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Monuments
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Djemâa el-Fna squareDjemâa el-Fna, at the heart of the Marrakesh Medina. The night-time entertainment of this mythical square amazes the most blasé of travellers. The several traditional festivities, stalls, restaurants or famous water-sellers make the Djemâa el Fna a must to visit.
The Djemâa el Fna square is an inescapable place in Marrakesh. A real central route of the Marrakesh Medina, it enables to take in the proliferation of life and activities that characterise the imperial town. The charm of the Djemâa el Fna square comes from the multitude of street-artists, stalls of dried fruit or orange juice freshly-pressed before you, and the multitude of small restaurants that take over its centre from early evening, and contribute to the scent of its surroundings. In the morning, you can taste excellent pancakes at the Toubkal café, at midday, you can take in the sun on the terrace of the Café de France and in the evening, you can take advantage of the dozens of musical and artistic shows there. At nightfall, a colourful crowd converges towards Djemâa el Fna in order to benefit from the coolness of the evening while watching family shows.
Koutoubia mosqueThe mosque and minaret, an emblem in Marrakesh.
Over time, the Koutoubia mosque has become an emblem of Marrakesh. Its construction was decided in 1158 by the sultan Almohades Abdel Moumen soon after his conquest of Marrakech. It was completed in 1199 with the construction of its famous minaret ordered by the sultan’s grandson, Yacoub el-Mansour. Koutoubia, literally the “Booksellers’ Mosque” in Arab, is named after the large number of sellers of books and manuscripts that set up their stalls in the immediate vicinity of the building from the 12th-13th century.
MenaraThe central lake and its adjoining pavilion exult the romanticism of the “Southern pearl”
Planted with olive-trees, some of which are more than 100 years old, the charm of the Menara garden lies in its central part. Its large central lake was dug in the 12th century at the time of Almohade. On one side, there is a harmonious Saadian pavilion that was built at the end of the 19th century. Legend has it that the Menara garden was a place of love trysts for the sultans.
El Bahia Palace A small folly ordered in 1880 by the great vizier Sidi Moussa.
The Bahia palace is a small piece of folly ordered in 1880 by the great vizier Sidi Moussa. Successively at the service of sultans Moulay Hassan and Moulay Abd el-Aziz, Sidi Moussa was the de facto minister of the kingdom of Morocco.
Ben Youssef MedersaThe Ben Youssef Medersa is a jewel of Arabo-Andalusian architecture.
The Ben Youssef Medersa is one of the jewels of Marrakesh. The current structure of this Koranic school was built around 1570 by the Saadians and restored in 1950. At the time of its splendour, the Ben Youssef medersa could house up to 900 students in the 150 cells of the building. This architectural characteristic makes this holy building the biggest medersa in the whole of the Maghreb region ( area of North Africa covered by Morocco, Tunisia , Algeria and Libya. Maghreb literaly means "where the sun sets!").
Saadian tombsThe only remnant that recounts the power and refinement of the Saadian dynasty.
Located on the side of the Kasbah mosque, the Saadian tombs are one of the only remnants of the Saadian dynasty that reigned over the golden age of Marrakech from 1524 to 1659. Indeed, at the start of the 18th century, the sultan Moulay Ismaïl decided to banish all trace of the magnificence of this dynasty, by demanding the destruction of all remaining remnants. However, he did not dare commit the sacrilege of destroying their graves and ordered that the entrance to the necropolis be walled. The secret was well-kept until 1917, when the site of the Saadian tombs was rediscovered.
El-Badi palaceThe “incomparable palace” was built in 1578; some remnants of its magnificent past remain.
The decision to build Dar el-Badi, the “incomparable palace” was taken by the Saadian Sovereign Ahmed el-Mansour as a celebration after his victory against the Portuguese army during the Battle of the Three Kings in 1578. The construction of this sumptuous palace lasted from 1578 to 1603. The richest materials were used to decorate the 360 rooms of the princely complex.
Enormous private apartments lined the large interior courtyard, richly decorated with ponds. A sublime hall dedicated to official audiences and ceremonies also had pride of place in its centre.
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