Fès jewelry, Morocco travel: why this haggling deal became a regret

A lack of weather or technical preparation can also weigh heavily on globetrotters’ budgets. One writer had to spend 53 pounds on warm clothes after arriving in New Zealand with only bikinis. Similarly, a stay in Switzerland resulted in an unexpected 50-pound phone bill, as the country is not included in standard European Union roaming packages.

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Accommodations and excursions booked online sometimes hold bitter surprises, even after reviews have been consulted. In the United States, students saw their budgets reduced by a surprise 100-dollar deposit at a Californian hotel. In Egypt, tours advertised as private turned out to be chaotic group outings, causing disappointed travelers to suffer significant financial losses.

The challenge of negotiating in Morocco

In Morocco, the art of haggling can be intimidating for uninformed travelers. In a sparkling shop in Fès, a journalist from the team set her sights on a gold bracelet adorned with a sage-colored stone. The vendor, immediately noticing her interest, took the initiative to adjust the jewelry to her wrist, creating psychological pressure that was difficult for the customer to avoid.

Initially priced at 1 100 dirhams (approximately 90 pounds sterling), the jewelry was ultimately purchased for 400 dirhams after a negotiation that the journalist now considers poorly handled. Faced with the seller’s eager smile, she admits that she found herself in exactly the situation she had hoped to avoid. She now fears that she paid too much for an item whose real value could be far lower than its purchase price.

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The lesson learned from this Moroccan mishap highlights the importance of not being afraid to make an unreasonably low first offer. The expert insists that travelers should not hesitate to leave a shop without buying if the transaction seems forced.