Rabat’s must-sees

Kasbah of the Udayas and Andalusian Garden

Bélère Urban Hotel: 2.7 km, about 4 min by car
Bélère Arribat City Center: 3.6 km, about 6 min by car

Perched on a promontory above the mouth of the Bouregreg, the kasbah was Rabat's first urban core, developed by the Almohads in the 12th century, and the first monument listed as national heritage in Morocco. Its whitewashed lanes lead to the Andalusian-inspired garden, the Café Maure and Semaphore Square facing the ocean.

Highlights

• Bab Oudaya (Bab Lkbir) gate and Al-Atiq, Rabat's first mosque
• Andalusian garden: fountains, flower beds and fruit trees
• Terrace Café Maure overlooking the Bouregreg and Salé's medina

Rabat Old Medina

Bélère Urban Hotel: 2.5 km, about 6 min by car
Bélère Arribat City Center: 3.6 km, about 8 min by car

Founded in the Almohad era in the 12th century and densified in the 17th century by Andalusian refugees, the medina covers about 91 hectares below the Kasbah of the Udayas. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage property “Rabat, Modern Capital and Historic City: a Shared Heritage”, inscribed in 2012.

Highlights

• 17th-century Andalusian wall, five metres high and 1400 metres long
• Patio houses with zellige, carved wood and green glazed tiles
• Historic gates: Bab El Had, Bab Laalou, Bab Chellah and Bab El Bahr

Hassan Tower

Bélère Urban Hotel: 2.5 km, about 3 min by car
Bélère Arribat City Center: 3.7 km, about 5 min by car

The minaret of a mosque commissioned in the late 12th century by the Almohad caliph Yaqub al-Mansur, the tower was meant to be the largest in the world; work stopped when the caliph died in 1199. The unfinished minaret and the remains of the prayer hall form, with the Mausoleum of Mohammed V, a major historic ensemble of Rabat.

Highlights

• Unfinished Almohad minaret, an emblem of the capital
• Bases of 348 columns from the never-finished mosque
• Esplanade open to the Bouregreg, facing the Mausoleum of Mohammed V

Mausoleum of Mohammed V

Bélère Urban Hotel: 2.0 km, about 3 min by car
Bélère Arribat City Center: 3.3 km, about 5 min by car

Built from 1961 to 1971 on the esplanade of the Hassan mosque, the mausoleum holds the tombs of King Mohammed V and his two sons, King Hassan II and Prince Moulay Abdallah. Designed by Vietnamese architect Cong Vo Toan, it combines white marble, carved calligraphy and a green-tiled roof.

Highlights

• Tombs of Mohammed V, Hassan II and Prince Moulay Abdallah
• White marble, carved calligraphy and a green-tiled roof
• Traditional crafts with modern materials, by architect Cong Vo Toan

Chellah Archaeological Site

Bélère Urban Hotel: 2.8 km, about 7 min by car
Bélère Arribat City Center: 4.0 km, about 9 min by car

Probably visited by Phoenician navigators, then a Mauretanian city and the Roman colony of Sala, Chellah became a walled Marinid necropolis in the 14th century. Listed as a historic monument in 1920 and inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2012, it blends ancient ruins, Marinid art and historic gardens.

Winter: 09:00:00–18:00:00; summer: until 20:00:00; Ramadan: 09:00:00–16:00:00

Highlights

• Roman remains of Sala: baths, temples and forum
• Marinid necropolis, including the tomb of Sultan Abu al-Hasan
• Historic garden and a colony of storks nesting on the ruins

Events

• Mawazine – Rhythms of the World festival: June
• Visa For Music: November

Rabat Botanical Test Garden

Bélère Urban Hotel: 1.5 km, about 2 min by car
Bélère Arribat City Center: 0.2 km, about 1 min by car

Created in 1914 over some 17 hectares and designed by landscape architect Jean-Claude Nicolas Forestier, the Botanical Test Garden gathers more than 650 ornamental and fruit species from local, tropical, subtropical and desert origins. Restored under the aegis of the Mohammed VI Foundation for Environmental Protection, it is part of the UNESCO World Heritage site “Rabat, Modern Capital and Historic City”, inscribed in 2012.

