The best things to do in Morocco.

Marrakech rewards travellers who slow down: a walled medina of souks and palaces opens onto serene gardens, rooftop cafes and the snow-capped Atlas beyond. From sunrise calls to prayer to the nightly theatre of Jemaa el-Fna, here are the experiences worth your time.

Morocco's spiritual and craft capital rewards slow exploration. From the maze of Fes el-Bali to working tanneries, Merinid medersas and ancient Roman ruins nearby, here are twelve experiences worth your time.

Tucked into Morocco's Rif Mountains, Chefchaouen is the famous blue-washed town where lime-painted lanes, mountain waterfalls and Andalusian culture meet. Here are the best things to do in the Blue City.

Essaouira pairs a UNESCO-listed walled medina with windswept Atlantic beaches, a working fishing port and a deep Gnaoua music heritage. Here are twelve experiences that capture the salt-air spirit of Morocco's coolest coastal town.

Rebuilt after the 1960 earthquake, Agadir pairs a six-kilometre Atlantic beach with world-class surf, a hilltop kasbah, busy souks and easy access to Souss-Massa's wild coast and Paradise Valley.

Where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic, Tangier blends Moroccan, Andalusian and international history. From its hilltop kasbah and tangled medina to dramatic Atlantic capes, here are twelve experiences worth your time.

Merzouga is a small Saharan village beside Erg Chebbi, a sea of wind-sculpted dunes rising up to around 150 metres. It is Morocco's classic desert base, and here are twelve experiences worth your time.

Nicknamed the 'Door of the Desert' and Morocco's Hollywood, Ouarzazate guards mud-brick kasbahs, vast film studios and palm-fringed oases at the edge of the Sahara. Here are twelve experiences worth your time.

Meknes, the imperial city of Sultan Moulay Ismail, blends monumental gates, vast granaries and a relaxed medina with easy day trips to Volubilis. Here are twelve experiences worth your time.

Morocco's capital pairs Atlantic light with monumental history, from a riverside kasbah to Roman-and-Merinid ruins. Here are twelve experiences worth your time in calm, walkable Rabat.

Morocco's largest city and economic heart pairs Art Deco boulevards with a vast oceanfront mosque. From the Atlantic Corniche to the old medina, here are twelve experiences worth your time.

Morocco's largest city and economic capital is a study in contrasts: a colossal oceanfront mosque, France-era Mauresque architecture and a buzzing Atlantic corniche. One well-planned day covers the essentials. Here is a practical one-day Casablanca itinerary.

Morocco's largest city is surprisingly easy with children: a giant seafront mall with an aquarium and musical fountain, Atlantic beaches at Ain Diab, a long Corniche promenade and leafy parks. Here are the best family-friendly things to do in Casablanca.

Casablanca's Atlantic seafront runs along the Ain Diab district, where the Corniche promenade links beach clubs, pools, seafood terraces and open sands. Anchored by the Hassan II Mosque at the water's edge and the Morocco Mall at its far end, here is how to spend time on the city's coast.

Casablanca's Mohammed V Airport (CMN) is Morocco's main international gateway, and a long layover is just enough to see the city's best. With a few hours and a pre-booked private driver, you can take in the great mosque and the seafront and be back at the airport with margin. Here is how to make a stopover count.

Casablanca holds one of the world's greatest concentrations of 1920s and 1930s architecture, a city-sized open-air museum of Art Deco blended with Moorish 'Mauresque' detailing. Built during the protectorate-era boom, the downtown's cinemas, hotels, apartment blocks and civic buildings remain the city's most distinctive draw. Here is what to see, and how to walk it.

As Morocco's most cosmopolitan city, Casablanca has the country's liveliest after-dark scene, concentrated along the Ain Diab Corniche and in the smarter hotels and rooftops downtown. Alcohol is served mainly in licensed venues, hotels and dedicated bars and clubs rather than across the city, so the evening tends to gather where the sea breeze and the music are. Here is how to spend a night out.

The Hassan II Mosque is Casablanca's defining landmark and one of the largest mosques in the world. Built partly over the Atlantic and completed in 1993, it is also one of the few mosques in Morocco that welcomes non-Muslim visitors on guided tours. Here is what to know before you go.

The Quartier Habous, often called the New Medina, is Casablanca's most atmospheric quarter — a 1930s reinterpretation of a traditional Moroccan medina built during the French protectorate. Its arcaded lanes, craft shops, bookstalls and Moorish-style buildings make it the city's best place to browse, buy souvenirs and sense the old-Morocco feel that the modern downtown lacks. Here is what to see and how to explore it.

