Marrakech

Why Marrakech works

Marrakech performs itself nightly in Jemaa el-Fnaa, the medina's central square, where by late afternoon snake charmers, henna artists, orange-juice stalls and storytelling halqa circles fill in around each other until the square becomes one continuous, chaotic performance, best watched from a rooftop café as the Koutoubia Mosque minaret catches the last light. Behind the square, the medina's souks unfold in themed lanes -- leather in the tanneries quarter, brass lanterns near Place des Ferblantiers, wool and textiles closer to the Ben Youssef Madrasa -- rewarding slow wandering and unhurried haggling far more than a rushed shopping list. The Bahia Palace and El Badi Palace showcase the finest of Moroccan craftsmanship: carved cedar ceilings, zellige tilework in geometric star patterns, and courtyards planted with orange trees and fountains, built for 19th-century viziers and, in El Badi's case, a 16th-century sultan whose palace now stands in ruins but no less atmospheric for it. Riads -- traditional courtyard houses turned guesthouses, invisible from the street behind plain wooden doors -- are Marrakech's signature accommodation, opening onto a bougainvillea-draped inner courtyard the moment the door swings shut behind you. A day trip into the nearby Atlas Mountains or Agafay desert adds camel rides and Berber village visits to round out a Marrakech stay.

Trip Snapshot

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