In this guide
💡 The Short Version: The Jardin Majorelle is the booking that cannot wait. Its tickets are timed 30-minute slots, sold only at tickets.jardinmajorelle.com, at 170 MAD for the garden and 330 MAD with the Berber museum and the Yves Saint Laurent museum, and in October the morning slots sell out days ahead. The Bahia Palace, El Badi Palace and Saadian Tombs are 100 MAD each (about £7.50) with no combined ticket, and parts of each are still being restored. The Ben Youssef Madrasa is 50 MAD, at the door only. The YSL museum is closed on Wednesdays and the Dar El Bacha museum on Mondays. A UK passport needs 3 months’ validity after arrival and no visa for up to 90 days. From the airport, bus 19 is 30 MAD and the official taxi fare is 70 MAD by day, though drivers commonly ask 100 to 150 MAD. Prices are in dirham (MAD), about 13 to the pound. Or book a tour: the Bahia Palace, Saadian Tombs and medina tourad (from £13, 4 hours) and the Ben Youssef, Secret Garden and souks walking tourad (from £13, 3 hours) put a guide in one booking (GetYourGuide).
What to book before you go
Prices are the adult rate for a foreign visitor, from the operators, at about 13 MAD to the pound. Buy from the operator: look-alike ticket sites turn up in search results for the Majorelle, the Bahia Palace, the Saadian Tombs and El Badi.
| Sight | Book how far ahead | Adult price | Book at | What to know |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jardin Majorelle | Several days ahead; before you fly for a morning slot in October | 170 MAD for the garden, 230 MAD with the Berber museum, 330 MAD with both museums | tickets.jardinmajorelle.com | Timed 30-minute slots. The garden says tickets bought on any other site will not give access. |
| Yves Saint Laurent museum | Same ticket office and slots as the garden | 140 MAD, or in the 330 MAD combined ticket | tickets.jardinmajorelle.com | Closed on Wednesdays. |
| Bahia Palace | No slot: online or at the gate | 100 MAD | Ministry of Culture e-services | Restoration is still going on inside. |
| Saadian Tombs and El Badi Palace | No slot: online or at the gate | 100 MAD each | Saadian Tombs, El Badi | No combined ticket. Parts are under restoration. |
| Almoravid Koubba and Menara Pavilion | No slot: online or at the gate | 100 MAD and 60 MAD | Koubba, Menara | Same platform as the Bahia. |
| Ben Youssef Madrasa | Not bookable | 50 MAD | medersabenyoussef.ma | Tickets at the door only. Open 09:00 to 19:00. |
| Le Jardin Secret | Optional: an online ticket is valid for a year | 100 MAD | lejardinsecretmarrakech.com | Online tickets are non-refundable. Open every day. |
| ANIMA Garden, on the Ourika road | The free shuttle needs a reservation at least 24 hours ahead | 140 MAD | anima-garden.com | The shuttle leaves behind the Koutoubia at 09:30 and 14:30. |
- The Majorelle slots. Slots run in 30-minute steps from 08:00, and the last is at 16:30. In October 2026 the slots from about 09:00 to 12:00 sell out days ahead. Jardin Majorelle tickets has the four tickets and the sums.
- The ministry monuments. Each of the Bahia, El Badi, the Saadian Tombs and the Almoravid Koubba is a separate 100 MAD ticket for a foreign adult, with 50 MAD for a child aged 7 to 13. Moroccan nationals enter free on Fridays.
- The Ben Youssef Madrasa sells no online tickets for now. Go at 09:00, when it opens. The madrasa guide has the rest.
- A guide. Book a badge-holding licensed guide, or none. Marrakech medina tours and licensed guides says how to check.
