in the corner, same in the toilet at 6:40, same at 7:30 under the bed, that floor didn't see any floor squeegee or a rotary floor machine for many years.
It's years of just swiping wet the floor and calling it off.
@Lackari I understand, but you know that that coach car has more than 40 years of service? So what can we expect?
@@Nuswalker Almost 50 years actually and yes i know it's old, few one are still in usage in my country and they don't look like that.
Being old doesn't means you don't have to take care of it properly, wich it isn't the case here.
Dude, this is Africa. Ever travelled the Deutsche Bahn?
Dude, Moroccan railways are basically just a copy of the French. Their infrastructure is new and well-maintained, as is most of their rolling stock, they even have a 5 year old copy of the tgv-which you'd know if you didn’t immediately assume that, because it's in Africa, it must be poor. This train was below the usual standard ONCF provide across all their trains, even for a "poor" country like Morocco.
" dusgusting" to see the epitome of 🇺🇸 crap " food".... McDonald....😢 while Morocco has such excellent simple but healthier to the American...ll😢
Night train from Prague to Basel was even worse. Firm, hard beds, lot of dust in them, different route, missed Darmstadt cause train used different route, delayed 2hours, dirty toilet. EC 458 Canopus
Clean your laptop, it's filthy
That I agree with 😆 - But at least it's not dirty to a point where it made me physically sick 😆
NICE VIDEO🔥🔥!
Thank's Simon for taking this train so I dont have to 😎🇸🇪
Let's see....we have a white European whining that something doesn't meet his first world standards...because he paid a whole 35 euros for the trip.
Let's see... We have a faceless commenter who has no perspective on railways in Morocco. Morocco has a fully Western railway network, complete with French TGV high-speed trains and French locomotives and carriages the same age as those used in France. They have no issue keeping those clean, which you would have known if you didn't base your comment on baseless assumptions. The fact that they don't bother with this train has nothing to do with first-world standards. The standard of Morocco's railway network is already higher than what they provided on this trip, and I hope they will bring this service back in line with the rest of their services.
Considering standard of living in Morroco, 35€ is a lot, there is no excuse to not have this train cleaned.
Quebec pfp, no wonder you’re insufferable 😂😂
I once went on a night train in Egypt, and even there the dirtyness of the train's toilet was less horrid than this one. No matter the charm of these countries, good hygiene barely exists in northern Africa.
Actually I found all other trains I took in Morroco much cleaner, overall trains in Morroco is a very similar experience to Europe. But this one was an outlier
i dont think you're qualified enough to rule out the hygiene in north africa just based on your visit to Egypt and one single video youve seen on youtube of an outlier train that even Moroccans barely use.
Simon, you need to stop, take breather and rethink what you really want to do for the world. Because I can tell you constantly trying out "bad" experiences is not promoting railway development, period. Videos like this is actively turning people away. Is that really what you want to do?
No, I don’t. I know exactly what I want to do on RUclips: share my train experiences. This isn’t a railway advocacy channel-I share my honest thoughts, both good and bad.
If you don’t want to see the negative side of rail travel, feel free to watch someone else. I’m not going to censor or sugarcoat bad experiences just to fit in with some sort of agenda to promote rail travel.
Saying I seek out bad experiences is simply wrong. My last two videos were the complete opposite-did you forget to watch them? Or the other two videos on my Moroccan train experiences? The TGV review was mostly positive, and my Al Atlas experience was neutral to alright. You could even argue I did a favor by saving the worst for last.
You could argue my expectations were too high for this train, but based on my previous positive experiences with Moroccan trains and I've now been on countless day and night trains, also in lesser developed countries than Morroco without getting physically sick from how dirty it was. I really don't think they were.
@Simon-Andersen you have several videos with clickbaity titles hinting that they are bad even though they are not. Does that count as smearing good experience? Is that really different from sugar coating the bad? If you want to be objective, then don't use that kind of clickbait.
@@jnrfalcon Okay, but that wasn’t clear from your initial comment. I genuinely disagree with the idea that my videos suggest something is bad when it actually isn’t. The videos with negative titles reflect my honest opinion-I truly believe either the experience was bad or that there were significant issues worth highlighting in the title. Of course, it’s difficult to discuss specific videos without concrete examples.
In this particular case, no other overnight train has it been this difficult for me to fall asleep or even caused me to feel physically sick. It was a horrible night, and I have no desire to repeat the experience.
That said, I do appreciate your input! And I think title might be slighly too harsh with the (It's horrible) part.
I don't understand why anyone wants to travel all night anyway.
What is the point if you can't see anything, you can't speak to anyone, you can't sleep properly and the next day you're a wreck.
Not worthy of a thumbs-up.
Please don't turn your channel into Nonstop Dan where you have a rich Westerner shitting on transportation options in less wealthy countries. Your video title is HORRIBLE.
If a train is so dirty it actively impedes with your ability to sleep onboard (the whole point of a sleeper train) then I think he's more than valid to tell people not to ride on it. Being "less wealthy" is NOT an excuse to be lazy and not clean a damn train. They clearly have modern and clean-looking infrastructure anyway so what does wealth have to do with the state of cleanliness.
I don't see how this is "shitting on less wealthy countries". This is dirty BY MOROCCAN STANDARDS, even compared to most standard Al Atlas trains. This isn't something that just "rich westerners" would complain about, this is bad even to the locals
Lmao what kind of racist bullshit statement is that, are you implying moroccans are dirty ?
Nah, it's just a problem of management/cleaning crew being a lazy circusfest.
It's shabby, but he's definitely exaggerating about how "dirty" it is. In another video. Simon also made a really prejorative comment about Morocco that also rubbed me the wrong way. Another commenter on here said they took the same train and slept fine. This is definitely among the oldest of ONCF's fleet, but I've seen equally shabby trains in Europe and North America.
I mostly enjoy his content, so I hope he can avoid this sort of Seth Binkley/Nonstop Dan entitled Westerner whinefest in the future. There's a certain very distasteful genre of travel vlogger that visits developing countries only to complain incessantly about their infrastructure.
@@trmmtl ok dirty boy