Things to do · Rabat
On a high terrace above the Bou Regreg, Rabat's most photographed ensemble pairs the unfinished minaret of a 12th-century Almohad mega-mosque with the gleaming 20th-century mausoleum of Morocco's modern kings. Together they tell eight centuries of the city's story in a single open square. Here is what to see and know before you go.
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The incomplete minaret of a vast mosque begun in 1195 by the Almohad sultan Yacoub al-Mansour. Intended to be the largest in the world, it was abandoned at about 44 metres when he died, leaving a monumental red-sandstone tower carved with interlacing arches.
Hundreds of truncated stone columns spread across the esplanade mark the prayer hall that was never finished and was later toppled by the 1755 Lisbon earthquake. Their grid gives a sense of the mosque's intended enormous scale.
Completed in 1971 facing the tower, this white-marble mausoleum holds the tombs of King Mohammed V and his sons, Hassan II and Prince Abdallah. Its carved cedar, zellij and gilded interior is a showcase of modern Moroccan craftsmanship.
Ceremonial guards in red-and-white uniform stand at the esplanade's gates and the mausoleum entrance, some on horseback. The changing of the guard is a quiet daily spectacle and a favourite photo moment.
Visitors look down on the royal tombs from an upper gallery rather than entering the chamber. The domed cedar ceiling, onyx tomb of Mohammed V and intricate plasterwork reward a slow, respectful pause.
The raised platform that holds tower and mausoleum looks across the Bou Regreg toward Salé and out to the Atlantic. It is an airy, uncrowded space, especially fine in the gold of late afternoon.
Up close, the Hassan Tower's four faces each carry different geometric and floral motifs in carved sandstone, a high point of 12th-century Almohad design later echoed in the Giralda of Seville and the Koutoubia of Marrakech.
From the terrace edge the river sweeps below toward the marina and the kasbah, with Salé's white medina opposite. It links naturally to a riverside walk down to the Oudayas.
No. Entry to the esplanade, the Hassan Tower and the Mausoleum of Mohammed V is free of charge. Modest dress is appreciated, particularly inside the mausoleum.
Construction stopped when the Almohad sultan Yacoub al-Mansour died in 1199, leaving the minaret at about 44 metres rather than its planned height. The mosque's prayer hall was later destroyed in the 1755 Lisbon earthquake.
Yes. The mausoleum is open to all visitors, who view the royal tombs from an upper gallery. It is one of the few Moroccan religious monuments freely open to non-Muslims.
About an hour is enough to take in the Hassan Tower, the columns, the mausoleum interior and the river views, making it an easy stop between the Kasbah des Oudayas and the Chellah.
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