The Koutoubia minaret at dusk, on the west side of Jemaa el-Fnaa. Photo: Misa.stefanovic.07, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Opening times that change
| Sight | Hours | Closed |
|---|---|---|
| Jardin Majorelle | 08:00 to 17:30, last entry 17:00 (ticket office) | Open every day |
| Yves Saint Laurent museum | 10:00 to 18:00, last entry 17:30 | Wednesdays |
| Bahia Palace, El Badi, Saadian Tombs, Koubba, Menara | 09:00 to 17:00 | Open every day |
| Ben Youssef Madrasa | 09:00 to 19:00 | Open every day |
| Le Jardin Secret | 09:30 to 18:00 from October to February | Open every day |
| Maison de la Photographie | 09:30 to 19:00 | Open every day |
| Dar El Bacha and the Jamaâ el-Fna museum | 10:00 to 18:00 | Mondays |
| MACAAL | 10:00 to 18:00, Wednesday to Sunday | Mondays and Tuesdays |
- The Majorelle’s own page lists the garden as 08:00 to 18:30, with the last entry at 18:00. Check the day’s hours when you book.
- Mondays: the Dar El Bacha museum, the Jamaâ el-Fna museum and MACAAL are closed.
- Wednesdays: the Yves Saint Laurent museum is closed, so the 330 MAD combined ticket does not suit a Wednesday.
- Fridays: the ministry monuments are free for Moroccan nationals.
- Ramadan: the UK Foreign Office says the next one starts in February 2027. Hours shorten: Le Jardin Secret 09:30 to 16:30 and the Ben Youssef Madrasa 09:00 to 16:30.
- Eid days: ANIMA is closed on both Eid holidays, and Le Jardin Secret has opened on short hours on Eid.
Getting in from the airport
Menara airport is about 6 km from Jemaa el-Fnaa. Marrakech airport to the medina compares the options.
- Bus 19: 30 MAD single, 50 MAD return, about every 20 to 30 minutes from about 06:00 to 21:30, to a stop at Arset El Bilk by Jemaa el-Fnaa. Pay on board and carry cash.
- Taxi: the regional tourism board prints a regulated fare of 70 MAD by day and 100 MAD by night. Drivers commonly ask 100 to 150 MAD, so agree the price in dirhams before you get in.
- Uber has run in Marrakech since 27 November 2025, through licensed vehicles only. Other ride apps are not licensed.
- Your riad may sit in a lane no car can enter. The host sends someone to meet you at the nearest gate, and a tip of 10 to 20 MAD for the porter is usual.
Before you travel
- Passport: a UK passport needs to be valid for at least 3 months after the day you arrive, and a visa is not needed for up to 90 days (UK Foreign Office entry requirements). The border officer should stamp it, and some travellers have had trouble leaving without an entry stamp.
- Money: the dirham is a closed currency and cannot be bought in advance in the UK. Take cash from a cash machine on arrival, and choose dirhams if the machine offers to convert. Unspent dirhams can be changed back at the airport on a boarding pass, up to 2,000 MAD per passport (Office des Changes).
- Cash or card: cards work in hotels, larger restaurants and shops. Taxis, souks, small cafés and porters take cash.
- Dress: cover shoulders and knees in the medina and in villages.
Guides, scams and animals
- Unlicensed guides are the commonest problem. The UK Foreign Office says people posing as official guides harass tourists, and advises using a guide only with an official badge and permission from the local authority. Police arrested a man on 20 July 2026 after a tourist posted a video of an extortion, and another on 5 August 2026 for posing as a guide and demanding money.
- “It’s closed.” A stranger who says the palace or the street ahead is closed is steering you to a shop. Check opening hours online, say “no thank you” and keep walking.
- Animals on Jemaa el-Fnaa. Do not pay for photos with the chained monkeys or the snakes. Jemaa el-Fnaa by day and night says what to pay for.
- Safety: Is Marrakech safe? Scams, guides and dress has the rest.
Day trips
Marrakech has more day trips than days. Day trips from Marrakech compares each by travel time and by tour against going on your own. The ones with something to know:
- Ourika Valley: about 60 km, with tours of 7 to 8 hours.
- Imlil and the Atlas Mountains: 64 km, 1.5 to 2 hours by road. Toubkal is a two-day guided climb, not a day trip.
