You can get from Ceuta to the border by bus for about one and a half to two euros.
On the Spanish side they do not check, passports are not stamped with an exit stamp. At the Moroccan border, you need to prepare, in addition to your passport, two migration cards, white and yellow. They will be offered to you back in Ceuta, in hotels, hostels and tourist information they are free, but at the border there are people who are trying to profit from this, so take care of the cards in advance. You don’t need to enter anything special into them; you can write any hotel address (we chose something from the guidebook).
The border crossing takes place along a long “corridor” built in the open air from fences. Foreigners do not need to stand in the general queue; from there you will still be sent to the mythical “fifth window” (“ventanilla 5”). It is mythical because, firstly, none of the structures on the border can be called a booth that would have a window, and secondly because none of the supposed booths are numbered. As a result, you have to walk around with your passport at arm’s length and with a begging look, like a beggar asking for alms. Our passports were passed back and forth for a long time, twisted and turned, but in the end they were stamped and given back.
As you exit passport control, you enter the realm of taxi drivers. The main thing here is not to get confused. There are two types of taxis in Morocco: collective (white) and individual (usually yellow). In an individual car, no one else will be seated; in a group car, seven or eight of you will travel (two to the right of the driver, four to five in the back seat, and all this in a regular car).
For travelers with limited budget There is no point in going straight to Tangier, it is much more expensive than getting there yourself. But everyone can go to Tangier for $25. Those on a budget can take a taxi to the entrance to the city of Fnideq (3 euros for an individual, 4 dirhams (0.5 euros) for a group). In general, you can probably get there on foot, we got there very quickly. Unless you plan to stay in Fnidek, it makes sense to go straight to its bus station. It may be difficult to find it yourself, but the driver will only charge you 10 dirhams (1 euro) from the border to the station.
You can speak with taxi drivers, obviously, in Arabic, as well as in Spanish; some understand English. You can pay, in the absence of local money, in euros, and they accept coins too.
At the bus station in Fnidek, we paid 2 euros (20 dirhams, which we still didn’t have) for tickets to Tangier. I was given the change from a 5 euro note in a 10 dirham coin. You can get to Tangier in 1.5 hours, or in three if the bus goes through Tetouan. In our case, this is what happened.
If Tangier is the gateway to Morocco for Europeans of all stripes and needs, then Ceuta is the gateway to the world for Moroccan shopkeepers and rare backpackers.
Border crossing between Morocco and Spanish Ceuta
These gates are very different from each other, both in appearance, and by the contingent crossing these borders.
View of Ceuta
Ceuta (Sebta in Arabic) occupies 18 square meters. km and includes a mountainous peninsula jutting out into the sea, connected to land by a narrow isthmus, where the city itself is located. The enclave is separated from Morocco by a fortified line of barriers, which is clearly visible from some panoramic positions already inside the enclave.
Fortified city walls of Ceuta
Crossing the border is unique. First of all, do not take photographs on the territory of the terminals, be it Spanish or Moroccan. A group of local hustlers, who don't seem to be very tourist-oriented, will try to sell you immigration cards to fill out. This is offered to everyone, but you shouldn’t listen to them - cards are issued completely free of charge at passport control windows. Tourists stand in a separate line from Moroccans and very quickly, having received a stamp in exchange for a completed card, proceed to the Spanish terminal, which is at most fifty meters away. And here, already on the Spanish side, I was struck by the ease with which crowds of people enter Europe. No one checked the documents of those entering Spain. I didn’t even take out my passport, but just walked in the crowd of Moroccans and a minute later I found myself at a bus stop already on the territory of the enclave.
First steps in Spain
Bus number 7 with the sign “Centro Ciudad” (city center) just pulled up to the stop, the whole crowd happily loaded onto it, and off we went. Peace be with you, Spain. Looking ahead, I will note that on the way back no one checked the documents. And one more thing - from the border to the city center (2.5 km) you can walk along the embankment.
Commandant's Office of the District of Ceuta
Ceuta is worthy of a short historical excursion. For the Spaniards, Ceuta is like Crimea with Kronstadt for the Russians, for Britain - Gibraltar, for the USA - the Statue of Liberty, and for the Israelis - Jerusalem. Therefore, it is quite understandable how sensitive Spain is to any speculation about its last African possessions. Especially with Ceuta, over which the Spanish flag has not flown since 1580, when it was acquired from the Portuguese.
