Morocco: Medinas, Minarets & Modern Cities

Morocco's cities show how architecture answers climate, faith and empire.

In Casablanca, students visit the Hassan II Mosque, built out over the Atlantic with a minaret over 200 metres tall, and study the city's Art Deco and colonial-era planning. In Rabat, the Hassan Tower and the Kasbah of the Udayas sit in a UNESCO-listed mix of historic and modern capital. In Fez, the old medina, one of the largest car-free urban areas in the world, and the Bou Inania Madrasa show how dense blocks, courtyards and workshops fit together. In Marrakech, the Bahia Palace and Ben Youssef Madrasa show zellige tile and carved plaster.