Bahia Palace and Marrakech's Royal Monuments: A Half-Day Walking Route

The short answer: the Bahia Palace, the El Badi Palace and the Saadian Tombs sit within a 15-minute walk of each other in the south of the Marrakech medina. Start at the Bahia when it opens, walk through the Mellah to El Badi, and finish at the Saadian Tombs before the midday tour groups. Allow three to four hours.

Marrakech has been an imperial capital several times, and each dynasty left a monument. These three show two very different golden ages: the Saadian sultans of the 16th century and the powerful grand viziers of the late 19th century. All three are part of the UNESCO-listed Medina of Marrakesh.

The Bahia Palace

"Bahia" means brilliance. The palace was begun in the 1860s by the grand vizier Si Moussa and greatly enlarged in the 1890s by his son Ba Ahmed, who ran the country for the young Sultan Moulay Abdelaziz. It was designed to be the finest palace of its time, and the craftsmen were the best in Morocco.

What to look for:

• The ceilings. Painted and carved cedar in every reception room, each with a different pattern. Look up more than down.
• The grand courtyard. Some 50 metres of white marble framed by zellige tiles and wooden galleries.
• The courtyard gardens. Orange trees, banana plants and jasmine around fountains, laid out in the riad style.
• The private apartments. Smaller rooms around the courtyards that once housed the vizier's wives and concubines, with the richest stucco in the palace.

Only part of the palace is open, and the rooms are empty of furniture, so the decoration is the show. A licensed guide brings the stories to life; ours meet guests at the gate on our Marrakech tours.

Through the Mellah

Leaving the Bahia, walk into the Mellah, the old Jewish quarter founded in the 16th century. Visit the restored Slat al-Azama synagogue, the spice square (Place des Ferblantiers) with its lantern makers, and the covered market where locals buy spices and dried fruit.

The El Badi Palace

Sultan Ahmad al-Mansur began El Badi ("the incomparable") in 1578 after his victory at the Battle of the Three Kings, paying for it with ransoms and Saharan gold. Contemporaries described gold-leaf ceilings and Italian marble traded for sugar weight for weight. A century later Sultan Moulay Ismail stripped it to build his own capital at Meknes, and what remains is a vast ruin of red walls around sunken orange gardens and pools.

• Climb to the terraces for a view over the medina to the Atlas Mountains.
• Look for the storks nesting on the walls.
• See the 12th-century minbar (pulpit) of the Koutoubia Mosque, displayed in a side pavilion, one of the masterpieces of Islamic woodwork.

The Saadian Tombs

The Saadian dynasty's mausoleum was walled off by Moulay Ismail and forgotten until 1917. The Hall of Twelve Columns, where al-Mansur lies, combines Carrara marble with intricate carved cedar and stucco. The rooms are tiny, so a queue forms quickly; it moves fast before 10am and after 3pm.

Practical tips

Tickets are bought at each gate and opening hours change with the season and during Ramadan, so check locally on the day. Friday midday can be quieter at the monuments while locals attend prayers. Pair this route with the Majorelle Garden on another morning, and read our list of things to do in Marrakech for the rest of your stay.