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Bucket list trip:

Marrakech 3-day itinerary

  • Morocco

Last updated: 04 April, 2024

Where to go and what to see in Marrakech – a 3-day itinerary from destination expert and travel writer Annabelle Thorpe.

Editor note – Annabelle has not included specific recommendations of where to stay each day unless it’s necessary. Instead, see the ‘Where to stay’ section in our Marrakech destination guide.

Day 1

4

Begin by exploring the sprawling souks with a guide; afterwards grab lunch at buzzy Nomad, before retreating to your riad for a relaxing hammam or to laze on the rooftop during the afternoon heat. Later, stroll in the grounds of the Koutoubia mosque, and on to the Jemaa el Fna. Watch the sunset from a rooftop café before dinner at one of the stalls. Stay overnight in a traditional ‘riad’.

  • Marrakech, Marrakech-Safi, Morocco

  • Bucket List Experience

Interior walkway of covered souk in Marrakech

Experience

The world’s quintessential Arabic bazaar, the Medina’s maze-like souks are a shopper’s paradise.

Good for age: 13+

  • Marrakech, Marrakech-Safi, Morocco

  • Bucket List Experience

Intricately tiled interior of bath house

Experience

An everyday Moroccan ritual, a traditional hammam visit is a signature Marrakech experience, featuring rhassoul clay from the Atlas Mountains and locally-sourced Argan oil.

Adult price: 20

Good for age: 13+

Duration: 2+ hours

  • Marrakech, Marrakech-Safi, Morocco

  • Bucket List Experience

View at dusk just as the sun is setting

Experience

UNESCO World Heritage-listed central square that hums with snake charmers, musicians, magicians and other exotics.

Good for age: 8+

  • Marrakech, Marrakech-Safi, Morocco

  • Bucket List Experience

Interior of ornate riad with fountain, plants and tile-work

Experience

Shady roof-terraces, plant-filled courtyards and the bewitching medina just outside the door – staying in a riad is the best way to experience authentic Marrakech.

Adult price: 20

Good for age: 18+

Duration: 1+ nights

Day 2

4

Take a cab to the city’s outskirts to join an artist’s workshop at the Ateliers Ailleurs (great shopping potential too). Head back for lunch at Pause Gourmande, and then dip into the shady Jardins Majorelle, before exploring Villa Oasis and the Yves Saint Laurent Museum. Later, head into the desert for an unforgettable dinner under the stars.

  • Marrakech, Marrakech-Safi, Morocco

  • Bucket List Experience

group of young people showing the tiles they have made

Experience

Hands-on half or full-day workshops allow students to learn traditional Moroccan handicrafts alongside master craftspeople in their studios throughout Marrakech.

Adult price: 45

Good for age: 13+

Duration: 3-5 hours

When: All year round

Freq: daily

Jardin Majorelle

  • Marrakech, Marrakech-Safi, Morocco

Vivid blue building and garden of cactus and exotic plants

Experience

Luxuriant twelve-acre botanical gardens designed by French artist Jacques Majorelle who lived here in the 1920s and 1930s. Also once owned by the fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent.

Adult price: 10

Good for age: 13+

Website >
  • Marrakech, Marrakech-Safi, Morocco

  • Bucket List Experience

Red-brick exterior of museum

Experience

One of the two international museums dedicated to the Yves Saint Laurent fashion house, displaying iconic pieces by the famed designer in an architecturally-interesting building.

Adult price: 10

Good for age: 13+

  • Agafay Desert, Marrakech-Safi, Morocco

  • Bucket List Experience

Chairs around a campfire in the desert

Experience

Ride a camel across stark, lunar-like landscapes before dinner beneath the stars during an evening escape into the Agafay Desert, just 45 minutes from Marrakech.

Adult price: 180

Good for age: 10+

Duration: 4 hours

Day 3

3

Rise early for a hot-air balloon ride above the desert, then head back to discover the history of the city at the Photography Museum, stopping for a sandwich at Terrasse le Medersa. Afterwards, explore the intricately-sculpted courtyards of the Ben Youssef Medersa, before a sundowner on the roof of your riad. End your trip in style with dinner at Yacout, Marrakech’s best restaurant.

  • Marrakech, Marrakech-Safi, Morocco

  • Bucket List Experience

Hot-air balloon flights over Marrakech

Experience

Drift above evocative Marrakech, awash with vibrant colours, geometric patterns, and labyrinthine streets. Then it’s out over dramatic, arid landscapes of the Atlas Mountains, looking down onto traditional Berber villages.

Adult price: 150

Good for age: 10+

Duration: 5+ hours

Photography Museum

  • Marrakech, Marrakech-Safi, Morocco

Tiled interior courtyard of a riad (traditional Moroccan home) with plants and a fountain

Experience

Tranquil Medina riad housing an interesting collection of photographs documenting Moroccan life from the 1870s-1950s, that gives the best insight into life in the city before tourism arrived.

Adult price: 4

Good for age: 18+

Website >
  • Marrakech, Marrakech-Safi, Morocco

  • Bucket List Experience

Interior of Medersa, showing a central square with small pool

Experience

A splendid former Koranic school, dating to the 14th century, of remarkable architectural detail and beauty. 

Adult price: 4

Good for age: 18+