Morocco
Marrakesh
November, after the heat.
Season
- January●●●●●Cool nights, sun in the courtyards
- February●●●●●Almond blossoms in the High Atlas
- March●●●●●Orange blossoms, the air sweet
- April●●●●●Riads in green, mornings still cool
- May●●●●●Hot at noon, cool by midnight
- June●●●●●The medina shutters by two
- July●●●●●Forty degrees by ten in the morning
- August●●●●●The whole city in shadow until dusk
- September●●●●●Heat eases week by week
- October●●●●●Dry days, stars out by seven
- November●●●●●Sweater weather, gardens still blooming
- December●●●●●Mint tea outside in the afternoon
Location
Curated places
Le Jardin Secret
Sight · 90 min · ─
A 16th-century riad garden hidden in the medina. Climb the tower at four — the rooftop sees over the souks to the Atlas.
Bahia Palace
Sight · 90 min · ─
Eight thousand square metres of zellige tile and cedar ceilings. Go early — light hits the courtyards around ten.
Café des Épices
Food · 90 min · ──
Three floors above the spice market. Order the chicken pastilla and watch the souk thin into the afternoon.
Dar Yacout
Food · 180 min · ───
A six-course Moroccan dinner inside a converted palace — couscous, tagine, m'ssemen. Rooftop tables when the weather holds.
La Mamounia
Stay · 720 min · ────
The 1923 grand hotel restored back to itself — twenty acres of gardens, a hammam carved from rose marble.
Hammam Mouassine
Activity · 90 min · ──
A sixteenth-century public hammam in the medina. Black soap, hot stone, silence — ninety minutes you don't talk.