# Casablanca Casablanca, Morocco's economic capital on the Atlantic, is a twentieth-century city: an art deco centre with Moroccan ornament, and the Hassan II Mosque, which non-Muslims visit with a guide. For architecture lovers and for travellers arriving or leaving through Mohammed V airport, over one or two days. Source : https://sabaro-travel.com/en/morocco/casablanca/ ## A twentieth-century city Casablanca is not visited the way Fez or Marrakesh are. Its medina, one of the latest in Morocco, is small; the city is mostly what was built around it from the 1910s, under the French protectorate, when Casablanca became the country's main port. The style of that period combines two registers. The façades have the clean lines of art deco; their ornament draws on the Moroccan repertoire: zellige (mosaic of glazed terracotta tiles), green roof tiles, arches, ironwork, cedar balconies. The regional tourism council describes it as a style "wanted by the protectorate", combining modern lines with historical ornament. On a single façade you find cherubs, fruit baskets, lion heads and stucco friezes side by side. One name keeps coming back: Marius Boyer (1885-1947), a French architect who settled in Casablanca in 1919 and stayed until his death, author of the Lévy-Bendayan building (1928) and the Shell Building (1934), among others. From 1922 to 1927 he designed, with Jean Balois, one of the major complexes on Boulevard Mohammed V. ## An art deco walk The centre can be covered in half a day: - **Boulevard Mohammed V**, the shopping street of the 1930s. Its continuous arcade, stepping forward in successive breaks, was inspired by the Rue de Rivoli in Paris. Look for the Bessonneau building, known as the Hotel Lincoln after the hotel it housed; the Glaoui building with its zellige-clad towers; and the ABC cinema, set beneath an apartment block. In front of the central market, the boulevard widens to 25 m. - **Place Mohammed V**, the city's administrative heart, lined with 1920s buildings in Hispano-Moorish and art deco style. The prefecture, or wilaya, opened in 1930 by Sultan Mohammed V, keeps a tropical garden and works by the French designer Louis Majorelle. - **The Sacré-Cœur**, a former Gothic-style church now used for events, on the edge of the Arab League Park. - **The Villa des Arts**, an art deco house that hosts contemporary art exhibitions. The best details are above the shop windows, so look up. Many buildings carry no sign, and Sabaro recommends a guided walk the first time. Casamémoire, an association founded in 1995 to protect twentieth-century heritage in Morocco, organises Heritage Days; the May 2025 edition was devoted to art deco, a hundred years after the 1925 Paris exhibition of decorative arts. ## The Hassan II Mosque Built on the edge of the ocean, partly over the water, the Hassan II Mosque was begun in 1986 and completed on 30 August 1993. Some 6,000 craftsmen worked Middle Atlas cedar, marble, carved plaster, zellige, tadelakt (polished lime plaster) and copper. The prayer hall measures 200 m by 100 m and holds 25,000 worshippers; its roof opens. The minaret rises 200 m, topped by a 15.5 m jamour (an ornament of three gilded spheres) from which a laser beam points towards Mecca. Non-Muslims visit with a guide, under the rules of the Hassan II Mosque Foundation. The tour covers the prayer hall, the minaret hall and the ablutions hall. - **Times.** From 16 September to 14 March, tours leave at 9:00, 10:00, 11:00 and 14:00 local time from Saturday to Thursday, and at 9:00, 10:00 and 14:00 on Friday; from 15 March to 15 September there is an extra tour at 15:00. Times change during Ramadan. - **Price.** 140 dirhams for a foreign adult, 30 dirhams for ages 4 to 12, free under 4. A private tour for up to ten people costs 2,200 dirhams and must be booked. - **Dress.** Shoulders, chest and knees covered; shorts and sleeveless tops are refused. You take off your shoes and carry them with you, in a bag provided at the entrance. Sabaro recommends the first tour of the morning, followed by a walk on the esplanade by the water. ## The old town, the Habous and the museums **The old medina**, between the port and the centre, ends on the sea side at the Sqala, an eighteenth-century bastion now a café-restaurant. **The Habous quarter**, south-east of the centre, lines up Moorish-style lanes and arcades around a large square ringed with cafés. People come for the spice and craft stalls, and for the Mahkama du Pacha, a former courthouse with decorated halls. The royal palace is close by; you see it from outside. **The museums** fill a rainy day well. The Museum of Moroccan Judaism, in the Oasis district, traces more than two thousand years of Jewish history in Morocco; it opens Monday to Friday from 10:00 to 17:00 in winter and until 18:00 in summer, and on Sunday from 11:00 to 16:00, local time. The Abderrahman Slaoui Museum shows jewellery, old posters and paintings by Mohamed Ben Ali R'bati; the Villa Carl Ficke houses the Casablanca Memory Museum. **The Ain Diab corniche**, to the west, lines up cafés, clubs and restaurants facing the ocean; it comes alive in the late afternoon. ## How long, and where to stay Casablanca is often where a tour starts or ends, through Mohammed V airport. Sabaro suggests: - **One day**: the Hassan II Mosque in the morning, the old medina and the Sqala at lunchtime, the art deco walk in the afternoon. - **Two days**: add the Habous, a museum and the corniche, or an architecture tour with a guide. To do everything on foot, stay in the centre. The Royal Mansour Casablanca is near the port and the old medina; the Hôtel Le Doge, a sixteen-room house where each room is styled after an art deco artist, is in the heart of the district. Le Casablanca Hotel is in the quieter residential district of Anfa, a few minutes from the corniche. **For the rest of the trip**, the Al Boraq TGV (high-speed train) links Casablanca to Tangier in 2 h 17, stopping at Rabat, 86.9 km away by road. El Jadida and the Portuguese city of Mazagan are about 106 km away, 1 h 25 by road. Jazzablanca, the city's jazz festival, will hold its 20th edition from 1 to 10 July 2027. ## Frequently asked questions ### Can non-Muslims go inside the Hassan II Mosque? Yes, on a paid guided tour: 140 dirhams for a foreign adult. Tours leave several times a day at set times, outside prayer times; clothing must cover shoulders and knees. ### Is one day enough in Casablanca? For the essentials, yes: the mosque in the morning, the medina and the Sqala, then the art deco centre. Allow two days for the Habous, the museums and the corniche. ### Where can I see the art deco architecture? Along Boulevard Mohammed V and around Place Mohammed V, on foot. The style mixes art deco lines with Moroccan ornament: zellige, stucco, green tiles. ### How do I get from Casablanca to Rabat or Tangier? By train: the Al Boraq TGV links Casablanca to Tangier in 2 h 17 and stops at Rabat. By road, Rabat is 86.9 km away, about an hour.