About Morocco > About Casablanca > What to See

What to See


[ Key Attractions ] [ Further Distractions ]

Key Attractions


Hassan II Mosque
Accommodating 2,500 worshippers inside and another 80,000 in its courtyard, this is a truly monumental complex right next to the sea. It covers a site of 9 hectares (22 acres), making it the world’s second largest religious building after the main Masjid al-Haram mosque in Mecca. Commenced in 1980 and opened in 1993, but not set to be fully finished for several decades yet, it has been the inspired work of French architect Michel Pineau and some 35,000 Moroccan craftsmen. The amazingly ornate minaret is the world’s tallest, standing 200m (656ft) high while two laser beams reach 30km (18.5 miles) towards Mecca. The vast prayer hall even has a sliding roof that can be open to the heavens.

Boulevard Sour Djedid at boulevard Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdallah
Free admission. There are hour-long guided tours of the mosque throughout the day for male non-Muslim visitors.

Casablanca Twin Centre
A strident piece of contemporary architecture by Spain’s Ricardo Bofil Levi and Elie Mouval, this twin-tower complex, soaring 100m (328ft) skywards, contains offices, shopping malls and a state of the art conference centre. It is seen as an evocation of the city’s commercial vibrancy. 

Boulevard Zerktouni at boulevard El-Massira
Free admission.

The Medinas
These are the great new traditionally styled living spaces that sprang up as the city expanded rapidly in the early 20th century. Two of the gates of the old town walls still survive in the Old Medina, whose attractions include an 18th-century fortress, a jewellery market and the tomb of Sidi Allal el-Kairouani, who became the city’s patron saint in 1350.

The New Medina, also known as the Quartier Habous, was created in the 1930s in traditional Arabic style and has pleasant flower-bedecked and arcaded streets. Ornately carved stucco makes the nearby palace Mahakma du Pacha, a triumph of Arabic decoration.

Old Medina: Between boulevard des Almohades and place Mohammed V
New Medina: Close to boulevard Victor Hugo
Free admission.

Musée du Judaïsme Marocain  (The Jewish Museum)
Set 5km (3 miles) from the city centre, in the suburb of Oasis, this is a truly unique attraction because it is not only Casablanca’s only museum, but it is also the only Jewish museum to be found in any Muslim country anywhere in the world. Set in a modern and well-maintained building are collections of religious books, costumes, sacramental artefacts and other items reflecting the role that the today 5,000-strong Jewish community has had and continues to play in Morocco. When fundamentalist bombers killed 45 people in attacks on mostly Jewish properties and businesses in 2003 it sparked the country’s biggest ever protest demonstration, marching under the banner ‘Jews and Muslims, we are all citizens, we are all Moroccans.’

81 rue Chasseur Jules Gros, Casablanca Oasis
Tel: (022) 994 940.
Website: www.casajewishmuseum.com
Admission charge.

Place Mohammed V (formerly Place des Nations Allies)
Laid out as the Place de France in 1920, then renamed as Place des Nations Allies after WWII, then again to Place Mohammed V, this imposing square is undisputedly the heart of the city. Its arcades are lined with bustling cafés and tacky souvenir shops while the impressive clocktower keeps time over the hustle and bustle. Running off the square towards the busy port is the shop- and restaurant-lined boulevard Houphouët Boigny, at whose end stands a memorial to Sidi Belyout, the city’s present patron saint.

Place Mohammed V, city centre
Free admission.
[ Back to Top ]

Further Distractions


Cathédrale Sacré-Coeur (Sacred Heart Cathedral)
Set on the edge of the Parc de la Ligue Arable, the city’s largest park, this is one of several fine Christian places of worship that have survived since the end of the days of the French protectorate in 1956. Though European in style, this ornate edifice employs many Moroccan motifs. No longer used as a place of worship, its interior has been sadly neglected but is now undergoing restoration by the Moroccan government.Another Christian site worth seeing is the still-used Church of Notre Dame of Lourdes, with its outstanding stained glass (on Avenue Zerktouni, by the Ronde de L’Europe roundabout).

Parc de la Ligue Arabe

Rialto Cinema
Still functioning as a movie house, this landmark is a diminutive and gaudily painted art deco delight both inside and out.

Corner of rue Mohammed el Quorri and rue Salah Ben Bouchaib
Tel: (022) 262 632.

Hammams
One experience not to be missed is a visit to a public hammam, which is similar to a Turkish bath. Most districts have several, or you can head for the pricey but gloriously self-indulgent new Hammam Zaki. Alternatives also to be found on the Institute de Beauté website (www.beautyfarmhotel.net/af/institutdebeaute_casablanca.htm) include Institut Zinabel and Votre Beauté.

Hammam Zaki
25 rue Abou Assalt el-Andaloussi, Maarif
Tel: (022) 991 308.

Les Bains Ziani
Rue Abdou Rakrak
Tel: (022) 319 695.
Website: www.hammamziani.ma

Institut Zinabel
211 boulevard Mohammed Zerktouni
Tel: (022) 942 639.

Votre Beauté
77 rue du Gharb
Tel: (022) 817 890.

Bain Turc Moderne
133 rue Abiou ibn Saïd
Tel: (022) 259 794.
[ Back to Top ]

Travel Guides

About Casablanca

More Pages