Crossing into Morocco – From Ceuta to Melilla
Leaving behind the fortified walls and Spanish signage of Ceuta, we set off on one of the more unusual overland journeys in the world: a drive through Morocco to get from one Spanish exclave and city-state to another: Melilla.
Mind you there exists NO helicopter, plane, bus, train, or ferry that takes you directly from Ceuta to Melilla. Usually from Ceuta to Melilla, people would take the ferry from Ceuta back to mainland Spain, take a bus from Algeciras on the Spanish mainland to Málaga, and then take a ferry, short flight, or a helicopter from Málaga for Melilla (as Melilla has an airport and Ceuta does not). Or, in the other way around, you’d ferry or fly from Melilla to mainland Spain, land in Málaga, take a bus from Málaga to Algeciras, and then take a ferry from Algeciras to Ceuta.
Our plan was to avoid all of that shenanigans: just drive from Ceuta to Melilla direct via Morocco without leaving the continent or crossing a body of water. It sounds simple enough. So I found Reda, a highly reputable local Moroccan fixer, who arranged for his driver Mostafa to meet us directly at our hotel in Ceuta. But as anyone who’s traveled in this part of the world might guess: there’s always going to be surprises; you’re just not sure what it would look like.
We were supposed to be picked up by 9am outside our hotel, but by 10:30am it became clear that Mostafa was getting stuck in a bureaucratic tangle of border paperwork, and our pickup would ultimately be delayed by about 4 hours.
So we made the most of it: A snack stop turned into lunch, and we squeezed in a quick 3-taxi round trip smash and grab mission to check out the Murallas Meriníes, a historic wall on the edge of town.
Eventually, Reda himself drove up an hour and a half from Tangiers on his day off to speed things along.
Once Mostafa finally got through into Ceuta and arrived at our hotel 10 minutes from the border, we loaded into the minibus just past 1pm. Given how familiar they were with the border formalities, we were still optimistic the rest of the journey would go smoothly.
Crossing the Border
Exiting Ceuta was easy enough: we waited a bit in traffic, eventually got stamped out of Spain in one building, drove a minute down the road, and queued up to get into Morocco at the next.
Getting our passports processed into Morocco took a bit longer; other than asking about our jobs before stamping us in, they berated the driver and Mostafa over not having “paperwork” for a group this large, but I’m sure this was an arbitrary way to slow things down because of the nature of bureaucracy at these kind of stops.
The Drive Across Morocco
The whole crossing was eventually wrapped up in about an hour, including bag checks and paperwork. We then thanked and said goodbye to Reda and hit the road, now driving east along Morocco’s northern coast, and an hour behind on the clock.
This stretch of Morocco is stunning in its contrasts. Fishing villages, bustling towns, hillside roads, and the Mediterranean seat outside our windows.
First stop: Tetouan, a whitewashed city known for its UNESCO-listed medina and strong Andalusian influence. We didn’t stay long, but even a quick drive-through gave off a sense of old-world calm.
Further down the road: Al Hoceima, where the Rif Mountains slope dramatically into the sea.
After 6 long hours of this on the road, we reached Nador, our final Moroccan stop. Dinner was quick and quiet; a small local place overlooking the mountains, plates of grilled meats, and sweet mint Moroccan tea.
The sun dipped behind the hills as families gathered in the nearby park; kids running around, adults sipping tea, and a few of them eyeing us with curious glances. What were we doing here?
Arrival at Melilla
After another 2 hours of driving later, we arrived at Melilla’s outer border as night descended. Leaving Morocco meant another round of bag scans and exit stamps.
After checking our passports for the entry stamps into Morocco earlier today, they made us scan our bags one by one at customs before returning to our vehicles.
We then drove across and officially stamp back into Spain where the time zones also changed to one hour ahead.
Then, just like that, we were back in Spain (though technically, we never really left the continent).
And yet, everything looked different from Morocco; Our 12 hour ordeal and 8 hour drive across Morocco felt like crossing dimensions; less a point A to B, and more a full-circle loop through history, culture, and the blurring borders of Europe and Africa.
- At time of posting in Melilla, it was 27 °C - Humidity: 58% | Wind Speed: 14km/hr | Cloud Cover: sunny and dry
