All Articles Where to find Marrakech’s best food, hotels, and sights

Where to find Marrakech’s best food, hotels, and sights

This city is a wonderland of markets, luxe riads, and the most delicious tagine you’ll ever encounter.

By Jenny Adams16 Feb 2023 5 minutes read
Walking though the souks in Marrakech's medina
Walking though the souks in Marrakech's medina
Image: p. lubas/Getty Images

Dusk falls, casting swaths of orange light over the pink stone. A tambourine jingles as it hits a thigh. The scent of spiced lamb floats through the night air. There are silver platters, piled high with bangles, and towers of fruit rinds from the juice stalls that ring the giant open space.

This is the Jemaa el-Fnaa, the oldest continually operating outdoor market in all of Africa. While it’s the heartbeat of ancient Marrakech, it’s also only one side of the city. Marrakech may have been founded in 1062, but its modern culture is strong, too, thanks in part to the musicians, artists, and fashion houses that flocked to the city in the 1970s. Today, visitors will discover a contemporary playground, where doorways open to reveal stylish gardens, dreamy spas, fine-dining restaurants, and stairways leading to rooftop bars.

Much of the city’s charm lies behind these doors (or tall gates, or stone walls) but knock and you’ll find more layers than you could ever hope to explore in a single visit. Below, we’ve rounded up the best places to eat, play, and stay in Marrakech to help you at least scratch the surface.

Where to eat

Food in Marrakech delights all the senses. One thing to keep in mind when dining: In traditional restaurants, use your right hand to eat and keep your left in your lap.

Best for embracing the chaos: Jemaa el-Fnaa

Jemaa el-Fnaa in Marrakech, Morocco
Jemaa el-Fnaa in Marrakech, Morocco
Image: Henryk Sadura/Getty Images

For the liveliest meal in Marrakech, head to the open-air Jemaa el-Fnaa market. At dusk, barbecue stalls set up around the plaza, serving such delicacies as apricot tagines and grilled merguez sausage. Get advice from your hotel concierge or a local about the can't-miss stalls, then enjoy your meal amid the fortune tellers and henna artists that fill the plaza each evening.

Best for breakfast: Café Clock

Located near the shop-filled Kasbah neighborhood, Café Clock is a colorful meeting spot for Marrakech’s free thinkers. (The cafe even donates a portion of its proceeds to different philanthropic groups.) The all-day breakfast is a must, particularly the herbaceous Berber eggs served with tomato and creamy j’ben cheese.

Best for rooftop views: L’Mida

Kefta Meatballs at L’Mida
Kefta Meatballs at L’Mida
Image: Management/Tripadvisor

Set in the heart of the Medina, L’Mida spans two levels of a traditional Marrakchi house. The rooftop bar, complete with bright green banquettes and rattan lanterns, offers incredible views over the Medina and to the Atlas Mountains in the background. Head here to take in the sunset with a cup of mint tea in hand, or to indulge in unique dishes like lamb shoulder with pumpkin and yogurt sauce, and chicken skewers with miso-and-harissa slaw.

Best for romance: Ksar Es Saoussan

Ksar Es Saoussan occupies a dreamy space with antique sofas and dining tables lit by giant candelabras. Don’t miss the Moroccan red wines and the exquisite pigeon pie, featuring flaky crust, richly scented meat, and a dusting of powdered sugar.

Best for happy hour: La Mamounia

Le Salon at La Mamounia
Le Salon at La Mamounia
Image: Management/Tripadvisor

Every trip to Marrakech should include a happy hour at Le Churchill, housed in the luxurious La Mamounia hotel. Named for its distinguished visitor, the cozy spot features original 1930s frescoes of jazz musicians behind the bar. After a cold martini, wander the hotel gardens, filled with fragrant orange blossoms, bougainvillea, and Barbary fig cacti.

Best for international flavor: La Cuisine de Mona

La Cuisine de Mona serves exceptional Lebanese cuisine in the Guéliz district, or what locals call the “new city.” Here, bright pink-and-green walls match colorful dishes like dolmas in yogurt sauce and fresh falafel topped with pickled onions. Whether you go for lunch or dinner, expect an unassuming atmosphere but an unforgettable meal.

What to do

With open-air markets around every corner, it’s easy to spend all your time in Marrakech wandering the alleyways lined with bins of spices, handmade kettles, and more. But there’s so much more to do here than just shop.

Best for adventurers: Sidecar Tours

Kick off your stay in Marrakech with the city’s coolest tour: a three-hour private sidecar ride around town. Each customizable tour is led by a knowledgeable guide, who will take you to places like the Medina, the Guéliz district, and the city's palm grove while relaying bits of history. Cruising down back roads on a classic motorcycle, you’ll get a real taste for local life and see hidden-away spots that tour buses can’t reach.

