Top places to Visit in Morocco.
In this guide, you’ll find an overview of the best places to visit in Morocco, including the most popular landscape, nature, and street photography locations! Morocco has pleasantly surprised me in a variety of ways. The country has much more to offer than the desert, camel rides, and Instagram-worthy tiled courtyards. I spent 6 months travelling around Morocco and I amazed by the variety of landscapes, the mingling of cultures, the vibrant medinas, and the people’s laid-back attitude. You can travel from the Atlantic coast to the Sahara desert in one day, passing through modern cities, mud-brick fortresses, lush palm groves, and beautiful waterfalls! Morocco is also a beautiful country to photograph. Whether you enjoy street, nature, landscape, or people photography, your trip to Morocco will undoubtedly result in hundreds of stunning images!
Here’s a detailed breakdown of the best places to visit in Morocco, complete with photos, of course!
MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACES TO VISIT IN MOROCCO FOR LANDSCAPES AND NATURE
- THE SAHARA DESERT
While the country has much more to offer than just desert, camels, and sand dunes, it would be a shame to miss out on iconic Sahara Desert photos when visiting Morocco for (photography) purposes! The sun creates a beautiful light show with the vibrant red, orange, and yellow colours of the endless sea of sand throughout the day. Groups of grumpy camels and blue-robed Berbers are frequently good subjects for desert photography. The best times for a desert photoshoot are at sunrise and/or sunset when you can play with shadows and silhouettes in the soft golden light. The villages of Merzouga and M’Hamid are the best places to access Morocco’s Sahara desert, especially if you’re taking public transportation. From both villages, you can easily hike into the desert or hop on a camel and spend as much time as you need to get stunning photos.
3. THE AKCHOUR WATERFALLS AND GOD’S BRIDGE
Also worth seeing are the Akchour Waterfalls in the Rif Mountains near Chefchaouen. While not as tall as the Ouzoud Waterfalls, they are stunning, photogenic, and – as an added bonus – much less touristic!
The Akchour waterfalls are a series of small cascades, a 20-meter-high waterfall (the small Akchour), and a 100-meter-high waterfall (the big Akchour) located in Talassemtane National Park, a day trip from Chefchaouen. The waterfalls are only accessible by foot. It takes one hour to reach the small Akchour and another hour to reach the large Akchour at the end of the hiking trail. The hiking trail winds around stunning lush gorges and along the river’s edge, passing many beautiful cascades. It’s a relatively easy hike that’s also a lot of fun!
The God’s Bridge is a stunning natural rock arch in Talassemtane National Park, near the Akchour waterfalls. This natural wonder is also only accessible on foot. You must hike 45 minutes through a breathtaking canyon to reach God’s Bridge. This natural rock bridge is nearly 30 metres high and connects the canyon walls.
8. THE ATLAS MOUNTAINS
The Atlas Mountains are a series of mountain ranges with very diverse terrain, climate, and wildlife. The mountains are dotted with Berber villages and divided by canyons and ravines. The Atlas Mountains engulf most of Morocco and are home to the Berber people. The Berbers, also known as the Amazighs, are an indigenous North African ethnic group. While travelling through the Atlas Mountains, you will come across many Berber villages. The houses in those settlements and villages are easily identified because they are made of rocks and sun-dried clay bricks. Most villages are nestled on the sides of hills and make excellent subjects for landscape photography!
9. AIT BEN HADDOU
Ait Ben Haddou is a fortified village and an excellent example of Moroccan earthen clay architecture. Since 1987, it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This iconic Moroccan landmark draws a large number of tourists every day because it is one of the best places to visit in Morocco. Many narrow streets and a half-dozen kasbahs can be found within Ait Ben Haddou’s walls (fortified houses). Ait Ben Haddou is best photographed at sunrise or sunset. Not only is this the ideal time to capture stunning landscape photos with this ksar as the main subject, but it is also when there are few tourists (they come between 9 am and 6 pm).).
THE BEST CITIES TO VISIT IN MOROCCO FOR STREET PHOTOGRAPHY
1. ESSAOUIRA
Essaouira is my favourite Moroccan city! Despite being a tourist destination, this coastal city has a very relaxed atmosphere. The medina (city centre) of Essaouira is a riot of colour, with blue dominating. There are numerous beautiful doors, gates, and alleys that would make excellent photographic subjects. If you want to capture colourful and candid photos of Essaouira’s daily life, you should also visit the fish market and the souks (Arab for marketplace). The fishing port is another fantastic location (and my favourite photography location is Essaouira). You’ll see the fishermen unloading their catch of the day if you go there in the early evening, just before sunset. Locals walk around the crowded port looking for fresh fish, while cheeky seagulls try to steal tasty fish bits from unobservant vendors. It’s a frantic, stinky, muddy, and chaotic experience that’s perfect for street photography!
2. CHEFCHAOUEN
Chefchaouen is a small town in Morocco’s northwest Rif Mountains. It is without a doubt one of the best photography destinations in Morocco! It’s a lovely town with blue-washed streets and buildings, that is why it is dubbed “the Blue Pearl of Morocco. The streets of this “Blue City” are ideal for street photography! Walking through the narrow streets of Chefchaouen’s medina is a sensory overload. There’s always something interesting to see around every corner.
3. FEZ
Fez is one of Morocco‘s most ancient imperial cities and the country’s cultural capital. The medina of Fes El Bali is known for its vibrant souks and mediaeval Marinid architecture. Among the places that you can visit, there are Madrassahs (Arab religious schools) such as Bou Inania and Al Attarine, both beautifully decorated with intricate cedar carvings and ornate tile work. The ancient leather tanneries piqued my interest the most during my visit to Fez, especially as a photographer. The Chouara Tannery is the largest of Fez’s three tanneries and locals say that it is the world’s oldest one in the world. For nearly 1000 years, the tannery structures and leather tanning techniques have remained largely unchanged. It’s fascinating to watch the tanning process and well worth filming!
4. Cathedrale Imsfrane
At the end of this article, we choose a unique place, to sum up, this Article. Cathedrale Imsafrane is one the place which is not well known among the travellers that visit Morocco, but it is really a beautiful place to visit. In this area, you can do many activities, including hiking and rafting.