Highlights

• More than 650 local, tropical and desert species
• Andalusian garden and Moorish pavilion created with FUNCI
• Part of the UNESCO site “Rabat, Modern Capital”

Mohammed VI Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMVI)

Bélère Urban Hotel: 1.1 km, about 2 min by car
Bélère Arribat City Center: 1.9 km, about 3 min by car

Opened in 2014 and run by the National Museums Foundation, MMVI is Morocco's first museum devoted entirely to modern and contemporary art to international museum standards. Its collection of more than 500 paintings gathers the great names of Moroccan painting, alongside internationally ambitious temporary exhibitions every year.

Daily except Tuesday, 10:00:00–18:00:00

Highlights

• More than 500 paintings and about ten sculptures in the collection
• Melehi, Gharbaoui, Belkahia, Kacimi, Agueznay: key names in the collection
• Past shows: Picasso, Giacometti, Goya, Delacroix, Cartier-Bresson

Museum of History and Civilizations

Bélère Urban Hotel: 0.9 km, about 1 min by car
Bélère Arribat City Center: 2.1 km, about 3 min by car

Successor to the former archaeological museum, whose collections date back to excavations begun in 1915, it reopened under its current name in April 2017 after renovation by the National Museums Foundation. A chronological route leads from prehistory to the Islamic era, via the Phoenician, Mauretanian and Roman periods.

Daily except Tuesday, 10:00:00–18:00:00

Highlights

• Famous bronzes of Juba II, Cato and the ephebes from ancient sites
• Gallery of Roman white-marble and bronze sculptures found in Morocco
• Open-air patio with rock carvings and ancient inscriptions

Royal Theatre of Rabat (formerly Grand Theatre of Rabat)

Bélère Urban Hotel: 3.5 km, about 5 min by car
Bélère Arribat City Center: 4.4 km, about 7 min by car

Designed by Zaha Hadid and delivered by the Bouregreg Valley Development Agency, the theatre was officially inaugurated on 29/10/24 and opened to the public on 22/04/26 with a show featuring about a hundred Moroccan artists. It has a main auditorium of more than 1,800 seats, a 250-seat hall and a 7000-seat open-air amphitheatre.

Highlights

• Flowing architecture by Zaha Hadid in the heart of the Bouregreg Valley
• Main hall designed for theatre, dance, opera and symphonic concerts
• 7000-seat open-air amphitheatre for festivals and major events

Mohammed VI Tower

Bélère Urban Hotel: 4.1 km, about 6 min by car
Bélère Arribat City Center: 5.5 km, about 8 min by car

Rising 250 metres over 55 floors, the Mohammed VI Tower stands in Salé, on the right bank of the Bouregreg facing Rabat, and is the tallest building in Morocco. Designed by Rafael de La-Hoz with Hakim Benjelloun and inaugurated in 2026, it combines offices, residences, the Waldorf Astoria hotel, cultural spaces and an observatory open to the public by reservation.

Highlights

• Panoramic observatory at the top, open by reservation
• Cultural space on the 50th floor for exhibitions and events
• Views over Rabat, Salé and the Bouregreg Valley from the top floors

Salé Medina

Bélère Urban Hotel: 5.6 km, about 7 min by car
Bélère Arribat City Center: 7.0 km, about 9 min by car

Facing Rabat on the right bank of the Bouregreg, Salé's old town keeps its ramparts, whose western section was recently restored, and its monumental Bab Lamrissa gate. Its lanes lead to the mausoleums of Sidi Ben Achir and Sidi Abdellah Ben Hassoun, the Great Mosque and the Marinid madrasa.

Highlights

• Bab Lamrissa, a 13th-century Marinid gate linked to an old shipyard
• Sidi Abdellah Ben Hassoun mausoleum, where the Mawlid candles are made
• Fortified esplanade facing the Atlantic, known as the “Esplanade of Tears”

Events

• Candle procession on the eve of the Mawlid (date set by the Hijri calendar)

Great Mosque and Marinid Madrasa of Salé

Bélère Urban Hotel: 5.2 km, about 6 min by car
Bélère Arribat City Center: 6.7 km, about 9 min by car

Rebuilt in 1196 under the Almohad caliph Yaqub al-Mansur, the Great Mosque of Salé is among the largest in Morocco; it was closed for restoration in 2025. The neighbouring madrasa, completed in 1341 under the Marinid sultan Abu al-Hasan, is renowned for its zellige, carved stucco and cedar woodwork.

Highlights

• 14th-century madrasa: zellige, stucco and carved cedar
• Decoration akin to the Nasrid art of the Alhambra
• The imposing minaret of the Almohad Great Mosque