Best for car enthusiasts: Le Domaine du Retro

About 20 minutes from the center of Marrakech lies Le Domaine du Retro, a wildly cool outdoor museum dedicated to classic automobiles. Housed on a beautiful estate with manicured gardens, the museum encompasses a central courtyard surrounded by garage spaces that showcase 30 painstakingly restored vehicles. Book your visit at least 24 hours in advance directly through Le Domaine, then spend the afternoon posing next to Barbara Hutton’s Rolls Royce or a mint-condition Alpha Romeo from the ’60s. You can even arrange to ride in one of the cars if you like.

Best for architecture peeping: the Kasbah

View of the Moulay El Yazid Mosque in the Kasbah
View of the Moulay El Yazid Mosque in the Kasbah
Image: Craig Hastings/Getty Images

About a half-mile from Marrakech’s main square, the Kasbah is a walled district, which originally served as the citadel and the royal palace complex of the city. It’s home to 12th-century ramparts made from Morocco’s signature reddish-pink adobe as well as the Bab Agnaou, one of the best known—and most beautiful—gates in Marrakech. Spend some time taking in the gate’s rich decoration, then explore the Kasbah Mosque, which dates back to the late 1100s and features stunning architectural details like horseshoe arches and a minaret topped with green and white tiles.

Best for an afternoon of wandering: Guéliz district

For a shopping experience that avoids medina haggling, head to the Guéliz district. The neighborhood is dotted with cute cafes and stylish boutiques selling linen dresses, woven handbags, colorful scarves, hammered silver jewelry, and brass candlesticks.

Where to stay

When it comes to accommodations, Marrakech offers hotels, riads, and dars—and knowing the difference will help you decide what suits you best. Hotels here are the largest options; riads are more like boutique hotels—often with less than 12 rooms—that typically have an interior garden or swimming pool; and a dar, which translates to “house,” feels more like a homestay, with shared bathrooms and a small, central fountain.

Best for art lovers: Riad Goloboy

Riad Goloby in Marrakech
Riad Goloby in Marrakech
Image: Management/Tripadvisor

Dating back to the 1800s, Riad Goloby spans two houses that were thoughtfully restored by art collector and interior designer Beatrice Faujas. Inside, guests find a stylish mix of antique and contemporary furniture, bright blue walls, and a curving staircase that leads to an open rooftop. Perhaps best of all, the property is just 15 minutes on foot from the Jemaa el-Fna and five minutes from the Kasbah.

Best for extreme luxury: La Mamounia

A former palace reimagined by acclaimed designer Jacques Garcia, La Mamounia is synonymous with opulence. From the sprawling lobby and one square mile of manicured gardens to the palm tree–lined swimming pool and plush spa with hammams, there’s luxury around every corner—and rooms are priced accordingly.

Best for Instagram photos: El Fenn

Guest room at El Fenn, Marrakech, Morocco
Guest room at El Fenn
Image: Management/Tripadvisor

Made up of seven riads strung together, El Fenn features 41 individually styled rooms, complete with such eye-catching details as jewel-colored tadelakt walls, massive chandeliers, hand-stitched camel leather rugs, open fireplaces, stained-glass windows, and artwork from the personal collection of owner Vanessa Branson (sister to Virgin Atlantic mogul Richard Branson). If you can bear to leave your room, you’ll find further photo ops under the colonnaded balconies, in the lush courtyards, and along the lantern-lit trails between buildings. Note: You don’t have to stay here to enjoy the three swimming pools. The hotel offers day passes, which can include lunch in the on-site restaurant.

Best for location and budget: Riad Tahyra

With only seven rooms, Riad Tahyra makes you feel like you’re staying in someone’s home—and a very stylish one at that. The archways are covered in intricate tilework and the central fountain is strewn with rose petals. It’s only a few minutes from the Jemma el-Fna, but you’d never know it from the price point, which tops out at $80 per night in peak season.

Jenny Adams
Jenny Adams is a full-time, freelance writer and photographer, based in New Orleans and part-time in Bangkok. Her work has appeared in more than 50 publications, and she frequently focuses on food, beverage and off-the-beaten track stories. She is represented as a photographer by the Where Y'Art Gallery of New Orleans, is a member of the Society of American Travel writers, and is currently failing to finish her first horror novel, set in the French Quarter. You can find out more at www.JennyAdamsFreelance.com or on her travel blog, www.BuddhaDrinksFanta.com.