In Tangier3 hours
Tangier Walking Tour: Kasbah, Medina and Local Markets
A private city tour on foot: the medina, the Kasbah and the souks, at your pace.
See the Tangier walking tour
The city on the strait
Things to do in Tangier with a local guide
Where Africa looks at Europe across fourteen kilometres of water, and a white city climbs from the port to the Kasbah.
Tangier has been Phoenician, Roman, Portuguese, British and, for the first half of the twentieth century, an International Zone governed by several nations at once. That history is still in the streets: Spanish balconies above Moroccan doorways, a Catholic cathedral a few steps from the mosque, cafés that served writers and painters passing through.
The medina slopes from the Grand Socco down to the port, and the Kasbah watches over both from the top of the hill. Beyond the city the coast runs west to Cap Spartel, where the Mediterranean and the Atlantic meet, and to the Caves of Hercules. It is a place best understood with someone who lives here.
Most visitors have less than a day. The good news is that Tangier rewards a short visit: the old town can be walked in a morning, the landmarks on the coast are twenty minutes away, and the markets are open every day. The question is not what to see but who shows it to you.
What to see
What to see in Tangier
- The medina and the Petit Socco
- Lanes, bread ovens, tea houses and the small square that was once the centre of the city’s social life.
- The Kasbah
- The fortified upper town, with the former governor’s palace and terraces looking over the strait to Spain.
- The Grand Socco
- The square between the new town and the medina, with its gardens, the Cinema Rif and the gate into the old city.
- Cap Spartel
- The north-western tip of Africa and its lighthouse, where two seas meet below the Old Mountain.
- The Caves of Hercules
- Sea caves opening onto the Atlantic through a gap in the rock shaped like the map of Africa.
- The markets
- The fish market and the food souks, liveliest in the morning, and the craft lanes of the medina.
Practical
Planning a visit to Tangier
- From Spain
- Ferries from Tarifa reach the port in the centre of Tangier in about an hour; crossings from Algeciras arrive at Tanger Med, roughly 45 minutes from the city by road. We help with tickets and meet you at the port.
- By air and rail
- Tangier Ibn Battouta airport is about 15 kilometres from the centre. The Al Boraq high-speed train links Tanger Ville station with Rabat and Casablanca.
- Time needed
- Half a day for the old town, a full day to add Cap Spartel, the Caves of Hercules and a camel ride on the Atlantic.
- When to come
- Pleasant year-round on the coast; spring and autumn are the most comfortable for walking, summer is the busiest.
Good to know
Questions about Tangier
Can I visit Tangier in one day from Spain?
Yes. With the Tarifa ferry you can be in the medina by mid-morning and back in Spain in the evening. Our walking tour and our Cap Spartel and Caves of Hercules tour are both designed around ferry and cruise timings.
Is Tangier safe for visitors?
Tangier is a busy, welcoming port city where most visitors walk the old town without any trouble. Going with a local guide means you spend your time looking rather than navigating, and you learn how the city works.
What languages are spoken?
Arabic and French are the everyday languages, Spanish is widely understood in the north, and English is common in tourism. Our guides speak all four.
Other destinations
Experiences
Private tours in Tangier
In Tangier5 to 6 hours
Tangier Day Trip: Cap Spartel, Camel Ride, Old Town and Local Markets
Cap Spartel, the Caves of Hercules, a camel ride on the Atlantic, the old town and its local markets in one day.
See the Tangier day trip
In Tangier2 hours
Moroccan Food Tour in Tangier
Taste the city: fish market, food souks and the spices behind the dishes.
See the Tangier food tour
Plan your trip
A day in Tangier, your way.
Share your dates, your interests and the pace you like. We reply within a day with a proposal built around you.