Things to Do in Hassan Tower

Climb the Hassan Tower viewpoint

Only the first ramp is open. The 44-metre climb gives you a pigeon's view over the re-erected columns and the river mouth glittering beyond. Wind hisses up the tower's gut. Stone smells of iron after rain.

Mausoleum of Mohammed V sunset watch

Sit on the fountain ledge facing the mausoleum. Green tiles catch the last sun and throw mint light onto the white marble floor and the guards' kepis. You'll hear horse troopers clip across the square. Inside, slippers shuffle as Moroccans greet the tombs.

Stroll the Chellah ruins at golden hour

Ten minutes south of Hassan Tower the Roman stones feel warm. Later Islamic walls crumble into fig roots. Air smells of night-blooming jasmine planted by the Merinids. Bats spill from the old minaret while you trace stork nests along the battlements.

River cruise from Salé marina

A petite wooden pontoon leaves from across Hassan Tower. It chugs under Rabat's 12-century ramparts at eye level. Diesel smoke mixes with brine. Gulls wheel. Spray slaps the gunwale as the boat turns beside Atlantic breakers.

Friday flea sift at Souk Sebt

The weekly flea market sets up before dawn south of the tower. Copper coffee pots clang. Leather-workers spark awls. Mint tea steam clouds the low sun. You'll thumb 1960s Moroccan vinyl, Amazigh carpet off-cuts, and vintage wool djellabas that still smell of sheep fat.

Hassan - streets behind the tower where 1950s townhouses have been turned into budget riads smelling of cedar. You'll hear the dawn call drifting through shuttered windows.

Quartier Administratif - leafy boulevards, mid-range business hotels in converted colonial blocks, cafés that serve coffee strong enough to stain the saucer.

Kasbah of the Udayas - blue-and-white alleys, cliff-top guesthouses, the sound of waves slapping rock below your pillow.

Agdal - student zone, modern apartment-hotels, late-night shawarma windows glowing under plane trees.

Souissi - embassy quarter, villa-style splurge properties scented with roses, quiet after 9 pm.

Salé Medina - cross the river for family-run dars costing less than a city-centre dinner. Seagulls replace traffic noise.