03Cities and regions

The capital

Rabat

Rabat, the capital of Morocco, stands on the Atlantic at the mouth of the Bou Regreg river, facing the town of Salé. About 516,000 people live in the city and some 2.1 million in its metropolitan area. The Almohads founded it in the 12th century, and its name comes from Ribat al-Fath, the title they gave their naval base in 1170. The medina and the modern city are listed together as a World Heritage Site since 2012. On a hill above the estuary sits the Kasbah of the Udayas, built by the Almohad caliph Abd al-Mu'min in 1150 or 1151, with its blue-and-white residential lanes and its Andalusian garden. Across town stands the Hassan Tower, the minaret of an unfinished mosque that Yaqub al-Mansur meant to be the largest in the western Islamic world; work stopped when he died in 1199, leaving a 44-metre tower and 348 columns. To the south lies Chellah, an ancient Roman site that later became a Marinid necropolis. Rabat is calm and easy to walk, a full day covers it, and trains reach it from the other big cities.

About 516,000

City population

0 m

Height of the Hassan Tower

Since 2012

World Heritage Site