Chefchaouen, also known as the Blue City of Morocco has become a hugely popular destination over the years. Due to that, you’d naturally assume that how to get to Chefchaouen would be fairly common knowledge.
Unfortunately, I found myself surprised by the amount of people who didn’t know how to get there, myself included.
After a bit of research though, I was able to see just how easy it is.
Where is Chefchaouen?
With the most popular city in Morocco being Marrakech, one would hope for Chefchaouen (pronounced Chef-SHAH-when) to be close given its rivaling popularity. Unfortunately, it isn’t.
If you were to cut Morocco in half, you’d find Marrakech right on that dividing line, while Chefchaouen is way up north in the Riff Mountains, about an hour from the Mediterranean Sea.
Its quasi-remote location means that you’re going to need a taxi, bus, or rental car for at least part of your journey.
That’s because it’s about two hours away from Tangier, home of the closest international airport, and four hours from the second closest in Fes.
Why is Chefchaouen blue?
To start, I’d like to address the obvious. Why is Chefchaouen blue? Is it for practical reasons? A tourism marketing ploy?
Ask a dozen people why it’s blue and you’ll get a dozen different answers.
Unfortunately, the true reason why it’s blue is probably lost to time. There are however several theories and legends floating around.
According to some locals, Chefchaouen’s walls are painted in all shades of blue to represent the color of the Mediterranean Sea. (This one makes the least sense to me as it’s over an hour from the Mediterranean.)
Others believe that the blues symbolize the importance of the Ras el-Maa Waterfall where residents get their drinking water.
Another more prevalent story says that the immigrant Sephardic Jewish community brought the tradition of painting buildings blue because it reminded them of the sky and the presence of God.
Or, there are the more practical theories that say the walls were painted to keep mosquitos away and reduce heat in the summer. (My suspicion.)
Whatever the case, there’s no denying the beauty of this highly unique city.
Where to start?
Now then. If you read my Morocco Travel Itinerary, you’ll see that I started from Tangier, and believe you should too. Starting in Fez, Marrakech, or even Casablanca just wastes so much time for what is popularly seen as a day trip.
I get into it more in my Itinerary post, but Chefchaouen, namely the blue part, is such a small part of the city (the medina (old town)) that you don’t need to spend much time there in order to see it all.
A start from Tangier allows you to better hit the ground running.
CTM Bus Line
I opted for the bus as my primary mode of transportation.
The CTM Bus line is cheap, clean, reliable, and relatively comfortable (once you get moving).
Booking was simple. I checked the schedule in advance on Rome2Rio and took a taxi to the station.
A taxi from the Tangier airport to the CTM Bus Station 25 minutes away cost me 100 MAD ($10) I didn’t even bother to haggle.
There are usually one or two departures per day, so be sure to get there with plenty of time to secure a ticket.
“CTM” was all I needed to say to the cab driver and he knew where to take me.
Once there, the people working at the counter spoke English, but I feel that even if they didn’t, I’d have been fine just saying Chefchaouen.
The station is small, but they’ll point you in a direction. Plus it’s probably going to be the bus that’s filled with the most travelers, so it should stand out.
Booking tickets online:
If you need a little more forward planning than just showing up at the bus station, you can use the Official CTM Website to book in advance.
Or there’s the always reliable BookAway which is a bit more user-friendly, not to mention it’s in English. Both are good options.
How to get to Chefchaouen from Tangier
Bus Ticket Cost: 65 MAD (about $6.50)
Time: 2.5 hours
This was the route I took, and in my opinion, the easiest.
The shortest route is the easiest… Go figure…
Tangier has the closest airport to Chefchaouen, and there are some really cheap flights if you’re coming from Europe. The bus ride from there is only about 2.5 hours, as opposed to 4.15 from Fes.
How to get to Chefchaouen from Fes
Bus Ticket Cost: 120 MAD (about $12.00)
Time: 4.15 hours
Fes has the second closest airport, and it’s also the closest of the four Imperial Cities, so it’s a good option if you’re interested in seeing them all.
The other three imperial cities are Rabat, Marrakesh, and Meknes, each of which has its own maze-like medina (Old Town), that have all been made UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
How to get to Chefchaouen from Casablanca
Bus Ticket Cost: 225 MAD (about $22.50)
Time: 6.5 hours
If you’re coming from Casablanca, things start getting a little different. You’ll have to pay closer attention to which ticket you buy because they don’t all take the same route.
You can get direct tickets, but some wrap up past Tangier or down through Fez and take over 9 hours, while others take a more direct route of only 6 and a half hours, bypassing the major cities.
Each route has a different departure time. Two times via Tangier, one via Fes, and one more direct route that skips both cities for a total of four options per day.
How to get to Chefchaouen from Marrakech
Bus Ticket Cost: 330 MAD (about $33)
Time: 12-18 hours
As I have said in my Morocco Itinerary, I don’t recommend taking the bus all the way from Marrakech to Chefchaouen. It will take you anywhere from 12 to 18 hours. I’ve been on bus rides that long, and they’re not pleasant.
If you insist on a day trip from Marrakech, a flight might be an option, but that’s only if you can find one that’s direct.
