2 days in Tangier

Day by day

1. Day 1: Tangier medina and Petit Socco

   Tangier medina, Petit Socco, Grand Socco and Mendoubia Gardens, then Terrasse des Paresseux in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Tangier medina

      It is smaller and easier to navigate than the medinas of Fes or Marrakech, and most of it can be explored in a morning.

   2. Late morning

      Petit Socco

      Café Central and Café Tingis still face each other across the square, serving mint tea to an all-day crowd.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Bissara

      Small cafés in the medina in the morning, and at Café Hafa.

   4. Afternoon

      Grand Socco

      The tiled minaret of the Sidi Bou Abib mosque rises on one side, and the restored Art Deco Cinéma Rif houses the Cinémathèque de Tanger, with a café popular with students and artists.

   5. Late afternoon

      Mendoubia Gardens

      They are a peaceful place to rest between the medina and the Ville Nouvelle.

   6. Evening

      Terrasse des Paresseux

      Stop here during an evening stroll along Boulevard Pasteur, then take a drink at the Café de Paris.

2. Day 2: Caves of Hercules and Cap Spartel

   Caves of Hercules, Cap Spartel, Perdicaris Park and Kasbah Museum (Dar el Makhzen), then Corniche and Tanja Marina Bay in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Caves of Hercules

      Legend links them to Hercules resting between his labours. Cafés and souvenir stalls line the clifftop above.

   2. Late morning

      Cap Spartel

      The road there winds through pine and eucalyptus forest above the coast.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Kalinte

      Street carts and bakeries in the medina and around the Grand Socco, served hot.

   4. Afternoon

      Perdicaris Park

      It surrounds the villa of Ion Perdicaris, whose 1904 kidnapping caused an international incident.

   5. Late afternoon

      Kasbah Museum (Dar el Makhzen)

      Place de la Kasbah outside leads to the Bab el Bahr gate and its terrace above the Strait.

   6. Evening

      Corniche and Tanja Marina Bay

      Walk the Corniche in the early evening, when Tangier's families come out and the sea breeze cools the city.

If it rains

• Swap in Tangier American Legation Museum (Medina): Look out for the room of paintings of old Tangier and the Paul Bowles wing with his books and recordings.

Where to stay for this itinerary

Pace and daylight

The sights in this plan add up to roughly 10–14 hours of visiting over 2 days, before meals and getting between them. Daylight runs from about 9.7 hours in December to 14.6 hours in June, so in winter start early and keep museums for the afternoon.

Getting between stops: Walking. Walking is the only way around the medina and kasbah, and the Ville Nouvelle is a short walk uphill from the Grand Socco.

More or fewer days

• One day in Tangier
• 3 days in Tangier
• 5 days in Tangier

Questions travellers ask