- Agafay Desert: a stony plateau 40 to 50 minutes from the medina, not sand dunes. It is sold as a sunset dinner with quad and camel rides.
- Essaouira: about 177 km, 3 hours by coach, and tours of 10 to 12 hours.
- Ouzoud Falls: about 3 hours each way.
- Aït Benhaddou and Ouarzazate: 3 to 4 hours’ drive each way over the Tizi n’Tichka pass.
- Sahara tours: 2 days to Zagora or 3 to Merzouga, mostly driving.
- Hot-air balloons: Moroccan authorities sanctioned balloon operators in 2025 for flying in the airport approach, and flights resumed in November 2025. The UK Foreign Office’s advice for Morocco, updated in August 2026, says to book only through licensed operators.
Sights, food and where to sleep
To see the Koutoubia, Jemaa el-Fnaa and the Kasbah monuments on foot, the medina walk gives the route and what is open. Marrakech museums lists what each costs and which day it is closed, and the souks explains how haggling works. Where to eat in Marrakech lists the restaurants, Marrakech food tours compares the guided tastings, and cooking classes and hammams cover the two other things visitors book. Best time to visit Marrakech gives the weather and the holidays by month.
What changed in 2025 and 2026
- 3 April 2025: the Ministry of Culture opened its online ticket platform for the Bahia, El Badi, the Saadian Tombs and other monuments.
- 27 November 2025: Uber began operating in Marrakech through licensed vehicles.
- November 2025: hot-air balloon flights resumed after the 2025 sanctions.
- Spring 2026: new carts for the food and juice sellers on Jemaa el-Fnaa.
- 20 July and 5 August 2026: police arrested two men for posing as guides.
- 14 September to 2 October 2026: the Yves Saint Laurent museum’s temporary exhibition gallery was closed. It reopened on 3 October.
- 18 September 2026: Al Omrane Marrakech-Safi published a tender to make and install new stands for the restaurateurs on Jemaa el-Fnaa, with bids due by 12 October.
- February 2027: Ramadan is due to start.
Plan the trip
- Where to sleep: where to stay in Marrakech compares the areas, hotels near Jemaa el-Fnaa lists the hotels beside the square, and riads with a pool covers the courtyard plunge pools.
- Getting there and about: Marrakech airport to the medina compares bus, taxi and transfer, and Is Marrakech safe? covers taxis, scams and dress.
- The sights: the Jardin Majorelle, the Yves Saint Laurent museum, the Bahia Palace, the Saadian Tombs and El Badi Palace, the Ben Youssef Madrasa and Le Jardin Secret each have a ticket guide, and Marrakech museums covers the rest.
- The medina: Jemaa el-Fnaa, the souks and medina tours and licensed guides form one area. Marrakech after the earthquake says what has reopened and what is still under repair.
- How many days: 3 days in Marrakech builds the plan round the bookings and the closed days.
- When to go: best time to visit Marrakech covers the seasons.
- Food and experiences: where to eat in Marrakech, food tours, cooking classes and hammams.
Itineraries
Day-by-day plans for a first visit.
Which ticket to buy
The official ticket, the tours that include entry, and which sells out first.
Tickets
Jardin Majorelle Tickets: Slots, Prices, Combined
The Jardin Majorelle sells timed 30-minute tickets only at tickets.jardinmajorelle.com: 170 MAD for the garden, 230 MAD with the Berber museum and 330 MAD with the Yves Saint Laurent museum too. In October the morning slots sell out days ahead. The four tickets, the sums, the hours and what to see.
Tickets
YSL Museum Marrakech: Tickets, Hours, Closed Days
The Yves Saint Laurent museum in Marrakech costs 140 MAD, or 330 MAD in the combined ticket with the Jardin Majorelle and the Berber museum. It is closed on Wednesdays, open 10:00 to 18:00, and sells tickets only at tickets.jardinmajorelle.com. What is inside, the café and the temporary gallery.
