Update August 2017: Border queues are getting increasingly long at Ceuta, taking up to 2 hours to cross on foot and 4 hours to cross with a vehicle. We don’t recommend taking the ferry to Ceuta if the primary purpose of your trip is to visit Morocco. Day trips from Ceuta to Morocco are impossible at this time. All pick ups or drop offs at Ceuta through TangierTaxi will be on the Moroccan side of the border. We strongly recommend taking the ferry to Tangier, or Tangier-Med. Check our Spain to Morocco Ferry guide for more details.

Ceuta to Chefchaouen Transport

Chefchaouen is one of the biggest attractions for travellers visiting Northern Morocco, and if you’re staying in Ceuta, you are too close to miss it! The distance from Ceuta to Chefchaouen is about 100 kilometres, so after crossing the Moroccan border, it’s just a 2 hour drive with one of our private transfers. It won’t feel like 2 hours though because there is so much to see and lots of opportunities to stop and take photos. Thanks to its proximity, a day trip from Ceuta to Chefchaouen gives you plenty of time to explore the town in a comfortable manner and see all that it has to offer. Our Chefchaouen excursions are always private, and include an air-conditioned vehicle and English-speaking driver, so you’ll never feel rushed or made to leave before you want to.

Ceuta to Chefchaouen: Crossing the border

On a day trip from Ceuta to Chefchaouen, the first step is to cross the Moroccan border. Although this may seem daunting to you, it is a pain-free process with the assistance of our bilingual drivers who make the crossing regularly. You just need to remember your passport.

If you are crossing independently (i.e. not on one of our Chefchaouen excursions or transfers), there are a few things to bear in mind:

Ignore any touts at the border selling entry/exit cards. They are available for free at the passport office.
If you accept help from somebody at the border, even if they say it is for free, at the end they will expect money.
If you are entering Ceuta, bear in mind that the border is about 2km away from the city. If you don’t feel like walking, you can take the bus, but it is not always punctual.
You must keep your entry/exit cards for when you leave Morocco. If you lose them, you will run into many problems.
It may sound pedantic, but at the border, pens are not provided. So in order to be able to fill out your entry/exit cards, bring a pen.
If you hold a non EU passport, make sure you tell the Spanish police because you need to go in a separate queue. The Spanish generally don’t check passports for people leaving Ceuta, so if you don’t tell them, you may end up in the wrong queue.
There are street-sellers on both sides who can change your money from Euros to Moroccan Dirhams and vice-versa. There is also a bank and an ATM. The street-sellers may offer marginally better rates than the bank does, but always be wary of scams and/or counterfeit notes.

Getting from Ceuta to Chefchaouen

On our transfers/excursions from Ceuta to Chefchaouen, our driver will meet you on the Moroccan side of the border. After, it’s a pleasant drive 2 hours south to Chefchaouen, with great views on the way. As mentioned earlier, there are photo opportunities, so just let the driver know if you would like to stop or take a break. Once you’ve arrived from Ceuta to Chefchaouen, you will find many things to explore, and if you would like advice on things to visit, our driver will be more than happy to help. These day trips are unrushed and allow you to look around Chefchaouen at your own pace. Once you a ready to leave from Chefchaouen to Ceuta, our driver will take you directly back to Ceuta, assist with the border crossing again, and drop you off at your hotel.

If you are travelling independently (i.e. not on one of our Ceuta to Chefchaouen excursions or transfers), there is one alternative to get to Chefchaouen. Once you’ve crossed the border into Morocco, you will find a big group of grand taxis. Some of these will take you to Chefchaouen. You may have to wait for the taxi to be full before it leaves, since these types of taxis are not private, so make sure you are not in a rush. Another option is buying all of the seats in the taxi. It helps if you can speak Arabic or French since the drivers will expect you to negotiate. Either way, it could be difficult to get the price down because the drivers generally collude and fix the same prices. You are a captive audience after crossing the border from Ceuta because they know you have no other option, so keep that in mind.