Does your ideal vacation prioritize art galleries and architecture over adventure? Would you rather sip cocktails than scale sand dunes? Does your travel itinerary look better with art deco-style buildings, museums and discos? Then Morocco is calling you.
Casablanca
Travelers have long ignored Casablanca in favor of more local exotic, but what the city lacks in Islamic monuments and labyrinthine souks, it makes up for in its dizzying nightlife, a burgeoning art scene and a hodgepodge of architectural styles. Casablanca's inhabitants, known as Casablanca, are known for being more Western in their attitudes. You can find men and women together in restaurants and bars dressed up in the latest global trends.
In the 1930s, art deco style was all the rage in Paris and New York, famously represented by the Paris Métro and New York's Chrysler Building. The style caught on in Casablanca, and you can see some of the many art deco buildings in the Place Mohammed V and Place November 16. Galleries abound, featuring both Moroccan and international artists, including The Studio of the living Arts, Gallery workshop 21 and Loft Gallery, along with Amber Gallery, located in the high-end suburb of Mohammedia. The non-profit group Casamémoire runs a variety of projects including an exhibition space housed in an abandoned slaughterhouse on the edge of town.
While nightclubs and lounges such as Arts Club Lounge, Le Carré and The Empire are perennially popular for dancing and people watching, Casablanca also stands out for its private beach clubs, such as Tahiti Beach and Atlantic Beach.
Rabat
As the capital city, Rabat is home to government officials, foreign diplomats and university students, which give the city's orderly and tree-lined streets a staunchly conservative feel. Gone are Casablanca's traffic jams or Fez´s people jams. Instead, Rabat boasts a state-of-the-art tram system and an overall relaxed vibe.
Gallery CMOOA is an obvious stop for art lovers, as are The Cube and the Space Expressions CDG. The Fondation ONA oversees the Art Villa, a complex dedicated to contemporary art. It is composed of several buildings that each focus on a particular artistic discipline, such as sculpture, theater and painting.
Rabat also has two botanical gardens: the Test gardens, located in the middle of the city and a welcome respite to the summer's heat (currently under renovation), and the stunning exotic Bouknade gardens, about 12 miles outside of the city.
Marrakesh
Marrakesh can easily claim the title of Morocco's most cosmopolitan city. Movie stars routinely pop up into the city's numerous luxury hotels, including the Four Seasons, W, La Mamounia and the Riad El Fenn, owned by the wife of Richard Branson. Fans of the Sex and the City franchise can stay at the Taj Palace Marrakesh, featured in SATC 2.
The city's nightlife can give most Western cities a run for its money (with prices to match). Asian-inspired Bo - zin is popular right now, but rooftop bars like Skybab at the Bab Hotel and SkyLounge at the Delano Hotel, offer stunning views of the city and the nearby Atlas Mountains. You can end your night at Pachá Marrakech gold you can party all day at Nikki Beach.
Along with beautiful people, Marrakesh is also full of beautiful art. Matisse Gallery is widely regarded as the city's most established gallery, but those interested in local artists should check out The Gallery blue and Gallery 127.
Written by Silvia McCallister-Castillo.
Photo by oeilevenement.
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Silvia (6 Posts)Silvia is a multilingual New Yorker living in Madrid, Spain. While majoring in Classics at Columbia University in New York, she spent time living with a Moroccan family in Sale, near Rabat, studying Arabic (now mostly forgotten) and learning about North African culture. She has taught English in Shenzhen, China, and was named a Huayu Enrichment Scholar in Taipei, Taiwan. She likes traveling around Asia and visiting her family in Costa Rica whenever she can. Apart from Mandarin Chinese, she speaks Spanish and French. Silvia has worked for a variety of non-profit institutions, including the Lower East Side Tenement Museum and the high school French from New York. She is currently working at IE Business School.
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