Ceuta - Spanish enclave in Africa
Morocco has big ambitions for Ceuta and Melilla, and last year's conflict between the two countries over the ownership of a tiny island a few kilometers northeast of Ceuta is another example of this.
Spanish city of Ceuta
Retaining enclaves is a matter of national pride in Spain, in light of which they have long turned a blind eye to the fact that both enclaves are subsidized, that unemployment reaches 30%, and that in order to attract residents there, complete tax exemptions are offered.
View from the walls of the Old Town of Ceuta
Against this background, the Spanish claims to British Gibraltar, which they consider their territory illegally appropriated by the British, look extremely cynical and ironic.
Citadel of Ceuta
In my opinion, Ceuta is remarkable for the very fact that it is a European enclave in Africa, colorful and unusual. A town with a population of 75 thousand inhabitants, a third of whom are Moroccans. There is a pleasant historical center, a couple of churches, one synagogue, a city theater and that’s it.
Fort on top of a mountain, Ceuta
This is a paradise for lovers of ancient fortresses and other fortifications - there are at least five fortresses in Ceuta, two of which amaze with their scale and power. One of them, Foso de San Felipe, at the entrance to the historical center of the city, is a true masterpiece of medieval fortification art. It's worth spending a couple of hours here, including a visit to the small but interesting city museum. In fact, this huge bastion separates the city from the African mainland, since here, in the narrowest part of the isthmus, a ditch has been dug where sea water splashes.
Fortress on Mount Acho, Ceuta
The second fort, Fortaleza de Hacho, is located on the top of a mountain on the opposite side of the peninsula, approximately 4 km east of the city center. The fortress, whose walls with watchtowers and numerous loopholes stretch for 2.5 km, encircles the top of the mountain of the same name.
There are probably few places left in the world that are so little known to tourists. Just a couple of years ago, I had no idea that on the coast of Morocco the Spaniards still hold as many as six small colonial enclaves with the help of a foreign legion. Two of them, Ceuta and Melilla, are quite accessible to visit and extremely interesting in the context of mighty medieval fortresses and chic architecture of the late 19th century. The four other enclaves are closed to tourists because they are separate fortresses on the Moroccan coast. Imagine a fortress on the seashore, owned by another state and surrounded by barbed wire. Sounds absurd? Moreover, Morocco actively lays claim to these enclaves, which has become the reason for several conflicts between the two countries. And finally, Ceuta and Melilla have an unusual autonomous status within Spain, which strangely affects the visa policy of these individual geographic locations.
You can read more about the history of these enclaves on Wikipedia
I first found myself in one of the enclaves, Ceuta, in February 2007, when I accidentally read about the strange history of these places. Being at that moment in the Moroccan town of Tetouan in the north of the country, I took a bus and in an hour drove to the border with this Spanish enclave. And I saw the border bazaar chaos and walls around the perimeter - 
I wasn’t particularly worried about the border, fortunately, using dual citizenship, I entered Europe freely. Moroccans have one passport, Spaniards have another. Repeatedly tested scheme.
If Tangier is the gateway to Morocco for Europeans of all stripes and needs, then Ceuta is the gateway to the world for Moroccan shopkeepers and rare backpackers. These gates are very different from each other both in appearance and in the number of people crossing these borders. Ceuta (Sebta in Arabic) occupies only 18 square kilometers and includes a mountainous peninsula jutting out into the sea, connected to the land by a narrow isthmus, where the city of Ceuta is located. The enclave is separated from Morocco by a fortified line of barriers, which is clearly visible from some panoramic positions already inside the enclave. Crossing the border is unique. First of all, do not take photographs on the territory of the terminals, be it Spanish or Moroccan. In my presence, two Spanish girls were detained who were filming the customs inspection of the car with a video camera. Their detention was not limited to verbal reprimand, but they were put into a gendarmerie car and taken away in the direction of Tetouan.
