Rabat is a cultural city steeped in history. Many masterpieces decorate its streets and squares. Visit the Kasbah des Oudayas: a majestic and formidable silhouette softened by the surrounding gardens. Not far from the walls rise the walls of the Chellah, a necropolis of the Merinides time. Crossing the walls is like entering another world: you walk among ancient remains, gardens and storks.
Rabat is also a modern, eco-responsible capital city that gives pride of place to green spaces. Parks are dotted around the city, such as the botanical test garden or the Exotic Gardens of Bouknadel, a few kilometers from the city. Rabat also has a coastline: on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, it has kilometers of developed beaches that lead to neighboring Casablanca.
Rabat is also modern in its infrastructures and festivals which contribute to your comfort and to the animation of the capital. Airport, streetcar, shopping malls, cafes and restaurants, all amenities are within your reach. Finally, there is the music that Rabat celebrates like no other: Mawazine, Jazz au Chellah and many others fill the atmosphere with sounds and rhythms from around the world!
Rabat is all this, a city where the treasures of the past rub shoulders with the most modern and environmentally friendly achievements!
Relaxation and shopping in the city of lights
Chic shopping in Rabat
A modern city, Rabat is nonetheless a capital where traditions are perpetuated from generation to generation. Shopping here means discovering the wealth of local craftsmanship; it also means taking advantage of the most modern infrastructures and strolling in front of the windows of the biggest national and international brands!
The main boulevards and open streets of the city are lined with stores. Well-known brands have chosen to set up shop here, to the delight of shopping aficionados. Watchmakers, jewelers, opticians, clothing stores, and many others offer quality products. Public transportation, including two tramway lines, allows you to explore the commercial heart of the capital and find what you are looking for.
Large shopping centers are also established in the city. Designed for your comfort, they concentrate the biggest brands and offer a whole range of services. At the Mega Mall, for example, you can enjoy a game of bowling or ice skating, in addition to the cafes and restaurants that are located there.
Active, well-stocked and always full of surprises, Rabat offers you a thousand and one opportunities to satisfy your passion for shopping!
Diversity and quality
Shopping in Rabat
Rabat is an active capital, especially within the walls where the bustle of the shopping streets and markets is notable. Traditional handicrafts coexist with those revisited by modern designers.
Go to the medina: the historic district is full of all kinds of shops. A maze of thematic alleys will make you discover different trades. In the streets of Souk Sebbat and Souika, the stalls are overflowing with leather goods, slippers and bags, fabrics and traditional clothing. Further on, the Rue des Consuls showcases silver jewelry and the famous rbatis carpets for which the city is famous. The local gastronomy is not to be outdone: Moroccan pastries, spices as well as all kinds of local food will delight your taste buds.
Embroidery is another of the arts that the Rbatis master perfectly. Silk brocade, muslin, cotton and linen are embroidered with virtuosity to compose marvelous pieces of fabric that will be used for the elaboration of traditional clothes such as the caftan and for furniture fabrics.
A few kilometers from the medina, potters are honored. In Salé, the Oulja complex is dedicated to them. You will discover craftsmen who shape the clay, who play with its flexibility and its reliefs to make tajines, vases or lights: charming souvenirs and very useful daily instruments! You will also find in Ulaanbaatar wrought iron and basketry objects.
Always at the frontier between past and present, Rabat offers craftsmanship and know-how of unquestionable authenticity, which nevertheless accommodates the most audacious innovations in the air of time!
Golf and water sports in the Moroccan capital
Various sports in the green city
Rabat the elegant is also Rabat the sporty. There is no shortage of opportunities to get active in the Moroccan capital, which alternates land, water and air activities.
On the coast, the beaches offer many opportunities: do you like to slide? Jet-skis, surfboards and windsurfers are available. On the beach of Oudayas, you can also go on the water on board of kayaks and discover the coast under a whole new light!
Inland, the activities are even more diverse. Hit the little white ball on the Royal Golf Dar Es Salam. The course is mythical and alternates fairways, greens and bunkers in an enchanting setting. Horseback riding enthusiasts will also find something to their liking in Rabat: many equestrian clubs welcome riders and offer rides, obstacle courses and polo matches. Hiking enthusiasts will find their happiness in Akrach, not far from Rabat.
