Things to Do in Morocco: The Complete Insider Guide

Things to do in Morocco vary greatly. It is, after all, a small country that packs in a lot: desert dunes, mountain villages, ancient medinas, Atlantic coast beaches and surf spots. If you have time for one thing, a night in the Sahara Desert is the experience of a lifetime. The souks of Marrakech and the medina of Fez are excellent too, but the Sahara Desert is what people return to Morocco for years.

This guide describes the best activities to do in each of Morocco's major cities, how to move around, the best time to visit each place, and tips on money and formalities for first-time visitors.

Morocco is only 14km from Spain, yet feels very different from other Mediterranean countries and even the North African ones. In Morocco, you can have breakfast in a French colonial town, drive through Berber villages for lunch, and sleep under the Saharan stars by nightfall. Such diversity in so short a space is unique in the world, and it's a big part of what Morocco is known for beyond the postcard images. Few countries of comparable size offer such a variety of experiences in the space of a week. If a trip to Morocco is on your mind, Tailored By Locals can match you with a local expert who builds your itinerary around your pace and interests.

Marrakech is a fantastic first stop for any Morocco traveller. Fast-paced, smells like spice and diesel, and full of life! Marrakech feels best when you lose yourself in the winding medina streets, then retreat to tranquil gardens, and finally trek into the neighbouring mountains for a day of adventure. Let's see the best things to do in Marrakech.

At night, the Jemaa el-Fna square is a completely different place from the busy daytime market. The snake charmers, multitude of vendors, and children give way to food stalls, storytellers, and musicians. Later at night, the square is a lovely place to sit on a stool at one of the many grilled meat stalls and eat with the locals. In the many alleys of the narrow medina, shops have frontages displaying lanterns and leather goods till late at night. 

Designed in the 1920s by French painter Jacques Majorelle and restored by Yves Saint Laurent in the 1980s, this stunning cobalt-blue garden is one of the most beautiful sites in Marrakech. The Cactus Garden and the serene ponds with koi are stunning, as well as the peaceful Bamboo Groves. The Berber Museum, located in the Majorelle Garden, features a rich collection of jewellery, costumes and traditional utensils. Go early in the morning. Later, the garden is crowded, and the narrow paths are jammed with tourists. 

It is possible to reach the Atlas Mountains from Marrakech within the space of an hour and make the most of your time here. Berber villages are perched on the sides of the mountains, and there are many long and short walks you can take from Imlil, a favourite spot for day trips from Marrakech. There are routes to suit all abilities, and the scenery is breathtaking on every hike. If days like this are what you're after, let our local experts build a tailor-made trip to Marrakech around your pace.

Morocco's oldest imperial city is steeped in history. Fes el-Bali, the old medina, is the largest car-free urban area in the world, and its streets have remained largely unchanged for centuries. Due to its size, it takes a minimum of two days to explore the major sites without feeling rushed. Here are the best things to do in Fez.

The immense Fes el-Bali Medina with over 9,000 alleys is a huge, wondrous, and historic shopping centre. Wander past the woodworkers, metalworkers, and spices all around. You might even see a donkey or two, carrying goods down very narrow streets between shops and stalls and ancient houses. 

The most-photographed site in Fez is the Chouara Tanneries. Don't follow the crowds to the nearest rooftops to take your picture of the brightly colored Chouara Tanneries. Instead, book a tour of a fine leather shop, which will include a visit to the tanneries. There's nothing like the Chouara Tanneries at the brightest time of day when the pits are busiest, and the smell is at its most authentic. Ready to explore more of the city? Request a personalized trip to Fez built around the sights and pace you want.

Chefchaouen is a small town located in the Rif Mountains. Its colours are all shades of blue, and it is much smaller than the other imperial cities of Morocco. It is the perfect place to relax and unwind mid-trip. Most visitors stay for a day or two. They wander the streets and take in the many sights and then return home with plenty of photos to show off to friends and family. The town is also a great place to go shopping as there is little haggling involved. 

Although Chefchaouen gets loads of visitors from Tangier, and even Fez, it's a relatively small town. The main street gets busy during the day, but by sunrise it's quiet enough to get some great shots of the Plaza Uta el-Hammam and the famous alleys that lead to the Ras el-Maa waterfall. The early morning also means that the local shops will just be opening for business, so there's less chance of being pestered to buy. 

The Rif Mountains surround Chefchaouen and are an easy excursion from this pretty town. Short, paved trails lead to waterfalls, remote olive groves and several great views. These short trips can be done without a guide, but hiring one locally will help you in all the places the trail forks off in unmarked directions. If quiet days like this sound like your kind of trip, let our local experts plan a tailor-made trip to Chefchaouen around your pace.

