Tangier - Gateway of the Phoenicians

The legendary port where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic. Phoenicians established a trading presence here in the first millennium BC, calling it 'Tingis.' The old medina, Kasbah museum, and legendary Cafe Hafa (where the Rolling Stones wrote songs) offer a fitting end to the North African chapter. No wine, but the atmosphere of ancient maritime trade persists.

What to do there

5 things to do

1. 1 Find the 3,000-Year-Old Graves Carved Into the Cliff History · Free

   These 98 graves aren't in a museum case or behind a fence — they're carved directly into the living limestone cliff at the Punic-Roman Necropolis of Hafa (Marshan Plateau, Avenue Hadj Mohamed Tazi, GPS: 35.7823, -5.8218), open to the sky, overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar. The same people who called this city 'Tingis' — the Phoenicians, who arrived as early as the 8th century BC — cut these burial chambers with their hands. By the 6th century BC, Berber tombs all around Tangier were full of Punic jewelry: proof that the trading relationship ran so deep, it followed people into death. Across the water, 14km away, you can see Tarifa — the southernmost tip of Europe. Take a taxi to the Marshan neighborhood or walk up from the marina via the Snake Path. The site is open-air and free, visit any time during daylight. Walk along the cliff edge and look into each tomb cut. On a clear day, Spain is so close you'll understand why this was the most important maritime chokepoint in the ancient Mediterranean.

   Backup: If you can't find the exact site, any taxi driver in Tangier knows 'Les Tombeaux Phéniciens' or 'Tumbas Fenicias.' The site is unmissable once on the Marshan plateau.

   Log Memory
2. 2 Decode the 1154 Map That Showed the World Upside Down History · Price: low

   The building itself is a story about who kept stealing Tangier from who. The Portuguese held it 1471-1661, then Charles II of England received it as part of Catherine of Braganza's dowry — it became the 'English Upper Castle' until 1684. Then Sultan Moulay Ismail tore it down and built this palace in its place. But the reason you're here is on the wall inside the Kasbah Museum of Mediterranean Cultures (Dar el Makhzen, Place de la Kasbah, GPS: 35.7882, -5.8123): a massive reproduction of the 1154 world map by Muhammad al-Idrisi — the most accurate map of the known world for over 300 years. Al-Idrisi was born in Ceuta in 1100 AD, spent 18 years at King Roger II of Sicily's court in Palermo, and the result was the Tabula Rogeriana — carved onto a six-foot silver disc. Here's what stops you: the map is oriented south-up. Africa is at the top. Europe is at the bottom. Look at it that way and the Mediterranean suddenly makes a different kind of sense. Entrance 20-40 DH, open Wednesday-Sunday 10AM-6PM. Find the Phoenician trade route map and the Venus mosaic from Volubilis.

   Backup: If the museum is unexpectedly closed, the Kasbah walls and their sea views are free and always accessible.

   Log Memory
3. 3 Sit Where the Rolling Stones Sat — Tea for €1.50 Adventure · Free

   This café opened in 1921 and one hundred and four years later, almost nothing has changed. The terraces cascade down the cliff in levels at Café Hafa (Marshan neighborhood, GPS: 35.7906, -5.8201). The mint tea still costs 15 dirhams (about €1.50). The view is still the Strait of Gibraltar. And the list of people who've sat exactly where you're sitting reads like a fever dream of 20th-century culture: Paul Bowles (who moved to Tangier in 1947 and stayed until he died in 1999), William S. Burroughs (who wrote Naked Lunch across town then came here to drink tea), Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, Jean Genet, Tennessee Williams, The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix. Here's the history in your cup: mint tea only arrived in Tangier in the 19th century when British traders, blocked out of Baltic markets by Napoleon's war, came to sell Chinese gunpowder green tea at this very port. From the Kasbah, walk northwest along the cliff road for 15 minutes or take a petit taxi. Order 'atay b'nana' (15 DH, cash only), take the steepest terrace facing the water. Tea is served three times: first strongest (welcome), second milder (peace), third weakest (blessing).

   Backup: If Café Hafa is packed, the cliffs above the necropolis on the Marshan plateau have the same view for free.

   Log Memory
4. 4 Walk the Most Surveilled Square in 20th-Century History History · Free

   From 1924 to 1956, Tangier was an International Zone — governed by a committee of nations including France, Spain, Britain, Italy, Portugal, Belgium, and the Netherlands. No country owned it. Everyone spied on everyone. The Petit Socco (Place des Shahidas, GPS: 35.7804, -5.8097) was the nerve center: at its peak, the post offices of four competing empires faced each other across this tiny square, all intercepting each other's mail. William Burroughs moved to Tangier in 1954, rented a room overlooking this square, and spent four years writing what became 'Naked Lunch,' later typed up and assembled here by Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac. Beat writers called colonial Tangier 'the Interzone.' They meant this exact square. Enter the medina from the Grand Socco through Bab Fahs and follow the main lane downhill — the Petit Socco is a 5-minute walk. Sit at any cafe tables — the Tingis Cafe has been here the longest. Order coffee or mint tea (10-15 DH) and watch the square.

   Backup: If the square is too crowded, find any of the small cafes on the lanes leading into it — same atmosphere, half the foot traffic.

   Log Memory
5. 5 Eat What the Fisherman Caught — Bourdain's Tangier Adventure · Price: moderate · Optional

   There is no menu at Le Saveur de Poisson (Populaire Saveur de Poisson, 2 Escalier Waller, medina near the Petit Socco). The owner buys whatever the local fishermen caught that morning, cooks it all afternoon, and serves you course after course until you're done. Shark tagine. Baby squid. Fish soup with Moroccan spices. Fresh local bread. Anthony Bourdain came here, called it the best meal in Tangier, put it on CNN, and the queue has never entirely disappeared. The fixed price is approximately 250 DH per person (~€25) — five or more courses, no choices, no substitutions, utterly unpredictable. This is eating the way the Phoenician traders ate in Tingis: you eat what the sea gives you today. Book ahead if possible (it's very small), open Saturday to Thursday 1-5PM and 7-10:30PM, closed Fridays, cash preferred.

   Backup: If Saveur de Poisson is full or closed, Kebdani in the medina serves authentic Moroccan tagine and fresh seafood at similar prices. Or head to any small medina restaurant showing freshly-caught fish in a display.

   Log Memory

Insider tips

• Kasbah Museum has Phoenician and Roman artifacts

• Cafe Hafa terrace overlooks the Strait of Gibraltar

• Day trip to Lixus (70km south) completes Phoenician circuit