Marrakech Medina Guide: The Best Things to See, Do & Eat in the Red City

Marrakech is the entry point for many first-time Morocco visitors, and the medina — a UNESCO World Heritage Site — is the reason most of them come. At its heart is Jemaa el-Fnaa, the great square that UNESCO has recognized as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity: by day, orange juice vendors, henna artists, and snake charmers; by night, food stalls, storytellers, acrobats, and musicians performing to thousands of people simultaneously. The medina radiates outward from this square in a labyrinth of souks, palaces, mosques, and riads that takes days to fully explore.

The essential sites: Bahia Palace (19th century, 8 hectares of gardens and decorated rooms, admission 70 MAD), Saadian Tombs (16th century royal tombs rediscovered in 1917, admission 70 MAD), Ben Youssef Madrasa (14th-century Islamic school with some of the finest carved plasterwork in Morocco, admission 70 MAD), the Majorelle Garden (owned by Yves Saint Laurent, vivid blue walls and exotic plants, admission 150 MAD), the Mellah Jewish Quarter (less visited but historically fascinating), and the Koutoubia Mosque (the 12th-century minaret that every Marrakech photograph seems to include). Budget a full day for the souks alone.

Souk navigation: The souks of Marrakech are organized by trade — the spice souk (Rahba Qedima), the leather souk, the carpet souk, the lamp souk, the jewellery souk, and the textile souk are all separate areas within the medina. Without a guide, expect to spend the first hour completely lost; this is part of the experience. With a guide, you access the actual craftsmen's workshops behind the tourist-facing stalls. Bargaining is expected everywhere in the souks; the opening price is typically 2–3 times the expected selling price. Never bargain aggressively and never begin bargaining if you have no intention of buying.

Where to eat: Skip the restaurants on the main tourist drag around Jemaa el-Fnaa — they are expensive and mediocre. Instead: Nomad (rooftop in the medina, excellent modern Moroccan cooking), Cafe des Epices (simple terrace with views over the spice market), Le Jardin (shaded courtyard, good tagines), or for a splurge, La Maison Arabe (legendary riad restaurant with traditional pastilla and tangia). For street food, the stalls at Jemaa el-Fnaa in the evening are generally safe if food is freshly cooked and served hot — harira soup, merguez sausages, snail broth, and fresh-squeezed orange juice are all worth trying.

Getting around: The medina is best explored on foot, but it is large and confusing. Calèches (horse-drawn carriages) can be hired outside Jemaa el-Fnaa for a tour of the ramparts. Petit taxis (red in Marrakech) cover the distance between the medina and the Ville Nouvelle (new city) quickly and cheaply; insist on the meter. Most visitors need two full days in Marrakech to cover the main sites without feeling rushed; three days allows for the Majorelle Garden, a hammam visit, a cooking class, and the souks at a civilised pace.