Review: Royal Air Maroc Economy Class Barcelona to Casablanca

June 22, 2023March 2, 2024 Koen 1 Comment

This review details a Royal Air Maroc economy class flight from Barcelona (BCN) to Casablanca (CMN) on a Boeing 737-800.

Barcelona Airport

After a longish wait for check-in and a visit to the solid Joan Miró VIP Lounge, it was finally time to board my Royal Air Maroc flight to Casablanca.

I was excited about this flight as it was my first time flying with Royal Air Maroc.

Royal Air Maroc flights depart from Terminal 1, the largest and most modern of the two airport terminals at Barcelona Airport.

It was a pleasant walk through the terminal to reach my boarding gate, stopping a few times at the floor-to-ceiling windows for some plane spotting.

barcelona check-in desks — *The check-in desks for my flight to Casablanca. ©Paliparan*

*If you fly in business class or hold oneworld Sapphire or Emerald status, you can visit the Joan Miró VIP Lounge before your Royal Air Maroc flight from Barcelona. ©Paliparan*

vueling barcelona airport — *Vueling planes at Barcelona Airport. ©Paliparan*

emirates boeing 777 barcelona airport — *Emirates Boeing 777 at Barcelona Airport. ©Paliparan*

Boarding

My Royal Air Maroc flight from Barcelona to Casablanca would be operated by a Boeing 737-800.

This narrow-body plane forms the backbone of Royal Air Maroc’s fleet and and is primarily used for their short-haul flights.

Boarding started on time, with priority given to business class passengers and oneworld Sapphire and Emerald status holders.

boarding gate barcelona airport royal air maroc casablanca economy class review — *The boarding gate for my flight to Casablanca. ©Paliparan*

jetbridge royal air maroc boeing 737 — *Heading down the jetbridge towards my plane. ©Paliparan*

royal air maroc boeing 737-800 economy class review — *The Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737-800 that would fly me to Casablanca. ©Paliparan*

Barcelona (BCN) to Casablanca (CMN)
Royal Air Maroc – Flight AT961 – Boeing 737-800
Plane registration number: CN-ROT
Economy Class – Seat 8A
Departure: 7.55pm – Arrival: 8.10pm
Flight time: 2h15m – Distance: 762 miles
Price: 81 euro

bcn cmn flight map — *The flight from Barcelona to Casablanca takes around two hours. ©Great Circle Mapper*

Boeing 737-800 cabin

All Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737-800s have the same cabin configuration.

In the front section of the plane you have business class with 3 rows of leather recliner seats in a 2-2 configuration, which totals 12 seats.

A fixed bulkhead separates business class from the economy class cabin, which has 147 seats in a standard 3-3 configuration.

Although the cabin looked nice with the dark leather seats, bulkhead patterns and red curtains, there was however quite some wear and tear.

royal air maroc boeing 737-800 review economy business class — *The cabin of the Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737-800, with a fixed bulkhead separating business class from economy class. ©Paliparan*

royal air maroc economy class boeing 737-800 — *The economy class cabin on the Boeing 737-800. ©Paliparan*

wear and tear plane — *Wear and tear on the bulkhead. ©Paliparan*

Royal Air Maroc economy seat

The economy class seats on the Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737-800 may show some signs of wear and tear as well, but they are certainly comfortable.

With so many airlines around the world now using slimline seats in economy class, it’s good to see an aeroplane with good old-fashioned leather seats.

These seats have firm backrests, are well-padded and provide a good amount of legroom.

The seat pitch was great as well in the bulkhead row which I had selected.

review royal air maroc economy class boeing 737-800 — *Economy class seats on a Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737-800. ©Paliparan*

bulkhead seats — *Bulkhead seats on the Boeing 737-800. ©Paliparan*

legroom bulkhead seat — *The amount of legroom at my bulkhead seat was certainly good. ©Paliparan*

Departure

We pushed back from our departure gate on time, with the plane appearing to be only two-thirds full in economy class.

After a relatively short distance of taxiing over the apron, the plane lined up on the runway, ready for departure.

Despite the cloudy weather, the take-off views over Barcelona were absolutely stunning and from the port side of the plane I had some great views over the mouth of the Llobregat River and the harbour.

pushback gate — *Pushback from the gate. ©Paliparan*

barcelona airport — *Looking back towards the airport terminal. ©Paliparan*

taxiing runway barcelona — *Taxiing towards the runway. ©Paliparan*

barcelona airport take-off — *Take-off from Barcelona Airport. ©Paliparan*

barcelona airport royal air maroc boeing 737 economy class review — *Lovely view over Barcelona Airport right after take-off. ©Paliparan*

barcelona airport view take-off — *Barcelona Airport view upon take-off. ©Paliparan*

