If you hope to travel from Spain to Morocco, you may wonder how far away they are from one another. After all, some territories in Morocco are actually Spanish; Ceuta and Melilla. But how far away is Spain from Morocco?
If you look at a map, you’ll see that the Strait of Gibraltar separates Spain and Morocco. However, it’s not a distance you can easily swim across unless you do so professionally.
If we look at a literal description where you look across the Strait of Gibraltar, then you’re looking at a distance of 8 miles. However, the distance depends on several factors, and if you’re traveling by ferry, it would be twenty miles.
This article will explore how far Morocco and Spain are from each other and the best ways to travel to and from each country. But first, let’s go into more detail about where Spain and Morocco are on the map.
Where Is Spain?
Spain is in the southwest of Europe, located on the Iberian Peninsula, which it shares with Portugal to the west. However, Spain does have the majority of land here. However, to the north, you’ll find France bordering Spain, while the rest of the country is bordered by the sea.
The Balearic Islands, an archipelago named for the sea they reside in, are also Spanish territories. The four largest islands are Menorca, Mallorca, Ibiza, and Formentera (Also Check out Which Island In The Mediterranean Is The Largest?). However, several smaller islands surround them. These include Cabrera, Dragonera, and S’Espalmador.
Where Is Morocco?
Across the Strait of Gibraltar to the South of Spain is Morocco. Morocco is in Africa and is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean. To the east of Morocco, you’ll find Algeria, and to the south is Western Sahara.
In Morocco, there are two Spanish zones: Melilla and Ceuta, which are remnants of when the country was divided by French and Spanish areas.
How Far Is Morocco From Spain?
I mentioned earlier how Morocco is technically only eight miles away from Spain. However, that is if you measure the Southernmost point of Spain to the Northernmost point in Morocco through the Strait of Gibraltar.
So if you want an exact measure of distance, you would just observe the distance from Point Marroqui in Spain to Point Cires in Morocco.
However, the distance would be twenty miles if you were to take a ferry. The reason for that is that the most prevalent travel route is between Tarifa in Spain and Tangier in Morocco.
Therefore, the ferry takes just over an hour to arrive at your destination. But what other methods can you use to get there?
How Can You Travel To Morocco From Spain?
Traveling to Tangier from the ferry port in Tarifa is one of the fastest and easiest ways to travel to Morocco. But there are always other ways to travel.
You could also travel by plane from Spain to Morocco. Depending on where you’re traveling, the distance can go as far as 624 miles, but it will only take an hour to arrive.
You could take a train from Spain to Morocco for a long journey. You can sometimes travel from Spain to Morocco via bus and train, with a ferry connection in between.
In most of these cases, using public transport is one of the longer ways to arrive in Morocco, as it usually takes over a day to travel depending on how long it takes to change over.
If you want to know where you can travel to get to Morocco from Spain, then I’ve compiled the best places to travel to and from:
Traveling By Ferry
Algeciras to Tangier: One of the most popular options, the ferry here is one of the most popular and the fastest ways to get to Morocco. However, tickets are usually in high demand as it’s a shorter route than Tangier, taking only thirty minutes to get to Tangier.
Tarifa to Tangier: I recommend traveling from Tarifa to Tangier, as it will only take an hour. However, you want to make sure that you pick the correct Moroccan port, as there are destinations at Tangier Ville and Tanger Med.
Almería to Nador: If you want to travel from Almería to Nador, it will take you five to ten hours to arrive in Morocco.
Barcelona to Tangier: It usually takes between 28 and 36 hours to arrive in Tanger Med. Typically these ferries depart around four times a week.
Barcelona to Nador: You can also travel to Nador from Barcelona, which will take roughly 26 hours to arrive.
It’s important to note that you can also drive to Morocco, but you would still need to catch a ferry. For some of these, consider going to a ferry port, and then you can still drive around Morocco for some sightseeing.
Traveling By Plane
Flights from Malaga: Malaga has a variety of flights that reach Morocco. You could arrive in Marrakech, Tangier, Agadir, Faro, and Tétouan. However, it’s best to take a flight to Marrakech from here as the flights are frequent.
Flights from Barcelona: There are daily flights from Barcelona to Fez, with the flight only taking a little under two hours.
Flights from Madrid: Madrid is a popular choice to travel to Morocco, with regular flights to Agadir, Fez, Tangier, Marrakech, Tétouan, and Tetuan S. Ramel.
Flights from Seville: You can easily travel from Seville to reach Agadir, Marrakech, Tangier, Tetuan S. Ramel, and Casablanca.
Traveling By Train
The best way to get to Morocco by train is to go from Barcelona to Casablanca. However, you will still need to cross the Gibraltar Strait, so you will still need to get a ferry, ideally from Algeciras to Tangier, and then catch a connection to Casablanca.
Final Thoughts
Overall, Morocco and Spain are not far apart. Geographically, they’re only eight miles apart if you measure the distance from the southernmost part of Spain to the northernmost part of Morocco. Due to that, it’s easy to find travel routes between the two countries.
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