Casablanca
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Casablanca is by far Morocco’s largest city, with a population of over 3 million. However, it is not the country’s capital (which is Rabat).
There aren’t that many things to do in Casablanca from a visitor’s perspective, which is perhaps unusual for a city that is the largest in its country. Morocco is a bit unusual in this regard. While there are plenty of natural and cultural sights to see all around Morocco, most of them lie outside the boundaries of the two major port cities of Casablanca and Rabat.
For this reason, I would not recommend spending longer than 1 day in Casablanca.
Hassan II Mosque
The highlight of Casablanca is definitely the Hassan II Mosque, the largest mosque in Morocco. The building is quite new (finished in 1993) and so it doesn’t pack as much historical significance as one might think it does, however it is very impressive in its size and architecture.
In my opinion, this is the one thing that justifies your visit to Casablanca. It’s what brings most visitors to the city - and for good reason.
A general rule across Morocco is that non-muslims are not allowed entry into any mosque - with one exception. Hassan II Mosque is therefore the only mosque that a non-muslim can visit. There is an entrance fee.
The minaret of the Hassan II Mosque used to be the world's tallest minaret at 210m - but that record was lost in 2019, with the opening of a new minaret in Algeria (265m).
Knowing we would arrive late and depart early, we didn’t care much about the accommodation - and so we picked a rather average hotel, based purely on value and location. Much to our surprise though, our room has the most amazing view of the Hassan II Mosque, which made for some wonderful sunrise photos.
The Medina
Casablanca has its version of the medina, like all other Moroccan cities. It’s not as impressive as other medinas, but it’s still worth a wander. We came across a nice place to eat there - La Sqala.
More in Morocco
Meet the blue city of Morocco.