Llobregat river barcelona — *View over the Llobregat River and the city of Barcelona. ©Paliparan*

port barcelona harbour — *The Port of Barcelona as seen from the air. ©Paliparan*

royal air maroc boeing 737-800 economy review — *The engine and wing of the Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737 as it flies over the Llobregat River. ©Paliparan*

barcelona airport view royal air maroc boeing 737 — *View over the Port of Barcelona and the mouth of the Llobregat River. ©Paliparan*

barcelona take-off plane view — *Barcelona take-off. ©Paliparan*

barcelona view — *Wonderful view over the Port of Barcelona and the city itself from the plane. ©Paliparan*

ships harbour barcelona — *Ships leaving the harbour. ©Paliparan*

clouds aeroplane — *Ascending above the clouds. ©Paliparan*

Food and drinks

Meal service commenced almost immediately after reaching cruising altitude.

Royal Air Maroc offers complimentary food and drinks in economy class, which is certainly appreciated considering that there aren’t many other airlines in the region left that provide free food and drinks.

On this flight from Barcelona to Casablanca, Royal Air Maroc provided a complimentary meal that included a chicken sandwich, cake, and yoghurt.

Such a snack service is standard for short-haul flights longer than one hour in duration.

However, if your flight is longer than 2 hours and 45 minutes, you will get a full warm meal on board.

According to the Royal Air Maroc website, alcoholic beverages are available in economy class.

However, on this flight from Barcelona to Casablanca, I opted for a coke instead as I had already consumed my share of alcohol in the lounge prior to departure.

The meal provided was of pretty good quality, and the service during the meal service was friendly.

economy class meal royal air maroc boeing 737-800 — *The economy class meal that was served on my Royal Air Maroc flight from Barcelona to Casablanca. ©Paliparan*

In-flight entertainment

In-flight entertainment on the Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737-800 is limited to the overhead monitors showing the flight map.

Alternatively, you can browse the in-flight magazine or just admire the views from the window.

The plane doesn’t have any power sockets or USB charging ports, nor was it equipped with Wi-Fi internet.

overhead monitor flight map — *Overhead monitor showing the flight map. ©Paliparan*

economy class cabin royal air maroc boeing 737-800 review — *The economy class cabin of the Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737-800 during the flight. ©Paliparan*

sunset plane window — *Sunset as seen from the plane window. ©Paliparan*

Landing

Time flew by quickly, and before I knew it, we had already crossed the Mediterranean Sea and began our descent towards Casablanca.

There were some cool night views over a couple of Moroccan cities before we landed at Casablanca Mohammed V International Airport, the country’s main airport.

casablanca approach — *Descending towards Casablanca. ©Paliparan*

casablanca final approach — *View on final approach towards Casablanca. ©Paliparan*

casablanca landing — *Landing in Casablanca. ©Paliparan*

casablanca airport — *Casablanca Airport. ©Paliparan*

Arrival in Casablanca

Our Boeing 737-800 came to a stop at a remote parking spot near the main terminal building.

As a result, we had to disembark using stairs and then take a bus to the terminal building.

Although a minor inconvenience, it did provide me with an opportunity to capture one final photo of the Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737-800 before boarding the bus.

Fortunately the queues at passport control were light and the immigration officer didn’t make a problem of the ragged look of my passport – which was one of my fears embarking on this trip as I heard they can be strict about this in Morocco.

As I had no luggage to collect, I could walk directly from the terminal to the adjacent railway station and catch the Casablanca airport train downtown.

Conclusion

I had a perfectly pleasant flight in Royal Air Maroc’s economy class aboard its Boeing 737-800.

Although these planes might be relatively old and have some wear and tear, the seat comfort and pitch is good.

I do appreciate the fact that Royal Air Maroc does still serve complimentary food and drinks in economy class as well.

If you talk to Moroccans, many will complain about the reliability of Royal Air Maroc, but when everything runs smoothly like it did on my Barcelona to Casablanca flight, the airline offers a very good economy class product.

Trip report index

This article is part of the ‘Qatar Airways Qsuites Adventure to Casablanca‘ trip report, which consists of the following chapters:

1. A Stopover Walk Through Barcelona
2. Review: Joan Miró VIP Lounge Barcelona Airport
3. Review: Royal Air Maroc Economy Class Barcelona to Casablanca (current chapter)
4. Taking the Casablanca Airport Train: The Cheap Way Into the City
5. Review: Ibis Casa Voyageurs Hotel, Casablanca
6. Casablanca: Is Morocco’s Biggest City Worth a Visit?
7. Review: Royal Air Maroc Zenith VIP Lounge Casablanca Airport
8. Review: Qatar Airways Business Class Boeing 777 Qsuites
9. Review: Qatar Airways Al Mourjan Business Lounge
10. Travel Blogging: Not Always as Glamorous as It Looks Like