Half a day in Casablanca between trains: the Habous quarter, the old medina and the Central Market, without your bags

Your train pulls into Casa-Voyageurs in the late morning, the next one leaves in the afternoon, and you have a suitcase. Plenty of travellers in a hurry write Casablanca off as a business city. Yet half a day is enough to see its most likeable side: the Habous quarter, the old medina facing the port, and the Central Market. Here is a timed route, the transport that actually works, and where to leave your bags in the meantime.

First, the suitcase: where to leave it and when

The right place to leave a bag is near the station you leave from, not near the sights. Troplo Coffee is in the Chadia / La Villette area, about 1.2 km from Casa-Voyageurs. You book online, show your QR code at the counter, the café team takes your bags and a timestamped photo is taken at drop-off. When you come back, your bags are only handed over against that same QR code. Practical details are on the Troplo Coffee storage page, and the routes from each station are in our guide to luggage storage in Casablanca.

Getting around: red petit taxis and tram line T1

• Petit taxi: in Casablanca they are red. They run on the meter and take up to three passengers. Ask for the meter as soon as you get in. It is the easiest way to reach the Habous quarter, which is not on an obvious tram route from the station.
• Tram T1: it serves Casa-Voyageurs, the Central Market (Marché Central) and United Nations Square (Place des Nations Unies). Tickets are sold at station machines. Under the latest fare scale voted by the city in 2024, a single ride costs under 10 dirhams: check the price shown on the machine.
• On foot: ideal between United Nations Square, the medina and the Central Market. Between the Habous quarter and the medina, however, it is about 2.7 km as the crow flies along wide boulevards: take a taxi.

Note that Troplo is not right next to the tram stop. If you come back by tram, add another 15 to 17 minutes on foot from Casa-Voyageurs, or take a petit taxi straight to the café.

The Habous quarter, the "new medina"

The Habous quarter was built under the French protectorate, mostly in the 1920s and 1930s, to plans by architects such as Albert Laprade, Auguste Cadet and Edmond Brion. The idea was to recreate a traditional medina using modern town planning. The result: straight, tidy lanes, arcades, white facades and small tree-lined squares. It is the calmest and most photogenic part of the city.

• The booksellers' arcades: old books, art books, calligraphy.
• Craft shops: babouche slippers, djellabas, copperware, ceramics. You can browse without pressure.
• Traditional pastry shops: gazelle horns and almond sweets, easy to take on the train.
• The Mahkama du Pacha: the former pasha's court is admired from the outside. It sometimes opens to the public during the heritage days organised by the Casamémoire association.

The Moulay Youssef mosque at the heart of the quarter is open to Muslims only, and the neighbouring Royal Palace cannot be visited. Allow 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Shops tend to open mid-morning, and on Fridays things slow down around midday prayer.

United Nations Square and the old medina

United Nations Square, formerly Place de France, is the hinge between the medina and the city built in the early 20th century. An easy landmark: the clock tower, rebuilt in the 1990s in the image of the original. You enter the medina through the gate at the foot of the tower, or through Bab Marrakech a little further on.

Casablanca's old medina is small and lively: few monuments, but busy shopping lanes, everyday stalls and a far less touristy feel than Fès or Marrakech. Head up to the Sqala, the old bastion on the ramparts facing the port, for the view and a break. This is exactly the kind of walk (narrow lanes, steps, crowded pavements) where a suitcase becomes a burden.

What about the Hassan II Mosque? It deserves its own visit, with guided tours at set times. Rather than squeezing it into this half day, follow our dedicated plan: visiting the Hassan II Mosque on a layover with luggage.

The Central Market, for lunch

From United Nations Square, about ten minutes on foot takes you to the Central Market, built in 1917 in a neo-Moorish style with its large entrance gate. Inside: fish and seafood, flowers, olives, spices. Around the market, several small restaurants serve fish and seafood: the obvious place for lunch before you head back. A T1 tram stop bears the market's name, handy for returning towards Casa-Voyageurs.

The timed route, example on a Tuesday

Taxi times are estimates: at rush hour, Casablanca traffic can double them. Keep your buffer for the end of the route, and aim to be at the station 20 to 30 minutes before departure.

How much does storage cost for this half day?

Pricing is per bag, paid online in dirhams by card: 9 MAD per hour, with a 4-hour minimum, and never more than 59 MAD for the first bag for the day. In the example above, drop-off at 10:00 and pick-up at 14:45: you book 5 hours, which is 45 MAD for one suitcase.

With several bags, the exact total appears when you book. To see the options in town, check the Casablanca luggage storage page. Heading on to Rabat, Tangier, Fès or Marrakech? The other BoxSpot points are on the storage map.