Tickets
Bahia Palace Tickets: Official Price and Hours
The Bahia Palace in Marrakech costs 100 MAD for a foreign adult and 50 MAD for a child aged 7 to 13, sold on the Ministry of Culture's e-services site and at the gate, and open 09:00 to 17:00. Restoration after the 2023 earthquake is still under way. The price, the tours and what to see.
Tickets
Saadian Tombs and El Badi Palace: Tickets, Hours
The Saadian Tombs and El Badi Palace in Marrakech each cost 100 MAD for a foreign adult, with no combined ticket, sold on the Ministry of Culture's e-services site and at the gate, and open 09:00 to 17:00. Restoration after the 2023 earthquake is still under way at both. Prices, tours and what to see.
Tickets
Ben Youssef Madrasa: Price, Hours, What to Combine
The Ben Youssef Madrasa in Marrakech costs 50 MAD for a foreign adult, sold at the entrance only while its online ticketing is under maintenance, and is open 09:00 to 19:00 every day. What is inside, the tours that include it and what to pair it with in the north of the medina.
Tickets
Le Jardin Secret Marrakech: Tickets, Prices, Hours
Le Jardin Secret in Marrakech costs 100 MAD for a full-price adult, 80 MAD from 12 to 24 and free under 12. Tickets are sold online and at the door, valid for a year, and the garden is open every day from 09:30. What is inside, the rules and the tours that include it.
Tickets
Best Museums in Marrakech: Prices and Closed Days
Marrakech's museums with price, hours and closed day: Dar El Bacha (60 MAD, closed Mondays), the Jamaâ el-Fna museum (40 MAD), the Maison de la Photographie (80 MAD, open daily), MACAAL (120 MAD, closed Monday and Tuesday), the Berber museum and the Yves Saint Laurent museum (closed Wednesdays).
Tickets
Jemaa el-Fnaa: Day, Night, Scams and Animals
Jemaa el-Fnaa by time of day: calm juice carts and herbalists until the afternoon, food stalls from about 17:00, busiest from about 19:00 to 22:00. The 2026 rebuild and the tender to replace the food stalls, what to agree the price of first, and why not to pay for photos with the chained monkeys or snakes.
Tickets
Marrakech Souks: How They Work and How to Haggle
The Marrakech souks are covered lanes north of Jemaa el-Fnaa, grouped by trade, open about 09:00 to 19:00 with many shops shut on Friday at prayer time. How haggling works, the 'it's closed' and 'I work at your hotel' lines, what a helpful stranger expects, and the guided souk tours.
Tickets
Marrakech Medina Tours and Licensed Guides
Use a guide in the Marrakech medina only with an official badge and permission from the local authority, or none. A private licensed guide advertises 300 to 600 MAD for a half or full day. Thirteen GetYourGuide medina tours from £11 to £47 compared, and the entry tickets to add where they are not included.
Tickets
Marrakech Hot Air Balloon: Price, Operators, Safety
A shared sunrise balloon flight over Marrakech costs 2,400 MAD with Ciel d'Afrique and from about £61 to £83 on GetYourGuide. Authorities sanctioned operators in 2025, flights resumed in November 2025, and the Foreign Office says to book only through licensed operators.
Day trips from Marrakech
Out and back in a day, with the tours compared against going on your own.
Day trip
Day Trips from Marrakech: Tour or DIY, Costed
Ourika is about 60 km away, Essaouira 3 hours by coach, Ouzoud 150 km and Aït Benhaddou over the Tizi n'Tichka pass; Zagora and Merzouga are 2 and 3 days. Day trips from Marrakech compared on time, tour price from about £11, entry costs and whether to go by tour or on your own.
Day trip
Ourika Valley Day Trip from Marrakech: Tour vs Taxi
Setti Fatma, the end of the Ourika Valley, is about 60 km from Marrakech. A group tour with guide, hike and tea runs 7 to 8 hours from about £11, lunch extra; the ANIMA garden has a free shuttle. What the day costs and what to agree before you sit down to eat.