The most adventurous will go to the aeroclub of Salé. Here, you can take advantage of quality infrastructures and try your hand at paragliding, hang-gliding or flying light aircraft in complete safety.
Land, air or water sports, your stay in Rabat will be rich!
As much leisure as you want
Beaches as far as the eye can see
All kinds of pleasures can be found in beautiful Rabat: culture, green tourism and swimming!
Bordered by the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, the Moroccan capital offers many opportunities to relax on the warm sand and all kinds of water sports. The entire coastline is developed: the beaches run all the way to Casablanca, varying in location and charm. In the heart of the city, the oudayas beach offers a magnificent setting: perched on a rock, the fortress stands facing the ocean and dominates the stretch of sand below. Managed by the nautical club of Rabat, the place is bustling with activity and offers kayaking and windsurfing.
All along the coast in the direction of Casablanca, the beaches follow each other and are not alike. Sometimes intimate in size, sometimes more extensive, their fine golden sand and their rising and falling tides will give you pleasure and refreshment.
For the aficionados of sports activities, surfing, jet-skiing and horseback riding are all leisure activities available on the beaches of Rabat.
Private beaches or public beaches, relaxation or sport, the coast of Rabat will meet all your seaside aspirations!
A green city in Morocco
Rabat green city
In Rabat, nature is at the very heart of the city. Committed to an eco-responsible approach, the country's capital spreads out 230 hectares of green spaces in which to enjoy cultural and natural heritage.
The Kasbah des Oudayas and its Andalusian garden, the necropolis of Chellah, the green belt, the Ibn Sina forest and the Jardin d'Essai express this union at its best. Not to mention the Zoological Garden of Rabat where animals are presented in their natural habitats.
A few kilometers from Rabat, the Exotic Gardens of Bouknadel will delight you. Covering 4.5 hectares, they are home to more than 600 plant species from 5 continents and 80 animal species.
The surrounding region is not to be outdone. On the road to Fez, the Maâmora forest will welcome you for picnics with friends or family. Towards Mehdia, you will have the opportunity to see migratory water birds in the nature reserve of Sidi Boughaba. Towards Khmisset, the peaceful natural lake of Dayet Roumi will allow you to practice pedal boat and jet ski, as well as fishing.
True to its eco-responsible spirit, Rabat the green is waiting for you!
Elegant capital
A culturally rich city
Rabat the imperial is the capital of the Kingdom, steeped in history. Everywhere in its streets, stones testify to this rich past, decorate the streets and create a charming setting that you will enjoy discovering.
Distinguished by UNESCO as a modern capital and a historic city, Rabat is a small concentrate of Moroccan heritage! The Hassan Tower, an unfinished minaret that has dominated the city for more than eight centuries now. At its feet, you will discover the esplanade and the famous Mausoleum Mohamed V. More than a tomb, the monument is a tribute to Arab-Muslim art. It mobilizes all its charms: carved in white onyx, it is adorned with marble, plaster and finely carved woodwork.
Elsewhere, it is the Chellah, an ancient city whose remains still stand. Cross its walls, pass under its monumental gate and discover one of the most surprising archaeological sites of the country!
Finally, don't miss the opportunity to visit the Kasbah des Oudayas. Take the time to walk around because a feeling of tranquility emanates from the place. Visit the gardens that decorate this ancient fortress, the art galleries all around before sitting on the terrace of the Café Maure and sipping a delicious mint tea with Moroccan cakes.
To walk through Rabat is to plunge into the heart of the Kingdom's history, following the stones that line it!
The secrets of Rabat
A living culture
A city rich in landmarks and monuments, Rabat is also distinguished by the vitality of its intangible heritage.
The Rbati handicrafts are famous. See for yourself! Go to the medina. From father to son, craftsmen work on fabrics, leather, gold and silver jewelry, not to mention the famous rbati carpet, a masterpiece of finesse and harmony. Not far away, in Salé, pottery, ironwork and basketry are honored: a whole complex is devoted to them.
Finally, Rabat is music. The city has succeeded in making the Mawazine Rhythms of the World festival an international event: every year, free concerts feature the biggest national and international stars, to the delight of tens of thousands of spectators. But it is all year long that the Moroccan capital vibrates to the rhythm of world music: the tunes from Andalusia, the swing of jazz bands are also honored during major events.
In Rabat, culture is rich: it is always on the alert and takes on a lively, playful air!
