Tangier: A City With A Mission
The famous faces stare down at us from the walls. Film stars, movie directors, statesmen and politicians, from Winston Churchill to John Hurt, from Jean-Claude van Damme to Yves Saint Laurent, Aristotle Onassis to Tom Hiddleston. Apparently there’s been some important previous guests in our hotel. This is all by accident, we had no idea we were checking in to a hotel steeped in both history and majestic colonial style, we just thought we’d got a bargain at a decent place. And by the way, it is a serious bargain, the tariff sheet on the door of our room puts the usual price at almost FOUR TIMES the rate we’ve paid.
It’s a beautiful building though, somewhere very fitting of receiving such revered guests (them, not us!), sumptuously fitted throughout and showing modern splendour without sacrificing one ounce of the character and charm of its proud history.
Tangier is turning out to be a wonderful surprise and a terrific city, we really had no idea what a great place it is and in fact until recently we weren’t even including it on our agenda, what a mistake it would have been to have left it out. This north west tip of the African continent is a beautiful place, instantly recognisable to Europeans as a city yet with a strong dash of the exotic. Or maybe it’s an exotic city with a dash of the familiar.
One thing which Tangier – or Tanger, there’s no “i” in the local spelling – definitely is, is a city with an ambition. Changes over the last decade and work currently in progress all show a very definite journey towards building a beautiful destination resort city. Large hotels sweep around the massive golden sand beach, boats glisten in the marina, swanky apartment blocks with magical sea views are springing up. The seafront roadway and adjacent promenade amble proudly along the contours of the coastline.
Moving the industrial port operation to its newly built location at Tanger Med was a master stroke, creating 120,000 direct and indirect jobs while freeing up the city waterfront to pave the way for the classy, impressive improvements we see today. Tangier is already beautiful, soon it will look something like Morocco’s answer to Acapulco, Nice or Da Nang, with the obvious cultural differences.
And yet, you know, the real Morocco is still here and not too hard to find, lurking just around a street corner where fruit stalls and fishmongers sell produce to locals clad in thawbs and djellebas, in the mosques where muezzins call and shoes wait outside, in quiet streets where cats and dogs hang around for scraps outside the butcher’s.
Tangier’s medina is not like any other we’ve seen, more like a citadel or old town than the usual cramped confines of these places. With wider “streets” and open skies, this medina is filled with shops, cafes, restaurants and squares, and as a result has a delightfully town-like feel rather than the claustrophobia of most souks or bazaars. It feels much more like a quaint old town than any of those.
This unusual centre sits within giant and well preserved city walls and ramparts, cannons still mounted at strategic defence points, offering just the most sumptuous views across the beautiful sweeping bay and marina and across to the coast of Spain. We came to Tangier knowing little about the city, we will be leaving having fallen for the place, wishing we could stay longer, and thinking that one day we may be back for more. It dawns on us in fact that Tangier would be a great introduction to Morocco for a first time visitor, you can for all intents and purposes step in and out of Morocco at will without leaving the city. Taste the exotic, relax in the familiar.
Dwelling on such thoughts, we make our way out to Cafe Hafa, a Tangier institution dating back to 1921 where locals have sipped mint tea and gazed out on the ocean for over a hundred years. Still run by the original family, Cafe Hafa sits on several levels on the headland, where from the stepped terracing we soak in those incredible views – and they are truly incredible. This is the very point where the Atlantic meets the Mediterranean; Spain just a short distance across the water, and maybe those are the shores of Portugal just visible in the haze.
Cafe Hafa has in its time been a destination for painters, poets and philosophers, diplomats, intelligentsia and bourgeoisie. They’re all gone now, but the tourists who have replaced them can still enjoy the bohemian and casual feel of Hafa – and there’s definitely something odd about such a carefree, no-airs-and-graces cafe in this most wonderful and dramatic of settings.
In our short time here it’s fair to say that Tangier delights all five senses, including taste. In truth, the food of both Chefchaouen and Tetouan was a little dull, quite bland in flavour and lacking those wonderful spicy flavours we all associate with Moroccan food. We arrive in Tangier and the whole thing explodes, herbs, spices and seasoning bringing every dish alive, sending eyeballs upwards and tastebuds into orbit. We have those anticipated delights at last!
Returning to the medina in the afternoon sun, the wind off the Atlantic somehow finding its way into every single tight street, the feel of old town is possibly even stronger as cafes tidy up from the lunchtime rush and prepare for evening custom. Outside of the medina the modern face of Tangier looks out to sea while the more recognisably Arab/North African city moves quietly towards dusk and devoutly towards prayer time.
Chefchaouen, Tetouan and Tangier have already shown us such different faces of Morocco, such a marriage of cultures, such diversity in three places which really aren’t that far apart geographically. Now for a different Morocco again: from here we head deeper and deeper into this absorbing country as our journey takes us inexorably south and east towards the desert.
38 Comments
Paul
I haven’t been there for over 20 years but your fabulous photos are making me want to go again and really get into the culture. Thanks for a great blog post 😀
Phil & Michaela
Thank you Paul – we can definitely recommend a revisit.
Marie
I guess you didn’t see my photo up on the hotel walls!!! We spent a few nights there a few years back – We’d no great expectations of the city but really took to it… loved all those old cafes and wandering the medina
Phil & Michaela
Then we share very similar opinions huh!?
Lynette d'Arty-Cross
Fantastic photos of Tangier and an excellent description of how this city feels. I haven’t been for many years but was impressed by it as you were. I would love to go back with more time to wander. Cheers.
