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The carved sandstone towers of a gate into the Old Medina of Casablanca, with stalls and people in front

Things to see

Things to see in Casablanca

A giant mosque above the Atlantic, an old walled medina, a “new medina” full of pastry shops, streets of Art Deco buildings and a seafront made for sunsets. Here are the places worth your time in and around Morocco’s largest city.

The seafront and the Old Medina

Casablanca meets the Atlantic along a seafront that runs from the great mosque past the lighthouse to the beaches of Ain Diab. Just inland, the walls of the Old Medina hide the oldest part of the city.

The tall carved minaret and green-tiled roofs of the Hassan II Mosque, beyond its wide esplanade Mosque

Hassan II Mosque

A landmark above the sea

One of the largest mosques in the world, built partly over the Atlantic and finished in 1993, with a 210-metre minaret and guided tours that are open to non-Muslims.

A view across the rooftops of the Old Medina of Casablanca towards the sea and the minaret of the Hassan II Mosque Old town

Old Medina

Lanes behind the old walls

The small walled old town beside the port, with narrow lanes, everyday souks, the Sqala bastion and the Bab Marrakech gate, far less touristy than the medinas of Fez or Marrakech.

Rocks and tidal pools on the beach at Ain Diab in Casablanca, with the sun low over the Atlantic Seafront

Ain Diab Corniche

Beaches, surf and sunsets

Casablanca’s seaside strip, with a long promenade, beach clubs, surf schools, restaurants and the Morocco Mall, and the best place in the city to watch the sun go down.

The white shrine and houses of Sidi Abderrahman on their rocky islet off the Ain Diab shore Shrine

Sidi Abderrahman

A white village on a rock

A tiny whitewashed settlement on a rock off the Corniche, built around the tomb of a Muslim saint. It can be reached on foot at low tide, although the shrine is closed to non-Muslims.

The city centre and the Habous

The French protectorate turned Casablanca into a modern port city from 1912. Its legacy is one of the world’s great collections of Art Deco buildings, a grand central square and the Habous, a “new medina” in traditional style.

A carved stone and zellige-tiled fountain on a square in the Habous quarter of Casablanca Neighbourhood

Quartier Habous

Arcades, olives and pastries

A charming “new medina” built in the 1920s and 1930s, with tidy arcades, craft shops, an olive market, famous pastry shops and the carved halls of the Mahkama du Pacha.

Pigeons on Mohammed V Square in Casablanca, in front of the white arcades of the Palais de Justice Square

Mohammed V Square

The grand heart of the city

The ceremonial centre of Casablanca, with a big fountain and a set of grand 1920s and 1930s public buildings, including the courthouse and the clock tower of the Wilaya.

A rounded Art Deco apartment building with curved balconies and a small dome in central Casablanca Architecture

Art Deco Downtown

A museum of 1930s buildings

Boulevard Mohammed V and the streets around it are lined with Art Deco and neo-Moorish buildings from the 1920s and 1930s, including cinemas, arcades and the Central Market.

A long lawn lined with tall palm trees at the Arab League Park in Casablanca Park

Arab League Park

Palm avenues in the centre

The city’s best-known park, with long palm-lined avenues and lawns in the middle of town, close to the old Sacré-Cœur Cathedral and the cafés of the Gauthier quarter.

Day trips along the coast

Trains and good motorways make it easy to explore from Casablanca. The capital, Rabat, lies to the north, past the beach town of Mohammedia, while El Jadida and Azemmour have Portuguese walls to the south.

The white Mausoleum of Mohammed V and its green roof beyond rows of old columns in Rabat, with the new Mohammed VI Tower behind Capital

Rabat

Morocco’s calm capital

Morocco’s capital is about an hour away by train, with the Hassan Tower, the Mausoleum of Mohammed V, the blue and white Kasbah of the Udayas and the ruins of Chellah.

Light falling from a round opening onto the still water of the vaulted Portuguese Cistern in El Jadida UNESCO

El Jadida

A Portuguese sea fortress

A seaside town south of Casablanca with the walled Portuguese City of Mazagan, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and its famous flooded cistern.

The old town of Azemmour on the bank of the wide Oum Er-Rbia river Old town

Azemmour

A medina on the river

A quiet walled town on the Oum Er-Rbia river, between Casablanca and El Jadida, with Portuguese ramparts, whitewashed lanes and painted murals.

People walking on the wide sandy Miramar beach at Mohammedia at low tide Beach town

Mohammedia

Easy beaches near the city

A relaxed resort town just north-east of Casablanca, with long sandy beaches, a small kasbah and a marina, easy to reach by train for a day at the sea.

Planning your route

Casablanca is spread out, so it helps to plan by area. The mosque and the Old Medina lie near the port, the Art Deco streets are in the centre, the Habous is to the south-east and the Corniche is to the west.

Start with the essentials

  1. Take a morning tour of the Hassan II Mosque.
  2. Walk through the Old Medina into the Art Deco city centre.
  3. Spend the afternoon in the Quartier Habous.
  4. End the day at sunset on the Ain Diab Corniche.

Other sights in the city

The Museum of Moroccan Judaism in the Oasis district is a rare museum of its kind in the Arab world, and the Church of Notre-Dame de Lourdes has beautiful stained glass. The Villa des Arts shows modern Moroccan art.

Beyond the city

Take the train to Rabat, or head down the coast to El Jadida and Azemmour. Read our three-day itinerary.

Plan your Casablanca trip

A great mosque, Art Deco streets and the Atlantic

Tour the Hassan II Mosque, walk the Art Deco streets of the city centre, shop in the Habous quarter or take the train to Rabat for the day. Compare tours and book in a couple of taps.

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