UK to Algeciras

[dirtyone30]

Hi

I would love to be able to take a trip over to Moroco, but the 2000 km each way overland from the UK - I'm Edinburgh based - would scupper my plans. I would only have 10 days in total for the trip, not to mention the costs of fuel, accom, tyres etc...

Has anyone transported their bike by train or even truck to Malaga or somewhere close?

I could take a ferry from Scotland to Belfast then from Cork or Rosslare to N Spain and then ride down but even then it's a guddle....

Cheers...

[frameworkSpecialist]

I haven't done it, but shipping by truck shouldn't be too expensive. You can ask a local moto dealer to help you with the shipping.

[markharf]

If I were in the U.K. (I’m not), and wanting to spend 10 days on a motorbike in Morocco (I’m not—far too short), I’d be sorely tempted to fly in and rent. No trucking, no ferries, no constant fretting all the way there and back; just a couple of hours in an undersized seat on a discount airline and you’re ready to hit the ground running.

Easy for me to say, since I’m not.

[backofbeyond]

If you've only got 10 days and you really want to ride then rental would be my suggestion as well. Even if you ship down to Malaga in a truck it's going to take you at least a day and possibly two to get paperwork sorted, get on the ferry and get through the border. And even then you're only in 'urban' Morocco. It's another two days down to Marrakesh. By the time you've reversed all of that to get back it doesn't leave much in the middle for actual riding. We spent a month getting to northern Morocco / back to London last summer and even some of that felt rushed.

[chris]

Consider contacting trucking companies who take UK customer bikes to/from places like Portimao in the Algarve or Jerez in southern Spain for track days/weeks or professional racers for winter race training.

[Tim Cullis]

There's a lot of thrill to be had travelling overland and doing this trip on your own bike, but with only ten days to spare I am sorry to say it's a no-no for you. Before I had a base in Spain I would reckon on three days each way from Eastbourne to enter Morocco, so that's six days return, and your transfer would be longer.

And whilst the north of Morocco is worth visiting, most bikers want to get south so that's another day to Marrakech sitting on a motorway, and another half day to Ouarzazate. At which point you would need to start thinking about returning to Scotland!

In 2008 Silver Wolf shipped my bike to their depot near Málaga airport for a painless experience, https://www.silverwolfuk.com/ But with flights, picking up the bike and getting to Algeciras, that's a day wasted each way. And you are still nowhere near the desert areas on the other side of the Atlas mountains.

I agree with markharf and backofbeyond, the best option for you is to rent. Noureddine at BM Attitude in Marrakech has some great bikes.

Not sure what the situation currently is with Wilderness Wheels in Ouarzazate but Ryanair has just started flights from London Stanstead to Ouarzazate from £9.99 and of course flies Edinburgh to London Stanstead as well.

[dirtyone30]

Thank you everyone.

Maybe rental is the better option. I'll do some digging.

Alternatively do something nearer to home and wait until I have more time.

Cheers.

[edwardbgill]

Originally Posted by dirtyone30

Thank you everyone.

Maybe rental is the better option. I'll do some digging.

Alternatively do something nearer to home and wait until I have more time.

Cheers.

I wouldn't be too discouraged or dismiss your original suggestion.

Speaking for myself, I'm heading home right now after a cracking 12 days in Morocco on my own bike, driving it to and from the UK in the back of my van.

The drive down from London to Algiciras took me a fairly comfortable c. 1.5 days - I did some of the journey down either side of the working day on the Friday, working remotely and the rest all day Saturday.

I certainly feel like the effort driving from/to the UK was worth it, though in future I'll look at a couple of trips in a year, leaving the bike in southern Spain/Morocco in between.

Ultimately, if you're up for the drive out and back again, then its worth it!

Cheers,

Ed