6 Best Sights in Tetouan, Tangier and the Mediterranean

Just across from Bab el Okla, this prestigious school was founded in 1919 to preserve Morocco's rich craft heritage. Here you can watch the masters passing on their skills, including wood painting, pottery making, and embroidery, and also buy directly from the artisans. The Moorish-Andalusian building is a work of art in itself, with a colonnade inscribed with Kufic inscriptions, stained-glass details, and a vibrant zellij tiles.

Close to Place Al Jala, this three-room museum holds a small collection of Roman mosaics and statuettes, coins, bronzes, and pottery found at various sites in northern Morocco such as Lixus and Cotta. It also has pictures of the archaeological site of Tamuda (which resembles Stonehenge), where Anteus is fabled to have been buried after his battle with Hercules. There are further exhibits in the garden.

A hidden gem in the medina, this beautiful 1920s mansion has been painstakingly restored by the El Oddi family and opened to the public as a small but fascinating cultural space. Among the ornate zellij tiles, carved stucco, and stained glass, there are collections of photographs, postcards, and stamps (miniature works of art) honoring the city’s history. There’s also a souvenir shop and a small peaceful café to sip a mint tea.

Tetouan's UNESCO-protected medina—established in the 8th century—is one of Morocco's most compact and interesting. Surrounded by a wall and accessed by seven gates, it includes a Jewish quarter, the Mellah, as well as exceptional 19th-century Spanish architecture from the period of the protectorate. Crafts, secondhand clothing, food, and housewares markets are scattered through the medina in charming little squares, such as the Souk el Hout Al Kadim (the old fish market); there’s even a small tannery near the Bab Mkabar. Tetouan's medina is relatively straightforward, so don't hesitate to deviate from the main path and explore; it's hard to get lost.

If you follow the pedestrian Avenue Mohammed east, past Spanish houses with wrought-iron balconies and tilework, you’ll soon arrive at Place Hassan II, an open square with the Royal Palace to the north. On the east side is the Bab er-Rouah, the entrance to the historic covered market, and the Mellah is to the south. On the west side, look up to see Dar Tair (House of the Bird), an old Spanish apartment building crowned with a majestic bronze statue of a man sitting atop an eagle; it's close to Rue Zawiya, where you'll find some good dining options.  

A leisurely stroll through Tetouan begins most naturally at the Place Moulay El Mehdi, a large circular plaza ringed with cafés, a post office, and the Spanish church of Nuestra Señora de las Victorias; the church glows with strings of lights in the evening. The plaza is a favorite spot for the evening promenade and often the site of outdoor concerts.