MA · Fès-Meknès · 34.04°N 5.00°W

fez

A maze of medina lanes, tiled courtyards and workshops still making leather and metalware.

Best time
March–May and September–November are comfortable for walking. July–August is very hot, and winter brings chilly rooms and some rain.
How long
3 days
Getting there
Fly with one stop to Casablanca, usually via Istanbul, Doha or Dubai, about 17–20 hours all in, then about 4 hours by train to Fez. Morocco is 8 hours behind KL, and Malaysians don't need a visa.
Save postcard
MA · Fès-Meknèsfez34.04°N 5.00°Wgowherelah.com
Dear group chat,A maze of medina lanes, tiled courtyards and workshops still making leather and metalware.— gowherelahTo: whoever’s drivingFezMA, Fès-Meknès
KLfez
≈ 11,336 km from KL, as the crow flies
Bab Bou Jeloud framing minaret of Bou Inania Madrasa, Fes, Morocco

Photo: This Photo was taken by Timothy A. Gonsalves. Feel free to use my photos, but please mention me as the author. I would much appreciate if you send me an email tagooty@yahoo.com or write on my talk page, for my information. Please contact me before commercial use. Please do not upload an edited image here without consulting me. I would like to make corrections only at my own source to ensure that the changes improve the image and are preserved.Otherwise you may upload an edited image with a new name. Please use one of the templates derivative or extract. · CC BY-SA 4.0

1 / 5

Photos: Wikimedia Commons, credited on each.

Fez's medieval medina is one of the biggest car-free city centres in the world, packed with workshops, food stalls and mosques. The lanes are bewildering at first, then the fountains, gates and market corners start to look familiar.

Makan

  1. PastillaCrisp layered pastry filled with pigeon or chicken, almonds and cinnamon, dusted with sugar.Map ↗
  2. Khlii and eggsSpiced dried beef preserved in fat, fried with eggs for a rich Fassi breakfast.Map ↗
  3. HariraTomato, chickpea and lentil soup with bread and dates.Map ↗

Things to do

  1. Fes el-BaliThe walled old medina: thousands of lanes, tradesmen's quarters and donkeys carrying the loads.Map ↗
  2. Bou Inania MadrasaA 14th-century college of carved cedar, stucco and zellige tiles around a marble courtyard.Map ↗
  3. Chouara TanneryA honeycomb of dye pits, seen from the leather shops' terraces above.Map ↗
  4. Al-QarawiyyinFounded in 859 and often called the world's oldest university. Muslim visitors can pray inside; others look in through the doors.Map ↗
  5. Nejjarine MuseumA restored merchants' inn showing carved woodwork around a tall courtyard.Map ↗

Good to know

  • A licensed guide for the first morning helps you learn the medina. Unofficial guides at the gates mostly lead to shops.
  • The tannery terraces are reached through leather shops; agree any charge before going up.
  • Food is halal as standard, and alcohol is found only in some hotels and restaurants.

Last checked October 2026. Things change, so check opening times, fees and transport before you go.