10 Best Sights in Marrakesh, Morocco

If you want a little breath taken out of you, don't pass up the chance to see this extraordinarily well-preserved 16th-century Koranic school, North Africa's largest such institution. The delicate intricacy of the gibs (stucco plasterwork), carved cedar, and zellij (mosaic) on display in the central courtyard makes the building seem to loom taller than it really does. As many as 900 students from Muslim countries all over the world once studied here, and arranged around the courtyard are their former sleeping quarters—a network of tiny upper-level rooms that resemble monks' cells. The building was erected in the 14th century by the Merenids in a somewhat different style from that of other medersas; later, in the 16th century, Sultan Abdullah el Ghallib rebuilt it almost completely, adding the Andalusian details. The large main courtyard, framed by two columned arcades, opens into a prayer hall elaborately decorated with rare palm motifs as well as the more-customary Islamic calligraphy. The Koranic school closed in 1960, but the building was restored and opened to the public in 1982. In 2018 the building closed for further restoration and is expected to reopen in 2022.

The open square market at the center of the medina is Marrakesh's heartbeat and a UNESCO World Heritage site. This centuries-old square was once a meeting point for regional farmers and tradesmen, storytellers and healers. Today it's surrounded by bazaars, mosques, and terraced cafés with balcony views over the action. While it’s relatively quiet during the day, food stalls and performers begin to appear in the late afternoon. 

Djemâa el Fna comes to life at night when it fills with a variety of performers enticing locals and visitors alike. Gnawa dancers sway clanking their krakebs (castanets) and strumming on traditional guitars while traditional storytellers regale locals with tales from the past. By sunset the square is full, and smoke rises from the makeshift stalls that are set up every evening and offer grilled meats on paper-lined tables. 

All day (and night) long you can get fresh orange juice from the green carts that line up around the square, starting at 4 DH a glass. You can also pose for a photograph with one of the roving water sellers (you'll be expected to pay at least 10 DH for the privilege), whose eye-popping costumes carry leather water pouches and polished-brass drinking bowls---we don't recommend drinking from the offered cup of water. Or snack on sweet dates, apricots, bananas, almonds, sugar-coated peanuts, and walnuts from the dried fruit–and–nut stalls in the northwest corner. It’s a festival atmosphere every night of the week!

It's worth noting that while these days this is a wonderful bazaar, once upon a time the Djemâa's purpose was more gruesome: it accommodated public viewings of the severed heads of sinners and criminals. Djemâa actually means "meeting place" and el Fna means "the end" or "death," so as a whole it means something along the lines of "assembly of death" or "meeting place at the end of the world."

Watch out for pickpockets and be wary of ladies here offering henna applications as they're not always aboveboard.

Filled with green bamboo thickets, lily ponds, and an electric-blue gazebo, the Jardin Majorelle is a stunning escape. It was created by the French painter Jacques Majorelle, who lived in Marrakesh between 1922 and 1962, and then passed into the hands of another Marrakesh lover, the late fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent. There's a fascinating Amazigh museum housed within the painter's former studio, with a permanent exhibit of tribal jewelry, costumes, weapons, ceramics, and rustic household tools and implements. There is also a shop and a delightful café. The Musée Yves Saint Laurent is next door.

Try to visit the gardens in the early morning before the tour groups—you'll hear the chirping of sparrows rather than the chatter of humans.

Yacoub el Mansour built Marrakesh's towering Moorish mosque on the site of the original 11th-century Almoravid mosque. Dating from the early 12th century, it became a model for the Hassan Tower in Rabat and the Giralda in Seville. The mosque takes its name from the Arabic word for book, koutoub, because there was once a large booksellers' market nearby. The minaret is topped by three golden orbs, which, according to one local legend, were offered by the mother of the Saadian sultan Ahmed el Mansour Edhabi in penance for fasting days she missed during Ramadan. The mosque has a large plaza, walkways, and gardens, as well as floodlights to illuminate its curved windows, a band of ceramic inlay, pointed merlons (ornamental edgings), and various decorative arches. Although non-Muslims may not enter, anyone within earshot will be moved by the power of the evening muezzin call.