Morocco's coastal towns offer a far more relaxed pace of life than the inland cities. While Marrakech and Fez are bustling, noisy and intense, Essaouira and Taghazout are laid-back and easygoing. The two coastal towns sit on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, approximately an hour and a half apart, and make for a great 2-3 day trip from either Marrakech or Fez. 

The 18th-century fortifications of Essaouira's medina are a fabulous place to wander, especially at sunset. Once you've explored the ancient walls, head down to the harbour, where fishermen unload their catch. By evening, it will have been tossed on the BBQ of one of the many seafood stalls nearby. If coastal days like this sound like your kind of trip, request a tailor-made trip to Essaouira built around your pace.

Taghazout has become a world-famous destination for surfing. Known for its laid-back atmosphere, the town is now a haven for surfers of all levels. Many of the Surf Schools in Taghazout offer daily or weekly lessons and also rent out surfboards. Anchor Point is a more challenging surf spot suitable for more experienced surfers. The beach breaks close to the town centre are perfect for beginners learning to surf. 

Casablanca is the largest city in Morocco and is also the country's economic hub. The city doesn't have the same tourist vibe that Marrakech or Fez have and instead offers up a very modern take on Moroccan culture. With a day in this economic powerhouse, you'll get to see an array of impressive skyscrapers, historic colonial architecture, and the third-largest mosque in the world. 

It is one of the largest mosques in the world, and part of it extends into the Atlantic Ocean. With the tallest minaret in the world, the Hassan II Mosque is a sight worth seeing. Non-Muslims can visit the mosque on a guided tour. Several tours per day, except for Friday, are available. It is best to book a morning tour, since the mosque gets very crowded later in the day. 

Casablanca is one of the largest collections of Art Deco architecture in the world outside of France. While the Habous Quarter has traditional Moroccan architecture blended with the colonial style, the Boulevard Mohammed V has some original facades of the 1920s and 1930s buildings that the French designed. If a stop like this fits your route, let our local experts build a trip to Casablanca around your pace.

For most travellers, Rabat is an afterthought, a mere stopover on the way to or from another destination. But Morocco's political capital is a great place for a day trip from Casablanca or Fez. With its wide boulevards and generally calm atmosphere, Rabat is very different from Marrakech or Fez. One or two days are more than enough here. 

Sitting atop a hill overlooking the Bou Regreg River, the Kasbah of the Udayas contains whitewashed buildings with blue doors and windows. An occasional gate is found amidst the narrow streets. Within the ancient walls, there are Andalusian-style gardens, providing a tranquil haven from the endless walkways and streets. Enjoy the views of the Atlantic from the viewpoint at the end of the Kasbah. 

Chellah, where the ruins of the Roman settlement of Sala are buried under the graves of a medieval necropolis, lies just outside the old city walls of Rabat. The storks still nest on the remains of the medieval minaret, a small but memorable slice of Moroccan nature and wildlife, and a lovely park with gardens surrounds the old settlement. Volubilis and Ait Ben Haddou receive so many more visitors than this quiet site, so it is worth a visit. Request a tailor-made trip to Rabat built around your pace. 

In Morocco's far north of the country, the cities of Tangier and Tetouan were influenced greatly by the European powers that once ruled over the region. As a gateway into Morocco by ferry from Spain, the area makes a great side trip. The bustling Tangier port city and quieter medina of Tetouan each offer a unique glimpse into the region. 

Once an international zone ruled jointly by European powers, the charming Moroccan port city of Tangier today retains a rich legacy of that era. The medina faces the straights of Gibraltar, and you can see Spain from the Kasbah Museum terrace. Cafes once frequented by writers like Paul Bowles and William Burroughs still operate today. If a stop like this fits your route, let our local experts plan a trip to Tangier at your pace.

UNESCO recognised Tetouan's medina several years ago for its well-preserved Andalusian architecture, one of the clearest examples of cultural and historical Morocco, built by refugees forced to flee from Spain centuries ago. The narrow, winding alleys of the medina, as well as many of the local workshops and stores, are similar to those found in Fez but with much fewer tourists and very few aggressive vendors. The architecture mixes white and blue buildings decorated with Spanish-influenced tile work, and makes for a great diversion from the normal itinerary in Morocco's north. 

Northern Morocco is usually covered in most tours by Chefchaouen and Tangier, but the extreme north of Morocco is far less visited. It is even less equipped with tourism infrastructure. Nador on the Mediterranean coast in north-east Morocco and Oujda on the border with Algeria are two quite different places from the imperial cities of Morocco. 

Nador is a coastal city in northeastern Morocco situated on the Lake of Tazeorra, near the Spanish enclave of Melilla. The town itself does not have a lot to offer, but the surrounding coastline has great beaches that are not regularly visited by foreign tourists. Nador is more of a gateway to the Rif in the east than a destination in itself. 

