Half a day in Rabat: the Chellah, the Hassan Tower and the Andalusian garden, without dragging your bags

You have a morning or an afternoon in Rabat, a suitcase, and the urge to see more than the station. Our one-day Rabat itinerary focuses on the medina and the Kasbah of the Udayas. This one takes the other, more monumental side of the capital: the Chellah necropolis, the Hassan Tower and the Mohammed V Mausoleum, with a final stop in the Andalusian garden. All in about five hours, with timings and prices.

The starting point: Saberbest, Place de Russie

BoxSpot's Rabat point is the Saberbest travel agency at 13 bis avenue Madagascar, a few minutes from Place de Russie. It is about 1.3 km from Rabat-Ville station (around fifteen minutes on foot) and 8 to 10 minutes by petit taxi from Rabat-Agdal, the Al Boraq station. Both routes are described in our guide to arriving at Rabat-Agdal or Rabat-Ville with luggage.

On site, show your booking at the counter: the agent scans your QR code and photographs your bags, with the drop-off time. When you return, your bags are only handed back against that same QR code. Booking and directions are on the Saberbest Place de Russie storage page.

The Chellah, the necropolis above the Bouregreg

On the south-east side of the city, behind a crenellated wall, the Chellah layers two stories: the remains of the ancient city of Sala, from Roman times, and the necropolis where the Marinid sultans chose to be buried in the 14th century. You walk down between gardens, tombs and a ruined mosque, with storks nesting on the walls and the minaret. A small pool where, according to local tradition, eels live still intrigues visitors.

The site reopened in May 2024 after a long restoration, with an audio-guided route. At the reopening, standard entry was announced at 70 MAD per adult and the audio-guided visit at 120 MAD, with a 50% discount for Moroccans and foreigners living in Morocco. Tickets can be bought on the Chellah's official website. Prices and opening hours may have changed since: check them online or at the gate before building your morning around them.

• Time needed: about 1.5 hours to walk round without rushing.
• Terrain: sloping paths, steps, dirt tracks. Good shoes, and definitely no suitcase.
• Getting there: about 3 km as the crow flies from Saberbest, around ten minutes by petit taxi (blue in Rabat, on the meter).

The Hassan Tower and the Mohammed V Mausoleum

From the Chellah, the Hassan Tower is about 2 km away as the crow flies: 5 to 10 minutes by petit taxi. You can walk, but in hot weather the taxi saves your energy for what comes next.

The Hassan Tower is the minaret of a huge mosque begun by the Almohad sultan Yacoub al-Mansour at the end of the 12th century and never finished. What remains is the tower, about 44 metres high, and the forest of columns of a prayer hall that never got a roof. Opposite, the Mohammed V Mausoleum, completed in the early 1970s, holds the tombs of King Mohammed V and his sons, King Hassan II and Prince Moulay Abdallah. Guards in ceremonial dress stand at the entrances.

• Entry: the esplanade and the mausoleum are free to visit, including for non-Muslims.
• Dress: modest clothing is expected, especially inside the mausoleum. Covered shoulders and knees is the simplest rule.
• Opening hours: we found no published official hours. The site is open during the day but may close for ceremonies: ask on site.
• Time needed: 45 minutes to 1 hour.

The Andalusian garden of the Udayas, to finish

From the Hassan Tower, the Kasbah of the Udayas is about 1.5 km away as the crow flies: some twenty minutes on foot along the Bouregreg, or a few minutes by taxi. Inside the walls, the Andalusian garden, laid out in the early 20th century, offers a break in the shade of orange trees, next to the Udayas Museum (National Museum of Adornment). The museum and garden reopened in January 2023 after restoration.

We could not confirm the garden's current opening hours: they can vary, and an occasional closure is always possible. Check with the National Museums Foundation or on site. If the garden is closed, the kasbah's viewing platform and the Café des Oudayas still make a fine finish. For the kasbah itself and the medina, see our one-day itinerary: we will not repeat it here.

The timed route

Why the morning? Both major sites are outdoors, with little shade on the Hassan Tower esplanade, and you avoid depending on a closing time you have not checked. In the afternoon, the same route works starting around 2pm, provided you first check the Chellah's closing time.

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 9:00 and pick-up at 14:00: 5 hours, which is 45 MAD for one suitcase. If you add lunch and collect your bags at 15:00, you move to 6 hours, which is 54 MAD.

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