AFF Skydiving Course Abroad: Morocco, Spain or Portugal?

Doing your AFF skydiving course abroad in winter is the most direct way to learn to skydive while dropzones in northern Europe are only ticking over: several days of jumping in a row, in the sunshine, and back home by spring with your solo in the bag. To pick the destination that will move you forward fastest, simply compare like with like: what each package includes, the teaching language, flights and accommodation, and how your progression is credited back home. Here is how our instructors weigh it up, with public prices checked on 18 October 2026 in Spain, Portugal, the US and Morocco.

Why do your AFF course abroad in winter?

Because the south is in full swing just when many dropzones in northern Europe slow down or close. An intensive course has you jumping several days running: your skills lock in far better than with AFF spread over weekends, and you progress at a great pace. In Morocco, the 7-jump course costs €1,300, around €186 per jump, under the winter sun facing the Atlas.

Three reasons come up again and again among students arriving in Beni Mellal:

1. The season. Short days, low cloud, waterlogged landing areas: a northern winter keeps students on the ground. Heading south means jumping while everyone else waits for spring.
2. Continuity. AFF completed over a few days beats AFF spread over months, with refreshers every time you restart. As a benchmark, Skydive Empuriabrava quotes about 5 to 7 days depending on the weather for its course.
3. Budget and adventure. The price of a training jump varies a lot from country to country, and a course abroad is also a real trip: a new dropzone, skydivers from everywhere, a club atmosphere that carries you all the way to your solo.

If you are new to all this, start with our guide on how to learn to skydive, which explains the methods (AFF or static line) and the route to your A licence.

7 things to compare before you book an AFF course

1. The true total price

To compare fairly, look at the full price: ground school, gear, video, licence and insurance, any repeat jumps (a level you do not pass almost always has to be paid for again). Then add flights, accommodation, meals and transfers: we put numbers on them below.

2. The number of jumps included

Some packages include a preparatory tandem, others do not. Some stop at the last AFF level, others go all the way to a licence. To compare, divide the price by the number of training jumps actually included.

3. Instruction

On AFF, the first jumps are with two instructors, then with one. Ask how many jumps are with two instructors, how debriefs are done (with video or not) and how you are guided under canopy.

4. The teaching language

Understanding every instruction on the ground, in the aircraft and under canopy is what lets you progress quickly and with complete peace of mind. Check the teaching language before you book.

5. Weather and season

Even in the sun, the wind has its say. Ask about the school's policy when a day is lost to weather, and check its opening dates: some schools only train in season.

6. Accommodation and access

A school on an airfield away from the cities often saves you money on accommodation but needs a car or a transfer. Work out the journey from your arrival airport.

7. Credit back home

Your progression is recorded in your logbook. Before you leave, ask your home club how it will pick it up, and ask the school abroad which rules it trains under (FFP, USPA, national federation).

Spain, Portugal, USA, Morocco: dated comparison table

Public prices checked on 18 October 2026 on the centres' official websites. To compare at a glance, read the "what is included" column first, then the price per training jump.

For reference, an AFF (PAC) course in France costs between €1,300 and €1,500 on average according to Sport Découverte (updated May 2026), but most French schools slow right down in winter. Discounts exist too: Skydive Empuriabrava lists a 4 to 6% low-season discount between October and May.

The American package is a different product: it goes all the way to the USPA A licence, which requires 25 jumps, so it cannot be compared with a plain AFF course. For a budget up to a licence, see our article on skydiving licence cost.

A word on the "cheap AFF course". A good price is a genuine bargain when everything essential is included. Wherever you go, check that every student rig has an AAD, that student canopies suit your weight, that instructors hold AFF ratings and that every jump is prepared and debriefed. A slightly dearer course where you pass every level first time costs less than a cheaper one where you repeat three jumps.

How much does an AFF course abroad really cost?

The total cost is the training package, plus insurance or a federation licence, flights, accommodation, meals and transfers. Good news for your budget: in Morocco the 7-jump course costs €1,300, while the Seville package with 7 nights' accommodation and airport transfers comes to €2,478 before flights.

For a student flying in from Europe, the difference in training price (roughly €750 to €800 between PACMA's course and the Spanish packages) often covers a good share of flights and accommodation: your course becomes a proper holiday in the sun. Run the numbers with your own dates; that is the comparison that counts.

Flying in: which airports for an AFF course in Morocco?

It could hardly be simpler: most students from abroad land at Casablanca (Mohammed V airport, CMN) or Marrakech (Menara airport, RAK), both served by direct flights from many European cities. From Casablanca the dropzone is 2 hours by road; from Marrakech, 2 hours 30, through scenery that is already part of the trip.

