i dont want to stay in tangier, im a girl alone, and ive heard thats a no-no. so i want to stay in Algeciras and do a day trip over to tangier. anyone know of any cheap hostels or hotels, and any info on the ferry over? and if i go to tangier with a group tour i should have any solo-woman problems right? also, any tips about the rock of gibralter? what are the monkeys like?
thanks

alrightalex: Welcome to MadridMan.com and I'm sure you will find much friendly guidance and assistance here by regulars and soon to be regulars. As I told you on Eurotrip.com this is the site for Spain and especially Madrid. Good luck and look for the threads on Tangiers.

alrightalex
There are cheap hostals in Algeciras. Last January, my daughter and I stayed at Hostal Lopez. I believe we paid for double occupancy around 4,000 pesetas. Our room had a bath but not a toilet. The room was clean and provided decent towels and soap. There are day trips to Tangier, which include transportation and food. Most hostals book these day trips.The cost is around $50. It leaves at 9:00 am and returns at 6:00 pm. We did not take the trip because my daughter did not have her passport with her. Take care!

visas arent neccessary are they?

I believe if you carry a U.S. passport, most countries do not ask for visa. I did not have to get a visa when I traveled to Spain.

mclarke

You DO need a visa for quite a few Arab countries so the question is justified,
but you can see by checking http://travel.state.gov/foreignentryreqs.html
you do not need a visa for tourist stays in Morocco up to 3 months.
The rock of Gibraltar is a quite bizarre place which is worth while a stay for some hours, you have to get up to the top in order to see the monkeys and have a beautiful look on the straits of Gibraltar from there. The monkeys are not particularly beautiful and spoiled by tourists who feed them, you might want to keep some distance unless you like to get in close touch with them. They don't seem agressive, though.

It would be fine to go to Tangiers for a day, but why dont you try and hook up with some other travelers and head further south. Morocco is a wonderfully beautiful place, and it would stink if you got a bad impression of it and africa by just spending a day in Tangiers. Also, the food in morocco is awesome!!!!

I have just returned from Spain and Morocco yesterday. Here is my advice:
Don’t stay in Algeciras it’s not very attractive town. I found Tarifa, which is only half an hour by bus away, much nicer place to spent a day or two. I’m sure there are also cheap places there to stay. Lonely Planet or Letsgo guidebooks have all details. There is a ferry from Tarifa to Tanger every day, but only citizens of EU countries are allowed to go by this boat.
Don’t go to Morocco only for one day. Spend at least 3,4 days (or more) there and visit other places like Fez or Meknes. They are only 5 hours away by train. There is also nice little town called Asilah less then an hour from Tanger. You can visit these places on tour booked in Tarifa or Algeciras, but I prefer traveling on my own. Good guidebook is essential.
Both countries Spain and Morocco are very nice and well worth a visit!
Happy traveling! Kemo

We just came back from a trip to Spain with a day trip to Morocco. Our hotel was in Benalmadena and there was a lot of information on tours to Morocco and Gibraltar in the hotel lobby. The ferry was quite modern...a far cry from the one I took to Tangier 30 years ago! You should have no trouble finding a group to travel with!