Global Staci

Morocco’s largest (and perhaps least interesting) city was the one we chose to get home from our Global Builders build with The Fuller Center Portugal. Using my favorite new travel planning website, FlightsFrom, I learned that Casablanca is not only an easy flight from Porto, but offers a direct, nonstop flight to my home airport. My friend and travel companion had never been to Morocco, and neither of us had been to The White House, so we crafted this three-night plan.

As always, I chose the hotel based on its location within walking distance to things I knew we’d want to see. The Hotel Le Doge [9 Rue Docteur Veyre] also offered to send a driver to collect us from the airport, which I also pre-arranged. The hotel was fabulous!

[PRO TIP: I’m fond of third-party bookings, but this time I booked directly with the hotel and received free daily breakfast and a room discount for doing so.]

For the first full day, I opted to pre-book a guided tour on GetYourGuide, to the lay of the land, and hopefully learn some useful things about our surroundings.

What visit to Casablanca would be complete without a reservation at Rick’s Cafe, a fictious restaurant and bar turned real, made famous by the dynamic Bogart Bergman duo’s 1942 classic.

Day 1 | Arrival

By the time we arrived at the hotel it was nearly the dinner hour. We were looking for an adventure and some traditional Moroccan food, so we asked the concierge at the hotel. Of course, he had a recommendation and offered to guide us there. Let’s say it’s a good thing because our first walk out on the streets of Casablanca may have been a life-ending expedition without him!

[PRO TIP: Basically, there are no traffic rules in Casablanca. Keep your wits about you at all times and cross streets carefully, but with conviction. One good tactic is to look for a local crossing where you’d like to and follow closely behind. The good news is, you’ll get the hang of it and every subsequent walk will seem less scary!]

We ate at Restaurant Dar El Kaid, which we though initially was a complete tourist trap, based on the music and belly dancing show. It well may be; however, the food was fabulous. The interesting thing is that it is just inside one of the entrances to the Old Medina, which is an adventure in itself. Try Dar Dada if you want to drink alcohol with your meal.

[PRO TIP: It’s not illegal to drink alcohol in Morocco, but libations can be hard to come by. Being a Muslim country where many forgo drinking alcohol, you can find it in upscale hotels, and dedicated bars, or for sale at large supermarkets. Seek out a restaurant that serves what you want if it matters to you. Otherwise, I recommend the mint tea, ubiquitous and delicious day or night.]

Day 2 | Whirlwind Tour de Jour

After an amazing breakfast served at Le Doge’s rooftop restaurant, our day began with a long walk in Arab League Park, just a couple blocks from the hotel. This 30-acre urban park is a nice place to stretch your legs, but it doesn’t offer a lot of shade.

Our guide collected us in his van, and we picked up another couple that afternoon for our tour. This was indeed the best and most efficient way to see a lot of what Casablanca has to offer the traveler. The tour included a bit of driving, but we stopped frequently and saw Sindibad Beach and the Maritime Promenade before heading to the impressive Hassan II Mosque for our guided tour.

[PRO TIP: If you book a city tour include the price of the “Skip the Line” ticket in advance to save time.]

Hassan II Mosque, consecrated 1993, is the third largest in the world (according to the tour guide) behind Mecca and Medina, Saudi Arabia. It also boasts the tallest minaret in the world.

It took six years, thousands of artisans and laborers working around the clock, to build the complex. It is the only mosque in the world built over the ocean. The mosque is 200m x 100m x 65 m. The mosque can hold 25,000 people inside and 100,000 outside. Over 10 million tourists visit each year.

All the materials used to build it are from Morocco with the exception of three items. One of them is the titanium used to build the massive titanium and bronze Royal Doors, the largest ones in the mosque. They weigh 5 tons and run hydraulically. The other two materials not native to the country are the Murano glass chandeliers, and the Carrara marble, both of course coming from Italy.

There are two balconies inside meant for the women. Each holds 2500. All of the colors that you see used to decorate the wooden ceiling underneath the balconies are natural. They come from fruits and vegetables! Underneath the mosque is a huge ablution area, where Muslims clean themselves before prayer.

After all that you may have worked up an appetite! Hop into the Pâtisserie Bennis Habous for some sweet treats before shopping in the New Medina. The Habous Quarter Casablanca, also known as the New Medina, is in a neighborhood, built during the French Protectorate in the 1920s, which was designed to intersect the charm of traditional medinas with European urban planning. If you’ve been to other souks in Morocco, as I have, you’ll probably find this one disappointing.

Nothing could top the mosque, but we visited two noteworthy churches. Scare Coeur church isn’t a church anymore but used as an event space. Note Dame de Lourdes Roman Catholic Church, on the other hand, is still an active parish. There are also a number of synagogues in Casablanca, but we didn’t see them. We also stopped at Mohammed V Square and United Nations Square before being dropped off at the hotel.

For dinner we took a recommendation from our guide, what we happily pass on. Sqala set in a delightful outdoor courtyard on the edge of the Old Medina was another perfect choice for traditional Moroccan food. As this was our second day in the big city, we were feeling practiced and decided to walk from one side of the Old Medina to the other, navigating its seemingly endless maze of passageways. This was, against our guide’s advice, and I can’t recommend you do the same, but it was as interesting as it was unnerving.

Day 3 | Winging It

Okay, so we did have a couple things in mind for this day, but we left a lot of time to just “see what we see.” In the end, we covered over 6 miles.

First stop, the little gem, Musée de la Fondation Abderrahman Slaoui, around the corner from Le Doge. I had read that this was a small museum with a unique collection of Moroccan decorative arts, from vintage travel posters to elaborate Berber jewelry and furniture. Once there home and private collection, the museum tells the story of Abderrahman and Amina Slaoui, who left their mark upon the Arab-Amazigh world with a modern perspective, recounting the saga of independent Morocco.

Next up: Villa des Artes Gallery. The Villa of Arts is a cultural center housed in a stunning 1934 Art Deco villa, showcasing contemporary art exhibitions and events. Afterwards, we purposely sought to enjoy lunch at the fabulous Niya, a casual vegan restaurant and cafe. Delish.

Time to get ready for the main event, dinner at the famous Rick‘s Café. Turns out although Rick‘s may seem like a place for tourists, and it’s filled with them, the food is excellent. It’s quite a classy joint! And yes, there is a live piano player. Not sure his name (wink, wink).

[PRO TIP: Reserve your table at Rick’s online in advance. They have two seatings, offer a wonderful menu, and full bar.]

Day 4 | Departure

After one last leisurely breakfast we decided to head the warnings about having enough time to get through the security and immigration checks at Mohammed V Airport to catch our Royal Air Moroc flight home. It was actually a breeze, and we left satisfied that we had done everything we came to do. No better feeling after being on the road for a long time than to be headed home.