Casablanca's Old Medina — the Ancienne Médina — is the original walled town that predates the French ville nouvelle built around it in the 20th century. Tucked between the port and the United Nations Square (Place des Nations Unies), it is much smaller and far less touristy than the great medinas of Fes or Marrakech, with a more workaday, local character. Within its old ramparts you will find busy market lanes, small mosques, an 18th-century bastion overlooking the sea, and the everyday rhythm of a working quarter, all a short walk from the Hassan II Mosque. Here is what to see and how to explore it.

The Cathédrale du Sacré-Cœur is one of Casablanca's most striking pieces of 20th-century architecture — a bold white former cathedral rising beside the Parc de la Ligue Arabe in the city centre. Completed in the 1930s by the French architect Paul Tournon, it blends Art Deco lines with a neo-Gothic silhouette of twin towers and soaring concrete vaults. It was deconsecrated after Moroccan independence and is no longer a working church; today it stands as a landmark of the city's celebrated Art Deco heritage and is sometimes used as a cultural and exhibition space. Here is what to see and how to take it in.

The Church of Notre-Dame de Lourdes (Église Notre-Dame de Lourdes) is one of Casablanca's quieter architectural surprises — a boldly modernist Roman Catholic church built in the 1950s, away from the usual tourist trail. From outside it is austere, almost severe, a composition of bare concrete; inside it is transformed by enormous walls of stained glass designed by the celebrated French glass-artist Gabriel Loire, which flood the plain interior with deep blue, red and gold light. Unlike the deconsecrated Sacré-Cœur, Notre-Dame de Lourdes is generally still an active parish church, so it is visited with respect rather than treated as a museum. Here is what to look for and how to take it in.

The Mahkama du Pacha is one of Casablanca's most lavish showcases of traditional Moroccan craftsmanship — a striking public building tucked into the Quartier Habous, the city's planned 'New Medina'. Completed in the early 1950s, it served both as a courthouse and as the pasha's reception palace and administrative seat, and it was conceived in a Hispano-Moorish, or Mauresque, style. Behind its long arcaded facade lie dozens of rooms — often cited as around sixty — filled with intricately carved cedar ceilings, sculpted stucco, zellij tilework, wrought iron and marble, arranged around fountained courtyards. It remains a working official building, so public access can be limited and irregular; here is what to know before you go.

The Villa des Arts de Casablanca is one of the city centre's most rewarding cultural stops — a restored 1930s Art Deco villa turned contemporary art gallery and cultural centre, set near the Parc de la Ligue Arabe. Associated with a major Moroccan foundation, it hosts rotating exhibitions of Moroccan and international modern and contemporary art in elegant Art-Deco interiors, with a garden to pause in. It fits naturally into Casablanca's celebrated Art-Deco story and makes a calm, unhurried counterpoint to the city's busier landmarks. Here is what to see and how to take it in.

Opened in 2011 on the Ain Diab Corniche, Morocco Mall is one of the largest shopping malls in Africa and a landmark of Casablanca's Atlantic seafront. Beyond its international and Moroccan stores, it is best known for a giant cylindrical aquarium at its heart, an indoor musical fountain, an IMAX cinema, an indoor souk recalling a traditional Moroccan market, a large food court and a kids' play area. That mix makes it a popular family destination and a favourite refuge on rainy or very hot days, as well as an easy leisure stop at the western end of the Corniche. Here is what to see and how to fit it into a day on the coast.

Anfa is the historic heart and one of the most prestigious districts of modern Casablanca, spread across the rise of land west of the city centre toward the Atlantic. Its name is the old name of the city itself: long before the Portuguese and then the French reshaped the port, the settlement here was known as Anfa. Today the district mixes leafy residential avenues and grand villas with the gleaming towers of the new Casablanca Finance City business hub, and it sits within easy reach of the Corniche seafront. Here is how to get a feel for the area and what to look out for.

As Morocco's economic powerhouse and one of its busiest creative hubs, Casablanca has a year-round cultural, concert and arts scene, and it is home to a couple of festivals that have built strong reputations over the years. The best-known are Jazzablanca, a jazz and world-music festival usually associated with spring or early summer, and L'Boulevard, a long-running urban and alternative music festival that helped shape Morocco's modern music scene. One important caveat runs through everything below: festival dates change from year to year, and not every festival runs every year, so treat the timings here as a general guide only and always check the official programme before planning a trip around an event. Here is how the city's festivals and broader cultural life fit into a visit.

