Greetings from Morocco
 

Hi there,

Although I am not new to HUBB I have been living and travelling in Europe in the past decade on various bikes.
I moved to Morocco 2,5 years ago with the family and have done a fair amount of travelling and biking in this lovely country both on tarmac and off-road.
In case any of you need advice or have questions I am happy to answer so don't hesitate. Best roads, accommodation, weather, contacts, or whatever.

Safe ride to you all,
Greg

Sounds interesting. What are you doing in Morocco and whereabouts are you based?

Hi Greg!

I've been planning out a trip around Europe that would involve taking the ferry down to Melilla/Nador, riding along the coast and/or through the mountains and back from Tangier. Is that a doable leg on a purely road-oriented bike? (Currently a Honda VFR800.)

Hi Tim,
I work in Finance for a long time and ended up in Morocco on a 3-year contract. My contract is ending in the summer and I should return to Hungary. As both my family and myself fell in love with the country we decided to stay so we started a motorbike touring company specialised mainly on different tours all over the country, mainly roads but also off the beaten path. e also offer off-road riding skills trainings...
I am based in Casa (tours have alternative starting points in Rabat or Fes) but travel quite a lot throughout the country. I saw your knowledgebase. Well done.

Hi AnTyx,
You can find good roads in Morocco everywhere. But you also have to note that some roads marked as tarmac on google or other maps might be deteriorated or even sometimes dirt roads. That does not apply to major roads though. You could be more precise as to the timeframe of your trip and especially what "crossing the mountains" refers to. Do you want to go in the direction of Fes or the Atlantic (Asilah, Moulay Bousselham or other) which would make you cross the Rif or do you want to explore further South and cross the Atlas? Both are doable on road bikes and will provide ample fun. If you are the really adventurous type though you should try out some off-road options as they often take you to remote but wonderful places. Let me know if you need help once you have your draft itinerary. We could also potentially meet for a drink while you are here :)
Cheers, Greg

I've done the overnight ferry from Almería to Melilla four times, it's cheaper than the day route to Nador but getting through the border from the Melilla enclave into Morocco is slow. I think next time I will enter directly into Nador.

The route you are considering is excellent. The first part to Al Hoceima you have the option to either take the N16 coastal route or the R610 mountain route (I prefer the latter).

West of Al Hoceima the N16 coastal route has been improved in recent years and is now a road biker's paradise in many stretches with long sweeping curves, but I would still recommend the mountain route using the N2 to Chefchaouen. From there you could head north on the P4105 to Oued Laou on the coast for the final stretch.

Some photos of the route: Six weeks in May/June 2012