VALENCIA TO TANGIER: A GUIDE ON TRAVEL TO MOROCCO

For many travellers, going to another continent for a weekend is an exciting opportunity, and Morocco is one of the most accessible and worthwhile destinations. Located just across the Mediterranean Sea, the North African country offers a brilliant entrance into the region’s diverse and vibrant culture. Separated by the Strait of Gibraltar, Spain and Morocco are only 14 km apart at their closest point.

Getting to Morocco

Getting to the African nation is pretty straightforward, with several options depending on your budget and time constraints. The quickest options are direct flights from Valencia (VLC) to major cities such as Tangier (TNG), Marrakech (RAK), Casablanca (CMN), Fes (FEZ), and Agadir (AGA). Low-cost airlines such as Ryanair and Vueling offer these routes and are fairly inexpensive when booked in advance, ranging from 40-100 Euros for most locations. However, Casablanca is usually more expensive, ranging between 100-200 Euros.

Flights are not the only option. Ferries operate frequently, with 9 operators and 9 different routes. This means that there are approximately 377 routes on any given week.

My route was a direct flight from Valencia (VLC) to Tangier (TNG) through Ryanair, which cost me 43 euros when booked three weeks in advance. My flight left Valencia at 12:30 pm and landed at 1:00 PM local time. Morocco is one hour behind Spain, and the flight time was only an hour long.

Travel to Tangier

After landing, I disembarked the plane and walked a short distance off the tarmac and into the airport. Since I was coming from an international flight, the first thing I had to do was go through customs. The line had roughly 30 people ahead of me but moved quickly and the customs agents were extremely kind and patient.

Once out of the airport, it was time to book a taxi. Keep in mind apps that like Uber do not work in Morocco and nearly all taxis are cash-only. I was worried about this since I did not have any Moroccan Dirham, however, the taxi driver accepted euros, and I paid 20 euros for the 20-minute drive to the city centre.

I was travelling with three other people and we booked a two-bedroom, two-bathroom Airbnb located in a great part of town–one block from the beach–and it cost us 47 euros each (188 euros total) for three nights. Once settled in, the first thing I recommend doing is going to an ATM if you are not traveling with any cash. Although most places will accept euros, it is best to have the local currency to avoid any mishaps or potentially getting overcharged. I was able to withdraw money from an ATM and had to pay a 6 percent fee, but I only had to withdraw money one time and it lasted me the entire weekend (1 MHD = .09 EUR).

Thoughts on Tangier

Tangier is extremely affordable, most lunches cost 40-50 dirhams (4-5 euros) and dinners usually range from 90-110 dirhams per person.

Tangier is very pedestrian friendly, the group was able to walk to most of the tourist attractions, including the Souq (market), Kasbah (citadel built in 1684), and the beach. There are many attractions within the city, but there are also plenty of guided tours that are well-priced including a 3-hour trip around Tangier that includes a camel ride, a tour of Africa’s first lighthouse, and a peek into some caves for only 40 euro per person.

Morocco’s history of French and Spanish colonialism was also visible, as nearly everybody I interacted with spoke French, Spanish, and some English. As a traveller who speaks minimal Arabic, I had zero trouble communicating with locals.

Returning to Valencia

My return flight to Valencia was an early one, leaving Tangier at 07:00 am and landing in Valencia around 09:30 am. I arrived at the airport at 04:20 and it took me roughly 45 minutes to go through security, get my printed boarding pass (electronic boarding passes are not accepted), another security checkpoint, and customs. The flight left promptly at 07:07h and was another quick one-hour flight.

Overall, I believe Tangier is a trip well worth taking that is a ton of fun and can be inexpensive. Morocco also introduces you to a beautiful unique culture and offers so much historical insight into a region so close to Spain.

Report by Karwan Ahmed