Tétouan

Tétouan is a city in Mediterranean Morocco. Tétouan's Medina has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Understand
The city is an important transportation hub in the north. Many travelers only see the bus station en route from Ceuta or Tangier to Chefchaouen, but it is well worth a longer visit.

Climate
Tétouan enjoys a typical Mediterranean climate with hot, dry summers and mild winters. The average summer temperature is 35°C, while the average winter temperature is a wholly comfortable 22°C.

The city boasts an amazing amount of sunshine.

By plane
Ryanair flies to several European destinations: Belgium (Brussels Charleroi), France (Marseille), Spain (Alicante, Madrid, Malaga, Seville). Royal Air Maroc offers a couple of domestic flights to Al Hoceima, Casablanca.

Getting there/away: the only viable option is taxi. The Grand taxi stand is in front of the airport, they are willing to go anywhere in Morocco, prices are rather elevated, e.g. 10-min trip to Tetouan bus station costs 100 dirham. To cut down the costs walk another 200 m further off the airport to the busy road nearby, where petit taxis will charge only 20-25 dirham (as of Dec 2022) using taximeter for the ride to the bus station or city center.

There are more international connections to the airports of Tangier, Rabat, Casablanca and also Fez. From Rabat and Casablanca you can go via Tangier with high-speed train. From Tangier and Fez there are intercity buses to Tétouan.

By bus
Tétouan is on the Tangier - Fes/Meknes road thus it has the best connection with these cities. Some of those buses make a stopover in Chefchaouen. Besides long-distance buses are available from other major Moroccan cities but are less frequent.

Supratours offers combined tickets comprising a bus to Tangier's train station followed by a train to anywhere else in Morocco.

There are local city buses going to nearby destinations like the beach towns of Fnideq (70 min), Martil (25 min), M'Diq (1 hour); the easiest place to board them is perhaps at the main road - Ave Hassan II (CTM bus station is located on this avenue).

When heading to Ceuta, you can take bus number 35 from just outside the CTM terminal, takes about an hour and drops you in Fnideq. You can walk from there to the border (~30 min). After the border there are buses to the city center (€0.85).

Get around
The CTM bus station and the non-CTM bus station are in the center, though the walk from the CTM station to the center is a hike up a rather steep hill.

The city center is quite small and most tourist attractions and hotels are there, so there really is no need to use petite taxis. But if you choose to stay at one of the hotels on the way to Martil (Champs or Dreams) petite taxis and grand taxis are always available.

Petite taxis are very cheap, though the fare increases if you have luggage.

Though there is a decent-sized public bus system, the buses are notorious for running late and being filthy.

To get to nearby beaches, like Martil, Cabo Negro, Rincon, Marina Smir, and Kabila, grand taxis are easily found at a bottom of Rue Moulay Abbas (the road running along the park, beautiful views of the Rif Mountains). The fare for a single passenger to Martil is 5 dirham, but if you want a little more room, you should purchase two seats. For less popular destinations, like Marina Smir, or for a more direct route to beaches like Cabo Negro and Kabila which require two different grand taxi rides; you can bargain with the driver to purchase the whole taxi. This is often more expensive, but well worth it considering the time saved and the increased comfort. Drivers are often very happy to arrange to pick you up after their day at the beach, saving you time and hassle.

Local buses are an adventure but obvioiusly is cheaper than a taxi.

Medina
Unlike any other Moroccan Medina, Tétouan's (UNESCO World Heritage Site) offers a unique perspective on the multicultural history of northern Morocco and, because of its relatively small size, it offers visitors a chance to explore without getting hopelessly lost. There are three distinct sections of the Medina, the Andalusian, the Jewish, and the Berber sections, though the untrained eye might have trouble distinguishing between the three. Be sure to hire a guide and you'll enjoy the medina that much more. There were seven historic gates (bab in Arabic) of Tetouan:











Modern part of the city


Arts galleries:

Do
Tétouan is surrounded by two mountains: and  which offer splendid hiking opportunities.

Buy
You will find some shops in the pedestrian area and around the city center. If you want to experience the local market feeling, go to the or the.

Drink
Za3Za3 is one of the most locally famous juices. It's a kind of milk-shake with avocado, banana, apple, some almonds, and some other ingredients.

Budget






Stay safe
Be alert at the bus station here; since many travelers only pass through, this is a popular spot for touts. When attempting to purchase a ticket, only talk with someone behind one of the counters, not with anyone standing anywhere near it. Some even have friends working in the bus station who will back them up in their attempt to divert you into an expensive taxi by agreeing that there are no buses to your destination. Be persistent, and show a willingness to wait as long as it takes.

While some complain this town is filled with hustlers and hasslers, others find it charming and a perfect place to make some Moroccan friends, especially if you speak Spanish.

Go next

 * Chefchaouen – A historic city also dubbed the blue city.
 * Oued Laou – A coastal town on the way to Chefchaouen.
 * Ceuta – Spanish semi-exclave.
 * Tangier – Famous port city with ferry connections to Spain.
 * Oujda – In the very east of Morocco, near the Algerian border.