Tarifa–Tangier surges: 18.8% more cars and a rise from 4th to 2nd place

Between January and August, around 4.5 million passengers used the various maritime routes departing from Algeciras and Tarifa, a year-on-year decrease of 3.6%. The number of vehicles also fell by 3.1%, to nearly one million units, according to data from the Port Authority of the Bay of Algeciras relayed on September 16 by El Mercantil.

Tarifa–Tangier Ville is following the opposite trend. The number of passengers there rose by 8.8%, while the number of vehicles increased by 18.8%. The route now accounts for approximately one in four passengers and one in five vehicles at the ports managed by the Spanish port authority.

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At the end of June, Bladi had already presented Tarifa as the Spanish port allowing MREs to avoid the ordeal of Tangier Med. The figures for the first eight months of 2026 confirm this growing momentum, also driven by tourists travelling between southern Andalusia and northern Morocco.

Tarifa–Tangier moves from fourth to second place

The trend strengthened during Operation Paso del Estrecho, Spain’s equivalent of Marhaba. Between June 15 and September 15, Algeciras and Tarifa recorded 2,893,145 passengers and 638,698 vehicles embarked or disembarked, down 4.3% and 3%, respectively, compared with 2025.

Despite this overall decline, Tarifa–Tangier Ville moved from fourth to second place among the routes most used for passenger embarkations and disembarkations during the summer operation.

The figures for the return phase illustrate this shift. From July 15 to September 14, nearly 60,000 vehicles arrived in Tarifa from Tangier Ville, 9,100 more than in 2025, representing an increase of 18%. The route also carried 331,075 passengers, up 8.4%, according to Europa Press.

At the same time, the Algeciras–Ceuta route lost 15% of its vehicles during the return phase. Tarifa’s success also comes as MREs are increasingly turning away from crossings via Motril.

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However, this growing passenger traffic is increasing pressure on Spanish infrastructure. Gerardo Landaluce, president of the Port Authority of Algeciras, is calling for the N-340 between Algeciras and Tarifa to be doubled, as well as for a direct road access to the port.

He justifies these investments by the growing use of the route to Tangier Ville, both during Marhaba and by tourists travelling year-round between southern Andalusia and northern Morocco.