This 19th-century palace, once home to a harem, is a marvelous display of painted wood, ceramics, and symmetrical gardens. Built by Sultan Moulay el Hassan I's notorious Grand Vizier Bou Ahmed, the palace was ransacked on Bou Ahmed's death, but you can still experience its layout and get a sense of its former beauty. Don't forget to look up at smooth arches, carved-cedar ceilings, tadlak (shiny marble) finishes, gibs cornices, and zouak painted ceilings. Fancy a room? Each one varies in size according to the importance of each wife or concubine. In 2020 the entire palace was repainted and some areas restored.

If you use an on-site guide, you should also tip 30 DH–50 DH.

Signposted on the Route de Fes as you head out to the Palmery, this enchanting walled garden with a contemporary art gallery is the creation of Marrakesh-born Abderrazzak Benchaabane—an ethnobotanist, perfume maker, garden designer, and local legend. The garden adjoins his home and exhibits his own collection of contemporary Moroccan art, paintings, and sculptures. Benchaabane was responsible for the restoration of the Jardin Majorelle at the request of Yves Saint Laurent in 1998, and the garden designs here clearly reflect his passion for creating beautiful natural spaces. The indoor gallery and arcades open out to a water garden with pergolas and pavilions, rose beds, and cactus gardens.

Opened in late 2017, the stunning Yves Saint Laurent Museum is an ocher- and brick-color construction of cubic forms and curves, with patterns resembling threads of fabric. Inside, there is a vast collection of fashion and haute couture accessories as well as temporary exhibits and a reference library of botany, fashion, and Amazigh culture. It's next to the Jardin Majorelle, which contains the Villa Oasis, where the designer lived. A combination ticket for the garden and museum is available. 

This delightful, beautifully maintained public garden does not receive the attention it deserves. Paved pathways wind through cactus plantations, rose gardens, and exotic flowerbeds, past ornamental fountains, and through striking cascades of bougainvillea. It's the perfect escape from the city mayhem. 

The vast labyrinth of narrow streets and derbs at the center of the medina is the souk—Marrakesh's marketplace and a wonder of arts, crafts, and workshops. Every step brings you face-to-face with the colorful handicrafts and bazaars for which Marrakesh is famous. In the past, every craft had a special zone within the market—a souk within the souk. Today savvy vendors have pushed south to tap trading opportunities as early as possible, but the deeper in you venture, the more you will be rewarded by better prices and by seeing artisans at work---metalworkers, carpenters, tailors, and cobblers just to name a few. Look for incongruities born of the modern era. Beside handcrafted wooden pots for kohl eye makeup are modern perfume stores; where there is a world of hand-sewn djellabas at one turn, you'll find soccer jerseys after the next; fake Gucci caps sit beside handmade Imazighen carpets.

As you wander through the souk, take note of landmarks so that you can retrace your steps without too much trouble. Once the shops' shutters close, they're often unrecognizable.

The farther north you go the more the lanes twist, turn, and entwine. Should you lose your way, retrace your steps to the busiest thoroughfare and then look for the brown painted signs (usually found at key intersections) indicating the direction of Place Djemâa el Fna. But mostly you'll rely on people in the souk to point the way. If you ask a shopkeeper rather than a loitering local, you'll be less likely to encounter a "faux guide."

The Secret Garden, or Le Jardin Secret, opened to the public in 2016 after several years of intensive excavation, restoration, and planting. Once one of the largest private riads in the medina, the 16th-century site is home to beautiful Islamic architecture, the lush Exotic and Islamic gardens, an ancient, but still operational, water management and irrigation system, and the original watchtower that has commanding views over the whole medina. The restored Pavilions, which were once formal reception rooms, now house a small café and an exhibit of photographs that show the property's excavation and reconstruction. There are areas to sit and relax, a bookshop, café, and exhibition rooms. Well-informed guides are on-site and provide free tours of the gardens. Entry to the Tower is an extra 40 DH.