Getting in and visas for Morocco

All visitors to Morocco require a valid passport but visitors from the following countries do not need to obtain visas before arrival: Algeria, Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cyprus (except Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus), Czech Republic, Republic of Congo, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guinea, Hong Kong SAR, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Latvia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mali, Malta, Mexico, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Niger, Norway, Oman, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Venezuela For tourists from countries that need a visa to enter Morocco, the Moroccan Embassy is usually the first port of call. They charge the equivalent of £17 for a single entry and £26 for double or multiple entries. (Double or Multiple entries will be issued at embassy discretion). Visas are usually valid for 3 months and take around 5-6 working days to process. Visa requirements are completed application forms, four passport-size photos taken within the previous six months, Valid passport with at least one blank page, and with a photocopy of the relevant data pages; Fee, payable by postal order only, a photocopy of all flight bookings and a photocopy of hotel reservation. Tourists can stay for up to 90 days and visa extensions can be a frustrating and time-consuming process. (You may find it easier to duck into the Spanish-controlled Ceuta or Melilla and then re-enter Morocco for a new stamp). Anti-cholera vaccination certificates may be required of visitors coming from areas where this disease is prevalent and pets need a health certificate less than ten days old, and an anti-rabies certificate less than six months old.

By plane

There are flights from New York, Montreal, and various European cities to Casablanca as well as seasonal charter flights to Agadir. Easyjet [2] — now fly at budget prices from London to Marrakech and Fes. British Airways [3] — also offer promotional fares. Ryanair [4] — has signed an agreement with the Moroccan government and flies to Morocco from Barcelona, Frankfurt-Hahn and London. Flying to Fez 3 times per week from Luton.. Royal Air Maroc [5] — the state airline, which drastically needs a price cut. Atlas Blue [6] — a so-called budget airline owned by Royal Air Maroc, but is still fairly expensive. Jet 4 You [7] — a new low-cost carrier with extremely cheap tickets from France and Belgium. Aigle Azur[8] — a small North-African carrier with reasonable rates. "Thomson fly" (http://www.thomsonfly.com) Fly from Manchester to Marrakech and are very reasonably priced. Many visitors also fly to Gibraltar or Malaga (which are often considerably cheaper to get to) and take a ferry from Algeciras, Tarifa or Gibraltar to Tangier. This is not recommended in summer as literally millions of Moroccans living in Europe use this passage during the summer holidays.

By car

The only open border posts on land are the ones at the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla. The frontier with Algeria has been closed for ten years. For the closest maritime connection you head for Algeciras or Tarifa in southern Spain. At Algeciras there are ferry services to Ceuta and Tangier that carry cars. Tarifa has a similar service to Tangier and this is the shortest and fastest route, just 35 minutes. It's possible also to enter Mauritania by car from Dakhla. Most countries citizens need a visa to get in Mauritania which is available for 20 Euros at the border for EU passport holders.

By boat

Summary There are several ferry connections to Morocco, mainly from Spain. Algeciras is the main port and serves Ceuta and Tangier. A ferry between Algeciras and Ceuta takes 40 minutes, and less than 2 hours to get to Tangier. You can also get to Tangier from the small port of Tarifa, on the southernmost tip of mainland Spain. This will need 35 minutes. Some companies run buses between Tarifa and Algeciras for free (25 minutes), so you will have no problems getting to the train station. Other Spanish ports that have connections to Morocco are Malaga and Almeria who connect to Melilla and its Moroccan neighbor town of Nador. Ferries from France also go to Tangier, from the port of Sète near Montpellier and Port Vendres near Perpignan. But these ferries are rather expensive. The Italian towns of Genoa and Naples also have direct connections to Tangier. The British crown colony of Gibraltar connects to Tangier through a high-speed boat service. Details From Tarifa to Tangier the ferry costs about 25 Euros each way. From Algeciras it costs £28 single.