Destination

Rabat tours take you to the calmest capital in North Africa: wide French-planned boulevards, a twelfth-century kasbah above the Atlantic and a UNESCO-listed historic centre that most visitors to the north never reach. Rabat is 250 kilometres south of Tangier, under three hours on the A1 motorway, and everything worth seeing sits within a few kilometres of everything else.

All our Rabat tours start at your door in Tangier — a hotel, a riad, the cruise terminal or Ibn Battouta Airport — in an air-conditioned vehicle with a licensed driver. Choose a guided day trip with a city guide, or a private transfer that can stop at Asilah, Larache and Lixus on the way.

Rabat tours we run from Tangier

There are three ways to see the capital with us, and each one includes fuel, motorway tolls, parking and insurance in the quoted price.

• Rabat Day Trip from Tangier — twelve hours with a licensed city guide, covering the Kasbah of the Udayas, Hassan Tower, the Mausoleum of Mohammed V and Chellah.
• Tangier to Rabat Transfer — 250 kilometres in about two hours forty-five, with optional stops in Asilah, Larache and Lixus.
• Tangier to Casablanca Transfer — continue to Casablanca after a ninety-minute stop in the capital, for a single fixed price.

Every one of our Rabat tours runs privately for your group alone, or in a small group of eight at most. There is no coach, no fixed departure time and no shopping stop you did not ask for.

Things to do in Rabat: 6 places worth the drive

The list of things to do in Rabat is compact, and that is the point: you walk between the monuments instead of crossing a city to reach them.

• Hassan Tower — the unfinished minaret of a mosque begun in 1195 that would have been the largest in the world, left standing among a field of broken columns when the sultan died.
• Mausoleum of Mohammed V — the white-and-green royal tomb facing the tower, completed in 1971, where a ceremonial guard stands watch and visitors of any faith are welcome.
• Kasbah of the Udayas — the Almohad fortress above the Bou Regreg estuary, entered through the monumental Bab Oudaia gate and painted blue and white by Andalusian refugees.
• Chellah necropolis — a Roman town turned royal Merinid burial ground, now overgrown with gardens and storks that nest on the minaret.
• The medina — smaller and calmer than Fes, with the Rue des Consuls and a quiet maze of lanes laid out by Andalusian families in the seventeenth century.
• Mohammed VI Museum — a modern gallery of Moroccan art opened in 2014, worth an hour on a day with rain or heat.

Most things to do in Rabat sit within a few kilometres of one another, and a licensed guide turns an hour of walking into a clear story of eight centuries of capitals. If you have only one afternoon, take the Kasbah and Chellah and leave the rest.

Rabat from Tangier: how to get there

Reaching Rabat from Tangier takes under three hours by road, 250 kilometres on the A1, with one comfort stop. The route passes Asilah after forty minutes and Larache after an hour, and either makes a good place to stretch your legs.

There are four ways to travel. The Al Boraq high-speed train takes about ninety minutes and is hard to beat for speed. The CTM bus is cheap but slower. A shared grand taxi leaves when it is full. A private transfer takes you from your door to your hotel in the Ville Nouvelle or to the medina gate, with no station taxis at either end.

For a day visit, Rabat from Tangier works well by train if you travel light and stay in the centre. A private vehicle wins when you want the Kasbah, Chellah and the Hassan Tower in one day without a taxi each time, or when you are carrying luggage on to Casablanca.

Prices for Rabat tours

Private prices for larger groups are listed on each tour page. All Rabat tours include pickup and drop-off at your door; the Chellah entrance fee, lunch and gratuities are paid locally.

When to go to Rabat and what to know

The best time for Rabat tours is spring and autumn, when the days are mild and the gardens at Chellah are green. In summer the Atlantic keeps the city cooler than Fes or Marrakech, and in winter it is mild but can be wet. Friday is quieter at some monuments around midday prayers.

Dress a little more formally than on the coast: this is the seat of government and the courtesy is noticed, especially at the Mausoleum. Carry dirhams for small entrance fees, and start early if you want the Hassan Tower without the coach groups.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best Rabat tours from Tangier?

For a first visit, the guided day trip. If you are heading south anyway, the Tangier to Rabat transfer with a stop at Chellah or the Kasbah is the simplest way to combine the two.

What are the top things to do in Rabat?

The Hassan Tower and Mausoleum of Mohammed V, the Kasbah of the Udayas, the Chellah necropolis and a walk through the medina to the Rue des Consuls.

How long does it take to reach Rabat from Tangier?

About two hours forty-five by car on the A1 and ninety minutes by Al Boraq. A Rabat day trip with a guide lasts twelve hours door to door.

Is Rabat worth visiting?

Yes, if you like monuments and calm streets more than souks. It is the most orderly of Morocco’s imperial cities, and it receives a fraction of the visitors that Fes or Marrakech do.

Is one day enough in Rabat?

For the main things to do in Rabat, yes. Stay a night only if you want the Kasbah and the river at dusk without a long drive back.

Can I add Casablanca to the same trip?

Not sensibly in one day. Casablanca is another hour south, so combine the two with a transfer that stops in Rabat on the way.

Whichever you choose, our Rabat tours are the easiest way to see a capital that most itineraries skip. Start with the Rabat day trip from Tangier, travel one way with the Tangier to Rabat transfer, or read our guide to Casablanca before you continue south. The historic city is listed by UNESCO, and its history is summarised on Wikipedia.

Photos: Hongbin / Unsplash · Noahel / Unsplash