Enclave number one - Ceuta
Next. A group of local Moroccan hustlers (molested), apparently not exactly tourist-oriented, will try to sell you immigration cards to leave Morocco. This is offered to everyone, but you shouldn’t listen to them - cards are issued completely free of charge at passport control windows. Tourists stand in a separate line from Moroccans and very quickly, having received a stamp in exchange for a completed card, proceed to the Spanish terminal, which is at most fifty meters away. And here, already on the Spanish side, I was struck by the ease with which crowds of people enter Europe. No one checked the documents of people entering Spain. I repeat - no one checked my documents at all, nor did they check those of any of the Europeans traveling through this border crossing. I didn’t even take out my passport, but just walked in the crowd of Moroccans, and a minute later I found myself at a bus stop already on the territory of the enclave. Meanwhile, at the crossing, several dozen Spanish military personnel closely monitored those crossing the border, but weeded out only individual blacks (obviously refugees) and some Moroccans with especially large trunks. And so he crossed the border. True, he later returned and asked me to put a stamp for the collection, which the Spaniards did. Needless to say, no one entered me into the database. They took the passport and slapped a stamp on the first page they came across.
You can get to Ceuta in two ways: by ferry from Algeciras in Spain (1.5 hours) and about 30 euros one way, or on foot from Morocco. There is no airport in the enclave. And remember that if you entered the enclave without a Schengen visa (which is quite realistic), then you still will not be put on the ferry to Spain - there is full passport control at the port.
Ceuta is an extremely beautiful place, I spoke about it separately in the report. Just a few of my photos from there for “priming” - 
Enclave number two - Melilla
Complementing what was already said in the report Sailing from Spain to the Melilla enclave, this is the most remote enclave of Spain, located near the border between Morocco and Algeria. And the least known to tourists due to its geographical location- this is an absolutely inconvenient place to get to know the country. There is not a single more or less significant tourist site within a radius of 300 kilometers. Crossing the border from Melilla to the adjacent Moroccan Beni Nzar, you face about 6 hours of boring train travel to Fez, passing an extremely monotonous, godforsaken, poor province. How do 99% of independent tourists travel around Morocco? That's right: we flew to Casablanca or Agadir, rented a car and made a “lap of honor” to Marrakech, or to Ouarzazate.
I arrived here in February 2011, by ferry from Malaga, Spain, on which I told about sailing. This enclave is 5 km long and up to 3 km wide, and, like Ceuta, is surrounded by walls to protect against illegal immigrants. The Mediterranean coast of Morocco is the main source of illegal trafficking into the European Union. Hundreds of thousands of Africans are right now waiting in the wings to break into a prosperous Europe at any cost. We are not even talking about the inhabitants of Morocco, but about real Africans, from Senegal, Nigeria, Mali, Liberia. The Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla, separated from Morocco by concrete walls with barbed wire, have become the most accessible “prey” for illegal immigrants. Still, breaking through the wall is easier than swimming across the Mediterranean Sea. As far as can be judged by the number of Arabs and blacks in Melilla, the Spaniards to some extent gave up on the attempt to block the border 100%. But they tripled the control for those traveling from Melilla to mainland Spain. 
In fact, Schengen control is carried out not so much at the border of Melilla and Morocco, but at the town’s seaport, or at the airport. With a high degree of probability, you can cross to Melilla on foot and the Spanish border guards will not even ask for your passport. But it is not recommended to try to leave Melilla further to Europe if you do not have a Schengen visa. You can read more about the wall between Melilla and Morocco on Wikipedia. And this is what the wall looks like: 
The town of Melilla itself is extremely interesting and I strongly recommend visiting it. This is the only place in Africa where you will find beautiful buildings of the late 19th century in the Art Nouveau style, you will see a huge sea fortress, the world's last monument to the dictator Franco and numerous creations of the famous architect Enrique Nieto, who was a student of Gaudi. I have a separate report about Melilla, but for now just a couple of photos - 
There are three ways to get to Melilla: by plane from Malaga and Madrid, ferries from Malaga and Almeria, and by foot to Morocco. Regarding planes, it should be noted that only Iberia flies there, issuing consistently high fares from 150 euros round trip for a 45-minute flight. The Acciona ferry is significantly cheaper, from 35 euros one way, but it takes 7 hours from Malaga and 9 hours from Almeria. Well, the last option is by land from Morocco, but, as mentioned above, you will have to travel about 6 hours by train from Fez to the border with Melilla.
So you can visit the enclaves without a visa?
Friends, I immediately ask you not to take me at my word. I'm just telling you about mine personal experience. Can I promise that you will cross the border freely and no one will ask for your Schengen visa? No, I can't. No one checked me, as well as many others. Apparently, they successfully passed face control. If you succeed, I will be grateful and will immediately add to the report. I will repeat for the third time that I can promise with a 100% guarantee that without a Schengen visa you will not be put on a ferry from the enclave to Spain, so keep this in mind.