At the time of writing, I checked about a dozen different dates and couldn’t find any direct flights on Skyscanner. Flights are cheap, but everything seems to have a layover now, drawing things out time-wise.
Going this far, I think a night train/bus combo is your best option, with it even better only going one-way. It will still take you 9-12 hours, depending on the changes you get stuck with, but it’s going to be so much more comfortable.
The cost to upgrade to first class is minimal, and worth it.
Getting from the CTM Bus Station in Chefchaouen to the Blue City
Yes, the Blue City is Chefchaouen, but as I stated above, it’s really only the old town area.
When you first get off the bus, you’ll be in the more modern section of town, with very little blue to be seen.
That didn’t make much sense to me. From a tourism standpoint, if the whole city enforced a blue color code, it would be nothing but a positive for the area in terms of incoming money.
Anyway, your easiest option is to get a petit taxi. They’re everywhere, and clearly defined. They’ll know where you want to go, but the unofficial main taxi drop-off point inside the walls of the Blue City is near Hotel Parador.
Or, you can also do what I did, which is pop your hotel name into your GPS and walk. It wasn’t very far (about 30 minutes), but it was mostly uphill in the beginning.
Is Chefchaouen Safe?
Chefchaufen is considered to be very safe. It’s a small tourist town, and they depend on the revenue that brings. They don’t want anything scaring the tourists off.
I did this thirty-minute walk from the bus station to the old town Medina late at night.
One guy offered to sell me hash, but that was it.
Morocco is well known for its hash and marijuana, but they’re still illegal there. If you wish to partake, it’s at your own discretion.
Should you choose to, just remember that free is never free. They’ll expect you to pay them regardless of what they claimed before you got started. This even applies to a friendly hit that they offer you while they participate as well.
Ask how much. They’ll say free but insist on a price. If you try to pull the “you said free” card, expect them to get loud, make a scene, and then follow you right to your hotel to cause another scene.
No, I didn’t participate. Remember my recurring dream from when I was in Russia and they thought I was a spy? It could happen anywhere, and I’m apparently a walking red flag.
Even at home I once had a supervisor corner me and ask me if I was an assassin (seriously) secretly working for someone else.
A lot of my coworkers make jokes about that, but I know for a fact that this one has researched me because he asked me a question about something he’d only find on the internet.
Miraculously, he has somehow yet to find my blog.
Unfortunately, that’s about to become a moo point, because a different coworker finally found it last week.
So who knows soon becomes like a cow’s opinion. It’s moo.
I’m surprised I’ve made it as long as I have. Anyway, back on track!
Where to Stay in Chefchaouen
I generally don’t research a ton of places. I pick a few with good ratings while already in the area and go from there.
As mentioned, Hotel Parador is a pretty good hotel if you’re looking for something a little more modern and nicer. Rooms there cost around $70 - $200 per night.
I stayed in Hotel Molino Garden. It was okay, but nothing special. The cost was only $22 for one night.
One thing to check before booking is the use of bathrooms. I found that some places in Morocco like to list rooms as having a private bathroom when they really don’t.
The definition they use of a “private bathroom” is that the bathroom has a door for privacy. Aka: It’s a shared bathroom that only one person can use at a time. Private, right?
Someone tried to argue this point with me at the first place I stayed in Marrakech. I paid extra specifically for a private bathroom with a shower. This “private bathroom” wasn’t even on the same floor.
I wasn’t having it, if you catch my drift. I ended up spending an hour on the phone with booking.com.
As I worked to get my “nonrefundable” stay refunded, the hotel attempted to flag me as a no-show. When the booking.com agent said I was a no-show, it was shocking when I emailed a couple of pictures that proved I was there. Needless to say, I got my money back.
Where are the Instagram Photo Spots in the Blue City?
Chefchaouen is so photogenic that you can pose for pictures pretty much anywhere, but there are a few very Insta-Famous spots.
The Blue City isn’t very big. Wander around enough and you’ll eventually find them, but if you want something more direct, even though most of these places don’t really have an address per se, putting them, or something close into Google Maps will still give you a result.
Callejon El Asri - Will bring you to the main steps with the potted plants. This is the most popular Chefchaouen picture you’ll find… Unless you’re me… because I took like 40 pictures there and for some reason can’t find them!
Place El Haouta - The town square.
Dar laman - This will bring you to a Riad, but the photo site is the square outside of it, with little mosaic-tiled steps and an alley decorated with potted plants.
Riad Zaitouna Chaouen - Another Raid, but outside of it you’ll find a photogenic arch.
Calle Sidi Buchuka - Pictured below.
A Quick Photo Tip:
Wear colors that contrast with blue. Or, really just wear anything other than blue. I wore blue. I was dumb. Don’t be me.
This didn’t even occur to me until I was editing my pictures.l Damn I need a girlfriend with a sense of style!
Oh, don’t be fooled by the thumbnail/main picture. I changed the color of my shirt it see if it would have looked better. You’ll never catch me bringing multiple sets of clothes anywhere just to change into. Hard Pass.
When I was at Deadvlei there was a woman rolling a full-sized suitcase through the sand.
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