"Melilla - A little piece of Spain in Africa" Melilla by JulesH

Melilla Travel Guide: 60 reviews and 124 photos

Porque Melilla?

I came to Melilla mainly because a friend of mine lives there. His description of the town as a Spanish enclave in the north of Africa, surrounded by a border fence to keep out Moroccan refugees enthralled me! Most people outside of Spain have little idea where Melilla is, or the second such enclave, Ceuta. And few really care! It's not possible to catch a direct flight there from the UK, so this alone would make it overlooked by many run of the mill British tourists. But this was the thing that spurred me on most! A town which is essentially Spanish in all senses of the word, but not on the Spanish mainland, awash with influences from neigbouring Morocco. A multicultural land where Catholics, Muslims, Jews and Hindus all have an identity...and barely an English voice to be heard! I had to discover this place for myself...

A friendly welcome

When we arrived in Melilla, we found little evidence of English being spoken, and found it hard to understand the local Spanish accent, but after a few days of "getting our ear in" we started to get the hang of it and found the town to be welcoming, friendly and only too happy to invite us into their lives. Rafael at the Taberna de Andaluza and his patrons gave us more than one night to remember! Even if our Spanish wasn't quite up to scratch, we made it through numerous conversations with a mixture of sign language, Spanglish and alcohol induced bravado!

Pros and Cons

Pros:They really can't stop giving you free stuff here!
Cons:Corruption!
In a nutshell:One trip is not enough

Last visit to Melilla: Jun 2009
Intro Updated Jun 22, 2009
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Reviews (12)

Free Tapas! Local Customs (2)

You may be familiar with the custom of offering free tapas with drinks in Spain, but no-where have I ever seen heard of... more travel advice

Cruising Local Customs (2)

Melilla has a very strong youth culture and it seems that cruising along the beach road on a Sunday night is a big part... more travel advice

See the border fence at close quarters - Melilla

See the border fence at close quarters Off The Beaten Path (1)

The Melilla-Morocco border is a crazy place: people everywhere, bribery, corruption, thinly disguised smuggling. We... more travel advice

By boat from Malaga Transportation (1)

The boat is probably the most ideal way to arrive in Melilla as the port delivers you into the centre of the town. The... more travel advice

Comments (3)

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aussirose Jun 22, 2009 at 5:05 PM

Wow, what a great adventure Jules! :o) Your food tips are making me hungry!...oh and sounds like you had great fun doing Kareoke! :o) Good stuff!! Cheers, Ann.
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planxty Jun 22, 2009 at 7:26 AM

Julia, sounds like a bit of a wild night out, must give it a try. fergy.
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balfor Jun 22, 2009 at 4:16 AM

Hi Jules! Congrats on the new page. :-) I too have been slack in writing tips but have created a few for the Philippines so far. I had heard about these towns when I was in Marbella for the 2006 Euromeet and just didn't make it over there. :-(