Formally, the visa-free status of Melilla and Ceuta is maintained exclusively for residents of the Moroccan provinces of Tetouan and Nador; for other Moroccans, Schengen visas are issued as usual. Indirectly, it turns out that citizens of other countries enter on grounds common to the whole of Spain. Link to official source
Today we’ll talk about the border between the Spanish colony of Ceuta and Morocco. I’ll say right away that in the political and demographic context, everything is very bad for the Spaniards. A small (less than 18 sq. km) fragment of the once mighty Spanish monarchy stuck like an appendix to the coast of Morocco, and the latter has very specific ambitions for Ceuta and the second Spanish city in Africa, Melilla, which is 300 kilometers to the east. The Spanish first settled in the area along with the Portuguese in 1415, capturing Ceuta from the Muslims. Thus, the Spaniards have controlled Ceuta for exactly 600 years, and for them the retention of this and four other microcolonies on the coast of Morocco is an extremely emotional issue and full of patriotic feelings. But there is no escaping fate, and today Ceuta, as well as Melilla, have become for Spain headache and a bottomless barrel of multi-billion dollar subsidies. There is no industry or tourism here. But the most important thing is that every year there are fewer and fewer Spaniards in the colonies, and more and more Moroccans. In recent years, the number of refugees from black Africa has been rapidly growing, almost daily storming the concrete fences surrounding Ceuta and Melilla. Today, only 45% of Spaniards live in Ceuta, a population of 90,000, about the same number of Moroccans (most of them have Spanish passports) and one in ten are African refugees, the exact number of whom no one knows. Purely visually, there are a lot of Africans both in the historical center and in the border crossing area.
It is obvious that in the near future Spain will lose both Ceuta and Melilla (by the way, Melilla is absolutely stunning!) and Morocco will get back what it lost 600 years ago. Because what cannot be taken by war can be overcome by demography.
Map of Ceuta for a general idea of the city and its position -
Ceuta itself is quite interesting, there are 3 fortresses and a small old town with several churches, parks and simply colorful streets with many restaurants and cafes. We will talk about this in the next article -
For now, let's return to the border topic. From the passenger port of Ceuta to the border with Morocco is 3.6 kilometers according to Google Maps. You can take bus No. 7, or you can walk along the coast, which will take about forty minutes at most. Actually, the view from the center of Ceuta to the border with Morocco, it can be seen at the end of the cape on the right -
The old part of the city is very small and then immediately the more than boring residential areas begin, where Moroccans and African refugees live -
Do you think that the following photo is already Morocco? Nothing of the kind, this is also Ceuta, but as you guessed correctly, these are those very disadvantaged areas with an ambiguous population. I can only add that in 2007, when I crossed the border here, there was much less such chaotic development -
Prison for African illegal immigrants who climb over the fence -
Yes, yes, this is all Spain, we haven’t even reached Morocco yet -
And then the border crossing appears, below. The one that is closer to us (black) is still Spain, and the large white terminal further along the coast is Morocco -
The same 7th bus that runs between the center and the border -
Border between Ceuta and Morocco. It’s interesting that this fence is Spanish, and further on you can see the Moroccan one. Between them there is a neutral strip three hundred meters wide -
At first I went the wrong way, bumping into the exit for those who arrived from Morocco -
Now it’s a different matter, I’m walking along the path for those leaving Spain -
The fences around are getting higher, Morocco is getting closer, but there is no exit Spanish passport control. Strange, in 2007 there was a booth here and the Spaniards were stamping passports -
Then the metal fence ends abruptly and a concrete fence painted white begins. This is Morocco, and Spain is left behind. Unlike the photography-friendly Spaniards, on the Moroccan side they immediately shouted to me that “no photo!”, so this would be the last photo from the border. I’ll just add that in the photo on the right side you can see a person immediately behind the gate. So here he is standing near the Moroccan passport control booth. That's where I headed too -
This is after the border, about two hundred meters away from the zone where the mere sight of a camera caused an immense stir among the Moroccan police and military. I'm not kidding, they almost took the camera away. And even here, among ordinary taxi drivers, they began to swear at the sight of the camera. But I sent these to such and such a mother. One way or another, this is where you will look for transport further across Morocco. The easiest and cheapest way is to go to Tetuan (about 30 kilometers) and there transfer to the bus you need to any part of the country. All these taxis are minibuses; they depart as they are filled with passengers. The fare to Mfideka (5 km from the border) is 10 dirhams (just under 1 euro), to Tetouan 20 dirhams.
