This is Morocco's Saharan Desert Express, running through the sweltering Saharan Desert
dunes at up to 160km/h.
Today I'll be taking this train on an incredible journey from Marrakesh to Casablanca in a
First Class compartment.
This is going to be an unforgettable trip, with many surprises along the way - so join
me as I head into the desert!
Hello, and welcome back to another video.
Today I'm here at Marrakech station, sheltering from the sweltering 42°c heat beneath the
relentless Moroccan sun.
Today I'm going to be catching a thankfully air-conditioned 'Al Atlas' mainline service
operated by ONCF (the national operator) up to Casablanca.
I'm booked into First Class for this trip, so it should be a lovely journey through the
desert.
Let's go!
Welcome to Marrakech, Morocco's biggest tourist destination, and the southern terminus of
the country's rail network.
The station here is truly beautiful, opening in 2008, yet built to a classic style.
Let's head inside the station, and have a look around.
Marrakech station is a wonderful construction and represents the city well - just look at
that grand roof!
As for facilities, the station is pretty well appointed.
There's a McDonald's restaurant in the main concourse, as well as something serving more
local food.
Heading upstairs quickly, there's honestly not a lot here, however you are able to get
a great view of the bustling concourse below.
Let's take a look at the departures.
My train is number 624, the 16:50 Al Atlas service to Fes.
Confusingly, the other 16:50 departures are actually the same train, but different destinations
are shown that you have to change for.
Anyway, let's head downstairs past the various shops, and go to board my train.
Before getting access to the platform, one must first pass a ticket inspection.
Between the station building and the platforms, there's a really nice outdoor waiting area,
thankfully in the shade.
There's something about Moroccan station designs that I really like.
Each of the major terminals has its own unique style, so every journey feels like an adventure!
My train into the desert departs from platform three, and it looks like it's already here
waiting.
We'll look at the carriages later on, but first there's something special to see at
this station.
Hidden away beside platform one is the historic station building.
This was built in 1923, during the period of French rule.
Back to our train.
These carriages are based on the French Corail design, some of them were built new for ONCF,
while the rest were imported second-hand.
This fleet consists of both compartment carriages, and open carriages, with First Class and Second
Class variants.
I'll be travelling in a First Class compartment for today's trip.
Here comes the locomotive from the sidings.
Once this is hooked up, the air-conditioning will start working, so I can get on-board
and start having a look around.
The locomotive is a Moroccan series E-1400, a modern European-style locomotive built in
France, but with modifications to handle the intense heat in the desert.
This service is one of the Al Atlas trains operated by ONCF, the national operator of
all trains in the country.
They serve as an InterCity operation, running between larger cities with stops only at major
stations en-route.
Time to get on-board!
I'm travelling in Coach 11 today, which is located towards the rear of the train.
There's not much to be said for accessibility here, with stiff doors and steep climbs to
board.
First Class consists of nine compartments, each seating six passengers around a small
table.
I'll be travelling in seat 96, which is at the rear of the carriage.
Luckily, I've got a window seat.
There's no way to choose your seat on ONCF trains, so I was certainly pleased to have
got a window!
Anyway, let's have a look at today's route.
We'll be heading north for the entirety of the journey, speeding through the picturesque
desert as we make a few stops en-route, before arriving into Casablanca.
The journey is scheduled to take two hours and 38 minutes to cover the 246 kilometres,
or about 153 miles.
We end up departing Marrakech on-time today, at 16:50.
Now I can only apologise on behalf of ONCF for the disgusting state of the windows, but
to be fair, this is just what happens when you run trains through sandy environments.
Thankfully, I have a solution for this, which we'll be taking a look at later.
The first few minutes of our journey are spent looping around the outskirts of Marrakech,
as we aim to make our way north.
Once we've left the city though, the landscape shows less signs of life.
Only palm trees and dried grass are visible.
After a while, even this begins to drop off, leaving a barren and dry landscape to view.
Anyway, let's take a look around the compartment before we get to the best part of the route.
Moroccan trains can get very busy, especially in peak times, so I decided to film this before
anyone else got on.
The seats here in First Class have a traditional pattern on them, and I think it looks great!
As for comfort, the seats are very good, with lots of padding and good ergonomics.
There's also a large winged headrest.
Every seat has adjustable armrests, which are wide and well padded.
The seats can also be reclined, done by pulling the seat base forward.
Luggage space can be found above the seats, with sizable luggage racks capable of handling
larger items.
Heavier items are best placed beneath the seats, if possible.
At the window you can find an effective sunblind, which is very much appreciated when the sun
is beaming into your eyes.
