Take a private tour of the city of Rabat and enjoy VIP treatment. Your own fully qualified and accredited driver will allow you to discover Rabat in the best possible way.
You will be picked up from your hotel or Riad in Marrakech. Our driver guide will make you discover the capital of Morocco: you will visit the old Medina, the necropolis of Chellah, the Hassan Tower, the Mausoleum Mohamed V, the Kasbah of the Oudayas and the Royal Palace. Your visit will end with the visit of the bank of the Bouregreg and the city of Salé famous for its corsairs feared on all seas.
Rabat imperial city with a rich historical past testifies of many sites. The first site not to be missed is the Hassan Tower which was to be the minaret of the largest mosque in the Muslim world and the Mausoleum Mohammed V the Royal Tomb which houses the sarcophagus of King Mohammed V and his two sons Moulay Abdellah and Hassan II.
You then visit the Kasbah of the Oudayas former military camp, inside you explore an ancient military prison, gardens and a museum.
Then you visit the ruins of Chellah, the quietest place in Rabat, ideal for relaxing and strolling away from the noise of the medina.
An invitation to travel to the heart of Morocco’s historical and cultural heritage by visiting Rabat’s archaeological museum, one of the most beautiful museums in Morocco.
Passing by the bank of the Bouregreg you will admire the beautiful landscapes before going to Salé, this old Berber settlement where you will discover several historical monuments, old ramparts, ancient architecture and a rich cultural heritage.
DISCOVER TRIP FROM MARREKCH TO RABAT
The Hassan Tower is the symbol of Rabat.
The Hassan Tower and its mosque were commissioned at the end of the 12th century. The tower is built in the Roman-Byzantine style like the Kutubija Mosque in Marrakech and the Giralda in Seville.
It was supposed to be the largest mosque in the Islamic world, but due to the death of Sultan Yacoub al Mansour, then in power, the mosque was never completed. The nearly completed buildings were largely destroyed by an earthquake in 1755.
On the edge of the ruins of the mosque, the mausoleum of Mohamed V was built in 1967. The burial complex includes a mosque, a mausoleum and a memorial site with images of the king. The guards of the mausoleum are decorated with harem belts and trousers.
The mausoleum is guarded day and night by guards in old North African uniforms. On foot and on horseback, you will find yourself at the entrance of the esplanade of the Hassan mosque. Admission is also free for non-Muslims.
The very wide stairs are made of marble.
These lead through the enormous horseshoe arches to the entrance gates, where the royal bodyguard watches over the entrance day and night.
The dome of the mausoleum is the masterpiece. It surrounds the tomb hall. It is covered with mahogany wood and gold leaf from Germany.
From the dome hangs a bronze lamp. In the evening, they illuminate the mausoleum like a golden shrine. The walls of the mausoleum are covered with 1200 square meters of mosaic. This mosaic contains about 20,000 individual stones, which were laid by hand. In the middle sarcophagus lies the corpse.
In another sarcophagus lies his son, who died in 1983. Hassan II’s only brother also found his final resting place in the royal mausoleum. The floor of the burial chamber is covered with blue granite. It is polished in such a way that the floor could be mistaken for water, indeed, one might think that the sarcophagus floats on the surface of the water. The room has ornate marble walls and a cedar dome covered with gold leaf.
The whole complex is surrounded by a thick wall with defensive towers. It can be accessed through a relatively small gate. Here you will find wax soldiers in beautiful traditional uniforms.
The Gate of Udaya
The main entrance to the Kasbah is one of the most important buildings of the Almohad period. The construction is very simple but full of contrasts. The portal extends over 3 floors. The back of the gate is also richly decorated.
Rabat became the administrative capital of Morocco in 1912 under the French protectorate. before that, Berbers settled there in the 8th century, who built a monastic castle (Ribat) on the rock of Oudaia in the 10th century.
Abou Youssouf Yakoub el Mansour (1184 to 1199) then founded the town of Ribat el Fath, chose it as the capital of the empire and had a great wall and a great mosque built, which remain unfinished.
Small alleys of Moorish style in the Kasbah Ousaia :
The houses of the Kasbah Oudaia in typical blue and white:
The Kasbah is picturesque, situated on a steep rocky cliff above the mouth of the Bou Regreg on the Atlantic coast.
The Moors brought the art of garden design from Spain to Morocco. This is why the gardens are still called Andalusian gardens today. The beautiful white-blue alleys are also very important.
Small gardens in winding alleys :
There are also many beautiful beaches around Rabat.
Les Petits Contrbandiers, Krick Rock, Temara, Golden Sand and Skhirat are the most famous.
It’s worth getting to know Rabat not only when transiting or going to and from the royal cities of Morocco, but also investing several days here to visit the city’s very interesting museums.
In the archaeological museum you can see objects of inestimable value.
Here a statue of a king is displayed in white marble. in addition, a visit to the Museum of Moroccan Arts and the Institute of Earth Sciences is recommended.
The Royal Palace (Mishua)
In Rabat, the royal palace is worth seeing, especially because it is the main residence of the King of Morocco.
The great door is the door to the throne room. It was built in 1957 by Mohammed V. It is made of cedar wood covered with bronze. The feet (columns) are made of Carrara marble and the walls are covered with real mosaic. (no painting) The floral motifs on the door are normal ornaments (decoration) and have no religious significance.
The parade ground of the palace is accessible and very impressive. But one cannot see the inside of the palace. But the view from the outer facade is already worth a detour.
The royal palace was built in the second half of the 19th century. There, another old palace was already there before. Special attention should be paid to the majestic yellow stone portal.
