Bahia, Mellah, El Badi and the Saadian Tombs: Marrakech's southern medina on departure day, without your suitcase

Last day in Marrakech: the riad wants the key back at 11am, and your train, bus or flight leaves late afternoon or in the evening. In between, a few hours for what you saved for the end: the Bahia Palace, the Mellah, El Badi Palace and the Saadian Tombs. All four sit in the southern medina, a few hundred metres apart. A wheeled suitcase, on the other hand, has no business there. Here is how to walk the loop with your bags left close by.

Why drop your bags at Bab Aghmat for this walk

The point sits outside the walls, on the Sidi Youssef Ben Ali side, in an area cars can reach: a petit taxi can drop you and your suitcases close by, which is rarely possible inside the medina. We covered it in detail in our guide to the Bab Aghmat point. Straight-line distances from the point (on foot, the lanes add a little):

• Bahia Palace: about 1 km.
• The Mellah, the old Jewish quarter: about 1 km.
• El Badi Palace: about 1.4 km.
• Saadian Tombs: about 1.7 km.

Between the monuments, distances are short: about 500 metres from the Bahia to El Badi, and barely 300 metres from El Badi to the Saadian Tombs. Follow the itinerary in your booking to find the point: it is a neighbourhood business, not a shop signposted for tourists.

The walking loop, step by step

1. Drop-off at Bab Aghmat. Show your booking: the partner scans your QR code and takes a timestamped photo of your bags. Keep your passport, tickets and charger with you.
2. Bahia Palace. The 19th-century palace, with its great marble courtyard, painted cedar ceilings and inner gardens. It is the closest stop to the point: start here, early, before the tour groups.
3. The Mellah. The old Jewish quarter lies just south of the Bahia. Wander its lanes and markets; the Lazama synagogue can usually be visited, but check the hours locally, as they vary.
4. El Badi Palace. The vast ruins of the Saadian palace, its pools and its walls where storks nest. The Almoravid minbar of the Koutoubia is on display here.
5. Saadian Tombs. The necropolis of the Saadian sultans, next to the Kasbah mosque. You enter through a narrow passage and the queue can be long around midday.
6. Back to Bab Aghmat. About 1.7 km as the crow flies: under half an hour on foot, or a few minutes by petit taxi (beige in Marrakech). Collect your bags with the same QR code, before 5pm.

Opening hours and tickets: check before you go

The recent sources we checked give these monuments' hours as generally 9am to 5pm, with last entry about half an hour before closing, and shorter hours during Ramadan. Quoted ticket prices differ from one source to another: carry cash in dirhams and check the price at the ticket office. After the September 2023 earthquake the Bahia and El Badi reopened, but restoration work is continuing: some rooms may be closed on the day you visit.

The 5pm rule: a walk that starts early

Three situations, three calculations

Check-out at 10am, train at 6pm

You drop a suitcase at 10:15am and collect it at 4:30pm before taking a petit taxi to the station. Just over 6 hours: book 7 hours, capped at the day price, so 59 MAD for one bag.

A couple, two suitcases, a Sunday

On Sundays, Bab Aghmat is the only BoxSpot point open in Marrakech. Two suitcases for the day: 59 MAD for the first, 49 MAD for the second, so 108 MAD.

The short afternoon version

You arrive at 12:30pm and only do the Bahia and El Badi. Drop-off at 12:45pm, collection at 4:45pm: 4 hours, the minimum, so 36 MAD for one bag.

Prices at a glance

Payment is online, in dirhams, by card. Your bags are only returned against the QR code of your booking. BoxSpot also has points in other Moroccan cities: find them in the storage explorer.