Our flight tips:

• Compare both airports. Depending on where you fly from, one will suit you better: an extra 30 minutes on the road can be worth a simpler or cheaper flight.
• Arrive the day before, well rested. Your first day of training will be all the more intense for it.
• Build slack into your return. Book your flight home a day or two after your course is due to end, or choose a changeable ticket: the weather sets the pace.
• Travel light. Student gear is provided; just bring warm layers for altitude and closed shoes.

Everything you need to plan your trip is on our getting to PACMA page.

The AFF course in Morocco with PACMA: 7 jumps, 5 December to 4 April

Here in Beni Mellal… You jump from Beni Mellal airport, at the foot of the Middle Atlas, aboard a Pilatus PC-6 Porter that takes 9 skydivers to around 4,000 m in 15 to 20 minutes. Founded in 2000 and based in Beni Mellal since 2003, PACMA is a club approved by the French Parachuting Federation (FFP): training follows the FFP syllabus, with qualified instructors, an AAD on every rig and weather calls made by the chief instructor. Our partner Vertical T'Air, the Arcachon skydiving centre in France, provides the aircraft and part of the instructor team, and many French skydivers spend the winter with us: you progress at the heart of a real skydiving community.

Your AFF course at PACMA includes ground school, 7 supervised jumps from around 4,000 m (close to 50 seconds of freefall each), one or two instructors with you in freefall depending on the level, a student rig fitted with an AAD, and the preparation and debrief of every jump. The dropzone is open every day of the season from 8:30 am to 6 pm. And if the weather plays up, rebooking is free, on another date in the season or as a credit. Online payment is secure, by card with 3-D Secure, through Tiki, via the payment institution Chari Money: it is charged in Moroccan dirhams (MAD) and the exact amount is shown before you confirm.

Fancy a taste of freefall before you commit? The AFF first jump is Level 1: ground school and your first freefall jump, held by two instructors. An unforgettable first freefall, for €500.

Our promise: a winter season in the sun, from 5 December to 4 April, at around €186 per training jump, with a club atmosphere where students and experienced skydivers share the same lunch by the runway, facing Atlas peaks that are often capped with snow. We train to the FFP syllabus; if your goal is a USPA licence, an American school will be the right choice.

Your solo is waiting this winter, under the Atlas sun: pick your date and book your AFF course.

How does an AFF course at PACMA work?

The course follows the FFP's four-level PAC progression: ground school, Level 1 with two instructors, Levels 2 and 3 with one instructor, then your solo, your first great moment of freedom. Your progress and the weather set the pace, so build a little slack into your stay and savour every jump.

1. Your date. You book your first day online in the season calendar.
2. Paperwork. An FFP-approved medical certificate less than three months old, or a medical on site with the club doctor, then a federation licence and insurance taken out on site.
3. Ground school. Equipment, freefall position, aircraft exit, deployment, emergency procedures, canopy flight and landing, rehearsed until they are reflexes.
4. Level 1. Two instructors hold you as you leave the Pilatus at around 4,000 m. About 50 seconds of freefall, then you deploy your own parachute: a moment you will never forget.
5. Levels 2 and 3. A single instructor jumps with you: stability, heading, turns, then the release. Each jump is prepared and debriefed with them.
6. Level 4, your solo. Your first jump with no instructor in freefall: the reward for your whole course.

What each level involves, with its pass criteria, is covered in our guide to AFF levels.

Our practical tips:

• Arrive rested. Ground school needs your full attention.
• Bring layers. At 4,000 m in winter it is cold: thin gloves, a thermal base layer, a neck warmer.
• Savour every jump. Each training jump takes concentration; one well-prepared jump moves you forward faster than two rushed ones.
• Keep a margin. A windy day becomes a useful day: you revise procedures, prepare your next jumps and soak up the dropzone atmosphere.

Going home: getting your progression credited

Your logbook is your passport: every jump is recorded with its objectives and your instructor's signature. It is the document the chief instructor at your home club will look at when you get back.

Three things to do before you leave:

1. Tell your home club you are doing your AFF abroad and ask how it will pick up your progression. In France, federation licences are issued by FFP-approved schools under the responsibility of their chief instructor; in the UK, through British Skydiving's system.
2. Ask the school abroad which system it trains you under and what it records in your logbook. PACMA is a club approved by the French Parachuting Federation (FFP): its training follows the FFP syllabus, with the four-level PAC progression.
3. Keep the momentum going. Get back in the air at home soon: after several weeks without jumping, a supervised refresher jump is often required, whatever the school.

How French licences compare with American and British ones is explained in our guide to skydiving licence levels A, B, C, D. For what comes next (licence, insurance, logbook and reserve repack when jumping outside your country), read skydiving abroad. And this winter, it is your turn: your solo is only waiting for you to pick a date.