How Many Days in Fez? What to Do Beyond the Medina

Where to stay

Staying near Bab Boujeloud or Batha puts you close to the main lane, Talaa Kbira. We do not recommend a long walk with luggage at night, so ask your riad about a porter.

What to see

• Bou Inania Madrasa, Al Attarine Madrasa and the Nejjarine fountain and museum.
• Dar Batha and the Merenid viewpoint.
• The Chouara tannery, see Fez tanneries.

Non Muslims cannot enter the Al Quaraouiyine mosque or the shrine of Moulay Idriss II.

Entry fees

Sight	Entry fee per person
Nejjarine Museum of Wooden Arts	20 MAD
Bou Inania Madrasa	50 MAD
Al Attarine Madrasa	50 MAD
Al Batha Museum (Dar Batha)	60 MAD
Borj Nord	50 MAD

Fees are paid at the entrance, so keep some dirhams in cash.

Day one: the heart of Fez el Bali

Fez was founded in 789 by Idris I and grew into a capital under his son Idris II, and the old city, Fez el Bali, has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1981. Most of what you see today was shaped by the Marinid sultans in the 13th and 14th centuries. On a first day I follow the main lane, Talaa Kbira, downhill from Bab Boujeloud, the blue gate built in 1913, so the walk is gentle.

• Bou Inania Madrasa, built between 1350 and 1355 by the Marinid sultan Abu Inan Faris. It is the only madrasa in Morocco that was also a Friday mosque, and across the lane you can see the remains of its 14th century water clock.
• The Nejjarine square, fountain and Museum of Wooden Arts, in a merchants inn of 1711.
• Al Attarine Madrasa, finished in 1325, with some of the finest carved cedar, stucco and zellige in the country.
• The outside of Al Quaraouiyine, founded in 859 by Fatima al Fihri and often described as the oldest university in the world that still teaches. Non Muslims see the courtyard through the doors.
• Seffarine square, where coppersmiths still hammer pots and cauldrons by hand.
• The Chouara tannery from a terrace, in the morning.

Day two: Fez Jdid, the Mellah and the views

• The brass doors of the Royal Palace, Dar al Makhzen, a favourite photograph.
• The Mellah, the old Jewish quarter, with its wooden balconies, the Ibn Danan synagogue and the Jewish cemetery. Read the Jewish heritage of Morocco.
• The Jnan Sbil garden, a cool break between Fez Jdid and the old city.
• Al Batha Museum of Islamic Arts in Dar Batha, a palace of the late 19th century that reopened in February 2025 after a long restoration. It holds more than 6,500 objects, including the blue ceramics of Fez and old minbars from the city mosques, around an Andalusian garden.
• Sunset from the Marinid Tombs or Borj Nord, with the whole medina below you and the call to prayer rising from hundreds of minarets.

A sample timing

Time	Day one	Day two
9:00	Bab Boujeloud and Bou Inania	Royal Palace doors
10:30	Nejjarine and Al Attarine	Mellah and synagogue
12:30	Lunch in the medina	Lunch near Batha
15:00	Seffarine and the craft lanes	Al Batha Museum and Jnan Sbil
17:30	Tannery terrace or rest	Sunset at the Marinid Tombs

Friday is the day of prayer, and many shops close at midday, so I plan the busy souks for other days. Mosques and shrines stay closed to non Muslims, but madrasas and museums are open to all.

How to get to Fez

• By air: Fes Saiss airport is about 15 kilometres south of the city, with direct flights from several European cities.
• By train: direct trains run from Casablanca, Rabat, Meknes and Tangier.
• By road: Fez is about 4 hours from Chefchaouen and a long day of driving from Merzouga or Marrakech. Read Fez or Marrakech.

A third day

Add a craft workshop, a cooking class or a day trip to Sefrou and Bhalil. See our Unique Experiences and the wider Imperial Cities tour.