didnt do the train bit, but the ferry from algeciras - tangier was very choppy, was glad to have had travel sickness tablets. I get the impression this is not uncommon for straits of Gibralter.
we got there via Portsmouth-Bilbao ferry, then couldn't get bikes on train so took bus via Madrid to Algeciras.
didnt see any whales or dolphins in the bay of biscay despite the hype.
Tangier is not appealing at all. They have a shiny new station for the trains to Marrakesh, its a mile or so from the port from memory. The station at the port still shows on some maps but is long gone. there is another station several miles away from the main station where freight is handled (incl bicycles).
Seems to me that the French spoken on the streets in North Africa is a bit different to that in France.