Phil & Michaela
Thank you Lynette, yes we were very impressed with Tangier. 😄
Helen Devries
Do you think any of those fortifications date back to when Tangier was British in the 17th century?
Phil & Michaela
The Brits were without doubt one of the contributors to building the fortifications, but apparently we did a fairly good job of smashing it up when we left. Most of what we see today is I believe the result of Mohammad VI who set about strengthening all of the fortifications along Morocco’s Mediterranean coastline, keep out those marauding Brits, Spaniards and Portuguese for good.
Phil & Michaela
No, it definitely wasn’t Mohammad VI despite my earlier reply. I’m getting my Kings and numbers muddled up. I blame this period of enforced sobriety for the fact that my brain is no longer functioning satisfactorily.
Helen Devries
That would account for it…..mine slows up if the gin is not flowing…
Monkey's Tale
Tangier really sounds like the perfect city, familiarity and exotic. The tight Old Town streets and the old walls with its ramparts, look very inviting and I can smell the spices. So did anyone ask for your autograph?
Phil & Michaela
Oh well that happens everywhere I go, Maggie 😂…. Yes, Tangier was very pleasing, and a very pleasant surprise
Alison
Great descriptive post Phil, will maybe visit one day. Your hotel sounds fabulous, love a bargain like that
Phil & Michaela
Cheers Ali…me too, and it was good to have a sneaky vino or two…
Alison
You did well on your liver cleanse though!
ourcrossings
Tangier is a unique blend of cultures, with a vibe that isn’t quite fully Mediterranean yet isn’t quite the North African/Middle Eastern vibe that you get in Marrakech. The landscape could have you convinced you’re in a Mediterranean beach city – it’s built on the slopes of a chalky limestone hill, full of white flat-top houses, overlooking where the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean meet. Thanks for the tour. Aiva 🙂 xx
Phil & Michaela
Yes, exactly as we said, a real mix of exotic and familiar. Great city.
Toonsarah
Well you’ve certainly sold Tangier! It looks more approachable than Marrakesh but just as fascinating, and the food sounds delicious. I really love the sound of the Cafe Hafa – it seems reminiscent of Africa House in Stone Town with its casual air and amazing location! I also always like how you tease us at the end of each post with a hint of what’s to come …
Phil & Michaela
Ha ha I see that as part of my job, Sarah! We must have missed Africa House while we were in Stone Town, though we did find several great old colonial places. Hafa is such an experience….I don’t think they even ever bother to clean up, they just let the wind do it for them.
grandmisadventures
I have loved seeing these cities of Morocco with you, they are so lovely with such a mixture of history and culture between Africa and Europe 🙂
Phil & Michaela
Yes they really are fascinating…thank you Meg 😃
Terrie
How nice. We had a guide take us around Tangier for the day before the night train to Marrakech. Remember the time we too really enjoyed it and our overnight stay back to Spain after coming from Fez. Great descriptions. Wish we were there! T
Phil & Michaela
Tangier was a revelation, Terrie, we’d be very happy to return and explore further. Safe travels you guys x
leightontravels
Just the sight of that mint tea and the vast deep blue that lies beyond gives me more than a pang of nostalgia about Morocco. Plenty more reasons here for you to blow Tangiers’ trumpet, it really does look like a place where we could do one of our signature months (or twos). Great choice of hotel, lord, I would love to do a night or two there and follow win such hallowed footsteps. Looking forward to the next leg… deeper and deeper sounds good.
Phil & Michaela
You know what, I absolutely agree. I think you would find Tangier an ideal place to base yourselves for a while. It’s a great place to be, and of course not too expensive. And just imagine your wedding anniversary in that hotel 😁. Thoroughly enjoyable, strongly recommended…
Latitude Adjustment: A Tale of Two Wanderers
Great descriptive and educational post!
restlessjo
I’m waving at you frantically from that distant haze you call Portugal. I would love to cross the water but the closest I’ve been is Gibraltar. Thanks for the wonderful introduction to Tanger. I need to work on persuading my husband because it looks absolutely beautiful.
Phil & Michaela
Hi Jo, thank you. It really is an enjoyable and interesting city, wish we could have stayed longer. We day tripped to Gibraltar earlier on in this trip. But Tangier was a genuine and delightful surprise.
restlessjo
How do I follow your blog? I can’t see an invitation 🤔💙
Phil & Michaela
Hi Jo, if you scroll right down past all the comments, right to the foot of the page, you should find the follow option. Let me know if not there (but it should be!) 🤞
restlessjo
Got it!
restlessjo
Got it 🤗🩷
Phil & Michaela
Excellent, thank you so much Jo
WanderingCanadians
Even though you do a lot of planning and travelling, it’s nice to hear that you can still be impressed by places that weren’t initially even on your radar. The old town looks like a great spot to just wander around. I can see why Cafe Hafa is such a popular space. Look at those views!
Phil & Michaela
Tangier was a lovely surprise, a really great city
wetanddustyroads
The fishing port of Tangier is beautiful (almost as beautiful as your hotel 😉). Tangier itself is picturesque – I can only imagine how many photos one could take here (and yours is beautiful). To think that Tangier is closer to Portugal than our current residence is from our home on the West Coast – unbelievable.
Phil & Michaela
It’s only 14 kilometres from Morocco to Spain across the Straits Of Gibraltar. Tangierbis a very exciting place for lots of reasons.
wetanddustyroads
It’s amazing how close two different continents are to each other!