Day trip
Imlil and the Atlas Mountains: Day Trip from Marrakech
Imlil is 64 km from Marrakech, about an hour and a half by road, and the tours walk through Berber villages for lunch in a family house. Day tours run from about £17; Toubkal, at 4,167 m, is a two-day guided climb, not a day trip. What each costs and what is included.
Day trip
Agafay Desert from Marrakech: Dinner, Quad, Camel
The Agafay Desert is a stony plateau 30 to 40 km from Marrakech, not dunes. Evening tours with a quad, a camel ride and a dinner show run 6 to 7 hours from about £8 to £20. What is included, what is extra, and how to check a camel before you ride.
Day trip
Essaouira Day Trip from Marrakech: Bus or Tour
Essaouira is about 175 km from Marrakech and about 3 hours each way by coach or van. Supratours coaches run every 2 to 3 hours; group tours run 10 to 12 hours from about £7 to £14 with 4 to 5 hours in town. Which to take and what each leaves out.
Day trip
Ouzoud Waterfalls Day Trip from Marrakech: Options
Ouzoud Falls are 150 km from Marrakech, about 3 hours each way, an 11 to 12 hour day from about £8 to £14. The big tours sell four options: self-guided, guided with a boat, with lunch, or private. Which option includes the guide, the boat and the 12 euro lunch.
Day trip
Ait Benhaddou Day Trip from Marrakech: Is It Doable?
Aït Benhaddou is a UNESCO-listed earthen village 3 to 4 hours from Marrakech over the Tizi n'Tichka pass. Day tours run 10 to 12 hours from about £17; the Atlas Studios entry is 13 euros extra and lunch is not included. Day trip or overnight, and what each tour covers.
Day trip
Sahara Desert Tours from Marrakech: 2 and 3 Days
Zagora is a 2-day tour from about £53 and Merzouga, with the Erg Chebbi dunes, a 3-day tour from about £92. Both start at 07:00 and are mostly driving. Lunches, drinks, quads and tips are extra; winter nights in camp fall to 0 to 5°C.
Where to stay
Areas and hotels, chosen for a visitor rather than a resident.
Where to stay
Where to Stay in Marrakech: Areas Compared
For a first visit, stay in a riad in the medina, 0.1 to 1 km from Jemaa el-Fnaa, or in Hivernage for a big pool and a taxi at the door. The areas compared, the hotels in each, and what a riad asks of you: a lane, a porter, stairs and a cold night.
Where to stay
Hotels Near Jemaa el-Fnaa, Marrakech: Where to Stay
Hotels from about 120 m to 1 km from Jemaa el-Fnaa in a straight line: budget hotels on the lanes beside the square, riads in Kennaria and Mouassine, and the palaces by the walls. Distances, rooms, and what the noise and the last stretch on foot mean.
Where to stay
Marrakech Riads with a Pool: Where to Cool Off
Marrakech riads with a pool, read from the hotels' own sites: Dar Zaman's plunge pool too small to swim lengths, IZZA's 10 m pool, three heated pools at La Villa des Orangers, a pool for every riad at Royal Mansour. Which are heated in winter, and what July and August are like.
Airport transfers
From the airport to the centre, every option priced and timed.
What's on, month by month
Festivals, holidays and closures that change a visit.
Food and drink
Where to eat, what to order and when to book.
Food and drink
Where to Eat in Marrakech: What to Order, and Where
Where to eat in Marrakech: the five restaurants in MENA's 50 Best 2026 (La Grande Table Marocaine #19, Le Petit Cornichon #21, Sesamo #24, +61 #31, Farmers #49), the medina and Guéliz places named most often, hours and booking, the Jemaa el-Fnaa stall rules and where alcohol is legal.
