According to Olivia Remie Constable's Trade and Traders in Muslim Spain: The Commercial Realignment of the Iberian Peninsula, 900-1500, the VIP Iberian ports were Seville, Valencia, Almeria, and Cartagena. The key factor was control of Mallorca and the other Balearic islands, since basically all sea trade had to pass through there. In the era of al-Andalus and the taifa kingdoms, these ports were crucial for Mediterranean trade. Intriguingly, as Christians conquered more and more of the peninsula, the same ports became key staging points for connecting the Mediterranean trade centered around Italy up north to the British Isles (and eventually south to the Canaries).

The fastest way to Rome was the easiest: by ship.