I thought that Ceuta (as well as Melilla) are great places where you can do a visa run for those living in Europe illegally. I mean visa-free non-Europeans and those who have multiple and multi-year Schengen visas. There is no passport control at the exit, so the Spaniards do not know exactly when you left the Schengen zone. Then you go to Tangier or Casablanca and fly from there to anywhere in Europe. I’ll tell you more - you can not only leave Ceuta without checking, but even enter in the opposite direction without taking your passport out of your pocket. From Spain there will be something like face control, and if you have a European appearance, you will pass without being checked at all. Another thing is that the check will be at the port of Ceuta and without an entry stamp (or, if you are an EU citizen, without an ID card), you will most likely simply not be put on the ferry and will be sent back to the border to get an entry stamp.
So, on September 17 I flew to Barcelona and they gave me an entry stamp, and on September 21 I was already in Morocco, but my departure from Schengen was not recorded. Just an observation. By the way, I am writing these lines somewhat after the fact, and at the moment I am in Madrid, where I flew from Morocco today. So, the Spaniards didn’t give me an entry stamp at all, and they didn’t put my passport into the database; they took it, leafed through it and returned it back. I remember the idiotic Latvian border guards at Riga airport, literally studying the passports of tourists under a magnifying glass and trying to count the days of their stay in Schengen, see "
Slightly more than 85% of the Iberian Peninsula is occupied by Spain. From this, even the most inexperienced tourist can conclude that she does not have many neighbors. But the Spaniards themselves do not seem to be upset by this. The protection of their native shores has always been sacred to them. But, still, every traveler should know how many countries Spain borders.
What every tourist needs to know
It would be useful to understand where the Kingdom of Spain is located. This information is especially important for those who are planning to visit this beautiful country:
- location - southwest Europe;
- total area - about 500 thousand square kilometers;
- the west of the country is washed by Atlantic waters, in the north by the Bay of Biscay, in the east by the Mediterranean Sea, in the south by the Strait of Gibraltar;
- The Kingdom also includes the Balearic and Canary archipelagos, as well as the cities of Ceuta and Melilla (Morocco). An interesting fact is that the Balearics occupy 1% of the total area of the state, and the Canaries - 1.5%.
- At the moment, the issue regarding the ownership of Gibraltar, which is under dispute with Great Britain, remains unresolved.
Spain itself is divided into 17 autonomies, which include 50 provinces.
Spanish borders
Spain's neighbor in the Pyrenees is Portugal. The border between the two powers stretches for 1214 km. For comparison: the Belarusian-Russian border occupies approximately the same distance.
It is worth noting that for Portugal itself, Spain is the only neighbor that surrounds it on all sides. That is why, historically, Portugal was forced to become a maritime state, because on one side it has Spain, and on the other, the Atlantic.
The inability to expand their territory on land and the endless encroachments of the Spaniards on this land caused several wars between the two countries.
France and Andorra
The Spanish-French border lies in the northern part of the Iberian Peninsula. Of all the countries with which Spain borders, this territory is perhaps the most picturesque. A blue flag with yellow stars separates the two states. Despite the proximity of the two neighbors, even with the naked eye you can see completely different landscapes on both sides of the flag. The border with the French state stretches only 623 km.
Somewhere in the middle of this dividing strip, a small power is located - Andorra. It is connected to Spain by only 63 kilometers. Andorra is known to tourists as a ski resort and duty-free area. Despite the fact that only 80 thousand people live in the principality, the annual flow of tourists here is equal to 10 million. 
Here it is worth paying attention to the fact that back in 1995, little Andorra abolished passport and visa controls at its Spanish and French border. But she did it in a unilateral manner. Therefore, when approaching the checkpoint, do not be surprised if the Spanish border guards ask you for documents.
In the south, the countries bordering Spain are represented only by Gibraltar, which is officially part of the UK. The length of the demarcation line is only 1.2 km. This small piece of land has always caused mutual claims between the two states. But a referendum held in 2002 showed that the majority of residents were satisfied with the protectorate of the British Isles.
Border with Morocco
And finally, the Moroccan border, 16 km long, already passes through the territory of the African continent. But even here there are two small towns that are considered Spanish. To summarize, it can be noted that Spain has five neighbors in total, and the length of the border in total is 1917 km.
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