Things to do
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Ain Diab
A seafront promenade runs west along the Corniche past beach clubs, hotels and surf schools to the sands of Ain Diab. Waves suit beginners in summer and stronger surfers in winter. The promenade fills at sunset and on weekends, and the shrine of Sidi Abderrahmane stands on a rock offshore, a working place of worship that non-Muslims view from the shore.
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Habous
Arcaded streets and whitewashed squares were laid out here by French planners in the 1930s as a new medina, tidier than the old one by the port. Booksellers, olive stalls and pastry shops line the lanes, and the walls of the royal palace run alongside. Mornings are quietest, and a petit taxi from the centre takes about ten minutes.
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Hassan II Mosque
Built partly over the Atlantic, the mosque carries a minaret of about 210 metres and a prayer hall with a retractable roof. Guided tours in several languages admit non-Muslims at set times between the daily prayers, with fewer tours on Fridays. Tours are ticketed, shoulders and knees must be covered, and shoes come off inside.
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Mohammed V Square
Mauresque public buildings from the protectorate frame the square, with the courthouse, the prefecture and its clock tower and the central post office facing a fountain and its pigeons. Streets around it hold much of the Art Deco architecture the city is known for. A walk north along Boulevard Mohammed V passes old cinemas, arcades and the central market.
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Museum of Moroccan Judaism
Housed in a former Jewish orphanage in the Oasis district, the museum keeps Torah scrolls, wedding dress, jewellery and a reconstructed synagogue interior gathered from communities across Morocco. Visits are ticketed, the building closes on Saturdays, and it sits a taxi ride south of the centre.