Food and drink
Marrakech Food Tours Compared: What to Book
Marrakech food tours from £23.74 for a 3-hour street-food walk with 4,155 reviews to £41.00 for a 4-hour tasting with 15 or more stops, with the evening walks, a self-guided rooftop dinner and two dinner shows, and what the Jemaa el-Fnaa stall tender means for a tour.
Food and drink
Marrakech Cooking Classes: Prices and What to Pick
Marrakech cooking classes from £15.83 in a local home to £47.09 with a market visit: Amal's non-profit class at 400 MAD for a tajine, La Maison Arabe's cooking school, Lalla Zehra's farmhouse at 600 MAD, and the classes with 2,752, 2,515 and 1,953 reviews.
Walks
Self-guided routes, stop by stop.
More guides
Guide
Is Marrakech Safe? Scams, Guides, Dress and Photos
Petty crime and fake guides are the commonest problems in the Marrakech medina. What the Foreign Office says, the scams that recur and the one line that ends them, taxi fares, dress, photography rules, and why not to pay for a photo with a monkey or snake.
Guide
Marrakech After the Earthquake: What Has Reopened
Marrakech after the 8 September 2023 earthquake: the Bahia Palace, El Badi Palace and Saadian Tombs reopened on 9 October 2023 and Dar El Bacha on 23 November 2023, with parts still under restoration. A dated list of what is open, the state's own progress figures and what to check before you go.
Guide
Marrakech Hammams: Public Baths vs Spas, Prices
A Marrakech hammam costs about 10 MAD in a neighbourhood bath (Lonely Planet's figure, plus 50 to 100 MAD for a scrub), 500 to 1,000 MAD at Hammam de la Rose, and £32 to £76 for a GetYourGuide hammam and massage with hotel transfer. What to bring, what to wear and the Ramadan hours.
Common questions
What do I need to book before going to Marrakech?
The Jardin Majorelle, because it sells only timed 30-minute slots at tickets.jardinmajorelle.com and the morning slots sell out days ahead in October. The Bahia Palace, El Badi Palace and Saadian Tombs can be bought on the day or online. The Ben Youssef Madrasa sells tickets at the door only.
How much are Jardin Majorelle tickets?
170 MAD for the garden (about £13), 230 MAD with the Pierre Bergé Museum of Berber Arts, and 330 MAD for the garden, the Berber museum and the Yves Saint Laurent museum. The YSL museum alone is 140 MAD. The only official ticket office is tickets.jardinmajorelle.com.
How much are the Bahia Palace, El Badi Palace and Saadian Tombs?
100 MAD each for a foreign adult (about £7.50) and 50 MAD for a foreign child aged 7 to 13. There is no combined ticket. They are sold on the Ministry of Culture's e-services site and at the gate, and parts of each are still being restored after the 2023 earthquake.
Which museums in Marrakech are closed on which days?
The Yves Saint Laurent museum is closed on Wednesdays. The Dar El Bacha museum and the Jamaâ el-Fna museum are closed on Mondays, and MACAAL on Mondays and Tuesdays. The Majorelle garden, the Bahia, El Badi, the Saadian Tombs, the Ben Youssef Madrasa and Le Jardin Secret open every day.
How do I get from Marrakech airport to the medina?
Bus 19 costs 30 MAD and runs about every 20 to 30 minutes to the Jemaa el-Fnaa area. The official taxi fare is 70 MAD by day and 100 MAD by night, and drivers commonly ask 100 to 150 MAD, so agree the fare before you get in. Uber has operated through licensed vehicles since 27 November 2025.
Do UK visitors need a visa for Morocco?
No, for stays of up to 90 days. The passport must be valid for at least 3 months after the day you arrive, and the border officer should stamp it.
Can I buy dirhams in the UK?
No, the dirham cannot be bought in advance in the UK. Take cash from a cash machine on arrival. Unspent dirhams can be changed back at the airport on a boarding pass, up to 2,000 MAD per passport.
Do I need a guide in the Marrakech medina?
No. If you use one, use a guide with an official badge and permission from the local authority, as the UK Foreign Office advises. People posing as official guides harass tourists.