Just a few kilometres from the Algerian border, the culture in Oujda is unique and blends Moroccan and Algerian music and cuisine. The delightful medina of Oujda is a small but extremely active one. Home to thousands of locals who go about their daily business in an area that is very rarely visited by tourists. Take a short taxi ride to Sidi Yahya Oasis, a peaceful retreat surrounded by lush greenery and small lakes. A perfect spot to take a short break. If off-the-beaten-path corners like this appeal to you, Tailored By Locals can build a trip to Morocco around exactly this kind of pace. 

For those heading south of Casablanca on Morocco's long and varied Atlantic coast, the options include historic Portuguese sites, factories producing thousands of tons of good-quality pottery, and a modern fun resort town, part of a much longer run of Morocco's beaches worth exploring beyond these three stops. El Jadida, Safi, and Agadir each offer a different flavor of coastal Morocco.

El Jadida, the old town, was once a Portuguese fortress called Mazagan and has a great old cistern, which is becoming one of the major tourist attractions in Morocco. The light enters through a single hole in the ceiling and bounces off the water below to create a wonderful reflection. The fortifications of the old town are also worth a walk for the great views of the coastline. 

In Safi, Morocco's pottery city, you can see century-old ceramics being handmade on the manual wheel, before being fired in the workshop and hand-painted with their famous blue and green colours. You can visit the pottery cooperatives in the town, and the handmade ceramics make for great souvenirs. Also worth a visit is the nearby cliffside fishing port. 

Agadir is the main tourist resort in southern Morocco and is often overlooked by visitors heading north to the ancient imperial cities. The resort was largely destroyed by an earthquake in 1960 and has since been completely rebuilt. The resort offers a very different flavour of Morocco and is ideal for Morocco family travel looking for a beach-based holiday. The town makes an excellent base for day trips to the beautiful Paradise Valley and the alternative surf towns along the coast.

If you only do one thing in Morocco, then take a trip to the Sahara Desert to sleep in a tent within the massive dunes. Take a camel trek to Merzouga or Zagora, and then camp out for a night or two in simple shared tents. There are also more luxurious private tents with real beds and bathrooms. Watching the dunes change colour at sunset is incredibly beautiful. Then eating dinner under the dark, star-studded sky and waking up before dawn is simply magical. A night is enough to get the feeling, but two is better to really absorb the desert experience. If a night under the stars sounds like your kind of trip, let our local experts build a tailor-made trip to the Sahara around your pace.

Go hiking in the Atlas Mountains: plenty of routes to enjoy nature on short half-day or full-day excursions around the outskirts of Marrakech or higher up in the snow-capped peaks.

Tagine gets most of the attention, but Moroccan food goes much deeper once you know what to order.

The ONCF trains connect the major cities in Morocco, such as Casablanca, Rabat, Fez, Tangier and Marrakech, with clean and efficient services. These are a convenient way of travelling between the various imperial cities and avoiding traffic and haggling. For routes not covered by the rail network, grand taxis run between and sometimes within towns and can be hired for private trips as well.

Renting a car is recommended for travelling to the south of Morocco and the Atlas Mountains. The trains do not reach these areas, and having your own transport gives you more flexibility to organise your own schedule. The roads in Morocco are, for the most part, in good condition but can be hazardous, especially when travelling over mountain passes, though road safety is generally one of the more reassuring parts of a trip as an American visitor.

November and December fall within one of Morocco's cooler shoulder seasons, worth comparing against the rest of the year before you settle on when to go.

Five days are enough to see the imperial cities: Marrakech, Casablanca and Rabat. 10 days will allow you to add the Sahara for a proper round trip through the Atlas Mountains and the desert. 2 weeks or more will give you ample time to explore the coast of Morocco and add destinations such as Essaouira, Chefchaouen, and cities in the north to your itinerary, without rushing. 

There are things to do in Morocco for everyone. Popular places like Marrakech and Fez deserve a visit, but the true memories are often created on a night in the Sahara Desert, a visit to Chefchaouen, or a relaxing time in the serene atmosphere of the ancient ruins of Chellah in Rabat. Whether you have 5 days or 3 weeks, Morocco is flexible for any travel style. The country offers numerous activities such as trekking in the mountains, relaxing or surfing on the coast, and exploring the fascinating medinas of the country's imperial cities.

If planning all of this on your own feels like a lot, Tailored By Locals builds custom Morocco itineraries with local experts who know which routes, seasons, and experiences actually fit your travel style. It takes the guesswork out of stitching together cities, transport, and timing, so you spend less time researching and more time actually there.