Morocco has a long, officially recognised Jewish heritage stretching back many centuries, and Casablanca holds a central place in that story. The city is home to the Museum of Moroccan Judaism — widely described as the only museum dedicated to Jewish history and culture in the Arab world — and to one of Morocco's largest remaining Jewish communities, with active synagogues and a historic mellah (Jewish quarter). This guide explains what to see and how to explore it respectfully, with practical notes; hours and access change, so confirm details locally before visiting.

Rick's Café is one of Casablanca's best-known restaurants and bars — a candlelit, 1940s-style dining room set in a restored traditional courtyard mansion near the old medina and the port. It was created to evoke 'Rick's Café Américain', the fictional bar from the classic 1942 film 'Casablanca' with Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, complete with arches, a piano and live music. One honest point matters before you go: the 1942 film was shot in Hollywood studios, not in Casablanca, so this is a loving homage and themed dining experience inspired by the movie rather than a genuine historic film location. Here is what it is and how to enjoy an evening there.

La Sqala is one of Casablanca's most atmospheric spots — a garden café and restaurant set inside a restored 18th-century bastion on the edge of the old medina, near the port. The Sqala itself was a fortified gun emplacement built in the Portuguese-Moroccan defensive tradition to guard the coast, with thick ramparts and old cannons still in place. Today its sheltered courtyard garden, shaded by palms and bougainvillea, makes it a calm refuge from the busy city and a popular place for a Moroccan breakfast, lunch or mint tea. Here is what it is and how to enjoy a visit.

Casablanca is a big, spread-out city, so where you base yourself shapes your whole trip. There is no single tourist quarter that suits everyone; instead, a handful of distinct areas each lean toward a different kind of stay. Broadly, the Centre-Ville (downtown) puts you among the Art Deco landmarks and transport for sightseeing and business; the Corniche at Ain Diab trades central convenience for the seafront, beach clubs and nightlife; Gauthier and Maarif offer a leafier, more local upscale feel of cafes and dining; and staying near the train stations is handy for transit and short stops. The honest rule of thumb is to pick by purpose. Here is how the main areas compare and a few practical pointers. (Hotel names and prices change, so check current listings before you book.)

Casablanca's Atlantic setting and cosmopolitan markets make it a rewarding place to learn Moroccan cooking. From tagine and couscous workshops to seafood, street-food walks and pastry sessions, here are twelve hands-on food experiences worth your time.

Asilah is a whitewashed Atlantic town on Morocco's north coast, famous for its mural-covered medina, Portuguese ramparts and breezy beaches. Here are twelve experiences that capture its artistic, seafaring spirit.

At 1,740 metres in the High Atlas, Imlil is Morocco's gateway to Mount Toubkal. This Berber village trades souk crowds for walnut groves, mule paths and snow-tipped peaks. Here are the experiences worth lacing your boots for.

Once a sleepy fishing village north of Agadir, Taghazout has become Morocco's surf capital. Reliable Atlantic point breaks, laid-back yoga retreats, argan groves and golden beaches make it a relaxed base on the Souss-Massa coast.

Set high in Morocco's Middle Atlas, Ifrane is an alpine town of red-roofed chalets, cedar forests and clear mountain lakes. Built in the 1930s, it offers cool air, winter snow and easy access to a national park rich in wildlife.

Tucked into the Middle Atlas near Azilal, the Cascades d'Ouzoud are Morocco's tallest waterfalls, tumbling some 110 metres in red-rock terraces. Here are the experiences worth your time around the falls.

Dakhla sits on a slender peninsula where the Sahara meets the Atlantic, framing a vast flat-water lagoon. Steady trade winds, year-round sun and turquoise shallows have made it one of the world's premier kitesurfing destinations.

Cut into the eastern High Atlas near Tinghir, the Todra Gorge funnels travellers between sheer limestone walls rising up to roughly 300 metres. River, palm groves and Berber villages reward those who linger here.

Often called 'little Marrakech', Taroudant is a walled market town in the fertile Souss Valley. Its earthen ramparts encircle bustling souks, palm-shaded squares and artisan workshops, with the High Atlas and Anti-Atlas rising on either side.

Tucked into the High Atlas about an hour south of Marrakech, the Ourika Valley pairs a rushing river with Berber villages, terraced gardens and waterfall hikes. Here are the experiences worth your day.

Around 45 minutes from Marrakech, the Agafay is a rocky stone desert of arid hills, not dunes. Its lunar hammada frames sweeping Atlas Mountain views, luxury camps and quiet adventure within easy reach of the city.