Sadly, this one didn't stay down.
Also by the window, there's a table.
This can fold out, and is actually fairly large.
There are also a few cup holders.
Normally beneath the table, you can find a bin, however mine was missing.
Above the compartment door, there's a button to control the compartment's light.
There are also individual reading lights, found above your seat.
Back to the journey, our train is beginning to build speed, as we run through the flatlands.
In fact, we're actually already running at our top-speed of 160km/h (100mph).
This continues for much of the journey, passing little but the occasional road or farmland.
As I mentioned in a previous video, Morocco is a major exporter of fruit and vegetables,
aided by its diverse climate.
After around 45 minutes, we're on the approach to our first station, which is where the scenery
begins to get really good.
The station of Benguerir is a junction, with the town it seves being known for its university,
military operations, and phosphate production.
As we depart, you can see wagons full of phosphate waiting to be transported along the Safi branch,
to access the port.
Morocco is the second largest producer of phosphate in the world, with only China ahead
of them.
Distant hills indicate that the scenery is beginning to get exciting, but I really don't
think the windows are going to do this any justice.
It turns out these doors don't lock, so you can just open them and enjoy the unobstructed
views.
Also, if you head to the very rear of the train, you can look out of the back.
Opening the last passenger doors on the train allows an incredible view of the consist weaving
its way through the desert.
The route is very windy, so there's plenty of curves to get incredible views like this
on.
Here we pass the station of Sidi Abdellah.
Though from what I can tell, this station does not receive any trains.
After standing by the door for a while, I decided to have a sit down.
Here you can see an abandoned rail bridge.
There are quite a lot of these on today's route, with the newer bridges being straighter
allowing for faster running.
Anyway, let's take a look around the rest of the train.
This is Second Class on the Al Atlas.
Most carriages contain these very dense 8-seater compartments, and after a few journeys in
these, I highly recommend that you avoid it.
There are also some open carriages which are a lot more spacious, however there's no way
to choose which carriage you reserve.
Each carriage has two toilets, one located at each end, next to the doors.
These toilets unfortunately flush right on to the track, though cleanliness in here is
generally satisfactory.
Soap and water were both available, but there wasn't any way of drying your hands off after.
With that out of the way, I decided to sit on the door step again, and enjoy some more
of the passing scenery.
Watching this nine carriage train hurtle along at up to 160km/h (100mph), while meandering
through this dusty landscape was something special for me, and unlike any train journey
I had taken before.
Eventually, we're once again slowing down, as we enter another urban area.
This is the city of Settat, a small city roughly an hour away from our destination.
A brief stop is made here, before we continue onward to Casablanca, Morocco's largest city.
Settat station is massively oversized for the service it receives.
There are ten platforms here, with five being through tracks and the rest terminating.
All this is despite Settat receiving just one or two trains per hour.
The remainder of our trip sees us travelling through green landscapes, such as fields and
clusters of trees.
For much of the journey, we also closely follow the Casablanca to Agadir motorway.
Agadir is Morocco's most popular seaside resort, having been rebuilt after a devastating earthquake
in the 1960s, to attract tourists.
As of 2023, the city is not served by any form of railway, but this is due to change
in the future with the expansion of Morocco's existing high-speed Al Boraq line from Tangier
to Casablanca, which will also serve Marrakech en-route at speeds of up to 320km/h (200mph).
Anyway, as well as being the country's largest city, Casablanca also serves as its main rail
hub, with most routes running to, from, or through the city.
The city also has a large network of commuter trains, such as this one running in from the
airport.
Our first station in Casablanca is Casa-Oasis, a small station serving the neighbourhood
of the same name in the west of the city.
As we're approaching our destination, let's talk about the price for today's journey.
For this trip, I bought a flexible First Class single, at a cost of 144 Moroccan Dirham.
I think this is great value for money - the First Class compartments on the Al Atlas offer
a very comfortable way to travel at pretty good speed, especially in comparison to the
uncomfortably cramped Second Class.
The main station for long-distance travel in Casablanca is Casa-Voyageur.
Like in Marrakech, it's a very modern design, constructed next to the well preserved old
station building.
We end up arriving at Casa-Voyageur just a couple minutes behind schedule, at 19:30.
I really enjoyed the Al Atlas train, it was a comfortable and cheap ride through some
fascinating scenery, the likes of which I've not travelled through before.
If I had just one complaint, it would have to be the lack of seat selection, as this
results in a real gamble as to what type of seat you'll end up in.
As always, let me know what you thought of ONCF's Al Atlas service in the comments, and
for a look at the incredible high-speed train in Morocco, then click up here now.