Stranded Spanish Tourists Struggle to Leave Morocco Amid Border Closure

These Spanish tourists were surprised by the announcement, on Sunday, of the suspension from Monday of flights to and from Morocco for two weeks. "On Monday the 29th, we were coming from Barcelona with Ryanair and they told us we would have no problem returning," says Anna Moreno to EFE. Initially, only flights to Morocco were affected by the measure, which sowed confusion and prompted Anna to board for Morocco. Today, she is stuck in Marrakech.

"The borders are closed, you won’t be able to leave here," she was told upon arrival in Morocco. The 28-year-old Barcelonan then tried to contact the Spanish Embassy and consulates in Morocco to explain her situation and ask for help. To no avail. Seeing no repatriation flights to Spain, she and a friend from Bilbao who was accompanying her decided to take a flight to Paris.

In total, Anna and her friend spent 650 euros on tickets and don’t know if they will have to be quarantined for seven days in France. "I traveled for work reasons. We are veterinarians and we have to return to Spain," she says. Sergio, another tourist stranded in Morocco, is also looking for a way to leave the kingdom. He joined several WhatsApp groups of tourists stranded in Morocco to get the latest information.

On Tuesday, he learned that the airline Iberia was going to operate five special flights to Spain. He tried to contact the company, but the line was not going through. "I kept getting the answering machine, I had to call their number in Spain. I was on the line for an hour until I got the ticket," said Sergio, a 32-year-old from Madrid. He will be able to board for Spain on December 7, as the flights of the 2nd and 4th are already full.