Showing 1-14 of 14 results
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Andalusian Gardens
These formal gardens were laid out by the French during the colonial period. They occupy the palace grounds and make a wonderful shady retreat, popular with groups of Moroccan women.
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Archaeology Museum
The museum may be dusty and underfunded but it's fascinating to visit, and gives a wonderful account of Morocco's ancient history.
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Chellah
This Merenid necropolis is now abandoned, crumbling and overgrown, as is the ancient Roman city of Sala Colonia. Together they constitute one of Rabat's most peaceful and evocative sights. The first people to settle on the grassy slopes above the river were the Phoenicians, but the town grew when the Romans took control in about AD40.
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Flea Market
This is an interesting place to wander, it descends towards the river. If you want to keep exploring, turning north along Rue des Consuls, you'll be surrounded by colourful carpets, leatherworks, babouches (leather slippers) and copper crafts. It's one of the more interesting areas of the medina for travellers with many original diplomatic residencies still intact.
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Galérie d'Art Nouiga
Galérie d'Art Nouiga is an art gallery nestled amongst some tourist shops in the oldest part of the city.
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Grande Mosquée
This mosque, a 14th-century Merenid original much rebuilt in the intervening years, is just down the road from the Souq as-Sebbat on the right hand side.
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Kasbah des Oudaias
This occupies the oldest part of the city, the site of the original ribat, and commands powerful views over the river and ocean from its cliff-top perch. The kasbah is predominately residential and the narrow streets are lined with whitewashed houses - most of which were built by Muslim refugees from Spain. It's a tranquil and picturesque place to wander and there's no need for a guide. Ignore anyone who advises you that the kasbah is 'forbidden'.
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Le Tour Hassan
Le Tour Hassan. Towering above the Oued Bou Regreg is Rabat's most famous landmark. This enormous minaret was begun by the Almohad sultan Yacoub al-Mansour in 1195 and was intended to reach 60m, making it the largest and highest in the Muslim world. However, the sultan's grand plans were thwarted by his death four years later, and the tower was never completed. Abandoned at 44m, the beautifully designed and intricately carved tower still lords over the remains of the adjacent mosque.
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Mausoleum of Mohammed V
The cool marble mausoleum, built in traditional Moroccan style, lies opposite the tower. The present king's father (the late Hassan II) and grandfather have been laid to rest here, surrounded by an intensely patterned zellij mosaics from floor to ceiling. Visitors to the mausoleum must be respectfully dressed and can look down into the tomb from a gallery.
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Musée des Oudaia
This museuem is housed in the palace itself, a grand 17th-century affair built by Moulay Ismail. The building later became a medersa, and is now home to this musuem, which exhibits an interesting collection of traditional musical instruments, clothing, ceramics and jewellery. The collections are on display in the reception rooms around the central courtyard but you can also visit the original palace hammam and mosque.
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Museum of Science and Nature
This museum lies squirreled away in the government administrative buildings. The museum explains the history of the earth's geology but is most noted for the reconstructed skeleton of the giant dinosaur Atlasaurus imelakei (Giant Lizard of the Atlas) found in the High Atlas in 1979. The massive beast measured 15m long and roamed the earth 165 million years ago.
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Plateforme du Sémaphore
Opening out at the end of a street is a wide grassy area where the provides an incredible vista over the estuary and across to Salé. The elevated position provided an excellent defence against seagoing attackers negotiating the sandbanks below.
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Salle des Bronzes
You'll find ceramics, statuary and artefacts from the Roman settlements at Volubilis, Lixus and Chellah on display. Look out for the beautiful head of Juba II and the unforgiving realism of the bust of Cato the Younger - both found at Volubilis.
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Walled Medina
This is a rich mixture of spices, carpets, crafts, cheap shoes and bootlegged DVDs. It was built on an orderly grid in the 17th century and lacks a little of the more colourful character of the older medinas of the interior. However, it's a great place to roam with no aggressive selling and far more locals than tourists wandering the narrow streets.
Showing 1-14 of 14 results
