Rabat 3-Day Itinerary: Kasbah, Chellah, Museums and Sale

Three days in Rabat lets you explore every UNESCO World Heritage site in the capital without rushing, leaving plenty of time for mint tea above the river and crossing the estuary to historic Sale. Review our practical briefing before setting out.

Day 1: Kasbah of the Udayas, Andalusian Gardens and the Medina

• Morning: begin at the monumental 12th-century Almohad gate of Bab Oudaia and wander slowly along the indigo-and-white cobbled lanes of the Kasbah of the Udayas out to the Semaphore Platform overlooking the Atlantic breakers and the Bou Regreg river mouth.
• Late morning: descend to the cliffside terrace of Cafe Maure for fresh mint tea and almond pastries above the water, then stroll through the orange trees of the Andalusian Gardens and visit the National Jewellery Museum inside the 17th-century Oudayas palace.
• Afternoon: cross into the Medina along Rue Souika for a tagine or grilled fish lunch, then spend two unhurried hours browsing Rabat carpets, leather babouches and brassware under the reed awnings of Rue des Consuls and Souk es-Sebbat.
• Evening: walk down to the Atlantic Corniche and the Rabat Lighthouse to watch the sunset over the ocean waves before dinner in a restored Medina riad courtyard.

Day 2: Hassan Tower, Mausoleum of Mohammed V and Roman-Merenid Chellah

• Morning: walk or ride the tram to the grand esplanade of Hassan Tower to examine the 44-metre unfinished Almohad minaret and its grid of shattered stone columns, then step inside the white marble Mausoleum of Mohammed V to admire its hand-carved cedar dome and zellij walls.
• Midday: stop for lunch in the leafy Quartier Hassan or along the Bou Regreg waterfront promenade below the tower.
• Afternoon: take a five-minute blue petit taxi south to the walled sanctuary of Chellah, spending two hours exploring the paved streets and forum of Roman Sala Colonia alongside the 14th-century Merenid royal tombs while white storks clack their bills overhead.
• Evening: walk past the Royal Palace esplanade (Méchouar) and the carved stone gate of Bab er-Rouah on your way back into Centre Ville for dinner.

Day 3: Ville Nouvelle Museums and Rowing Across the River to Sale

• Morning: stroll down palm-lined Avenue Mohammed V past St Peter's Cathedral, then tour the Mohammed VI Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art and the Volubilis Roman bronzes at the nearby Museum of History and Civilisations.
• Afternoon: head down to the river jetty below the Kasbah and take a traditional wooden rowing boat across the Bou Regreg to Sale; enter through Bab el-Mrissa and visit the exquisitely carved 14th-century Medersa of Abu al-Hasan inside Sale's Medina before riding the tramway back across the bridge.