Marrakech

Marrakech was founded in 1062 as the capital of the Almoravid dynasty, and the red-pink colour of its walls and buildings comes from the local pise — rammed earth mixed with red ochre — that has been the standard building material here for nearly a thousand years. The medina is UNESCO World Heritage-listed and is one of the largest and best-preserved in North Africa. It is also one of the most disorienting: the souk quarter is a dense network of covered lanes without a legible grid, organised loosely by trade (leather in the tanneries north of the medina, spices and dyes around Rahba Kedima, metalwork along Souk des Ferronniers), and genuinely difficult to navigate without a guide on the first visit.

Jemaa El-Fnaa, the central square of the medina, is one of the most visited public spaces in Africa — a fruit market and orange juice stall cluster in the morning, and from the late afternoon a gathering of musicians, storytellers (hlaykia), acrobats and food stalls that continues until midnight. The Koutoubia Mosque, 300 metres west of the square, is the largest mosque in Marrakech and the model for the Giralda in Seville and the Hassan Tower in Rabat — all three were built by Almohad architects in the late 12th century. Non-Muslims cannot enter the Koutoubia, but the exterior and the gardens around it are accessible. The Bahia Palace, built between 1866 and 1900 for the Grand Vizier Ba Ahmed, is the most fully realised example of Moroccan palatial architecture open to visitors: painted cedar ceilings, zellij tile courtyards and a harem quarter covering eight hectares.

As a Muslim-majority city, halal food is the default across all price points — from the food stalls on Jemaa El-Fnaa to the restaurant riads in the medina. The riad — a traditional townhouse built around a central courtyard — is the standard accommodation format in the medina and ranges from budget to high-end; staying in one gives the best access to the medina on foot. Marrakech is best visited March to May or September to November; June to August is extremely hot (38–42°C regularly) and the medina in particular becomes difficult in the midday heat. The Majorelle Garden, restored by Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé in 1980, is a well-maintained botanical garden 2km northwest of the medina worth 45 minutes.