Fès-Meknès Travel Guide
The Chouara tannery, Fès. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Fès is the oldest of Morocco's four imperial cities, founded in 789 by Idris I. Its medina, Fès el-Bali, is one of the world's largest living medieval cities, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1981, and home to the University of al-Qarawiyyin, founded in 859 and often described as the oldest continuously operating university in the world.
The region pairs Fès with Meknès, the 17th-century capital of Sultan Moulay Ismail, the Roman ruins of Volubilis (UNESCO 1997), and the Middle Atlas: Ifrane's alpine streets, Azrou's cedar forests and their Barbary macaques.
Destinations in Fès-Meknès
Fès el-BaliThe 9th-century medina: 9,000 alleyways, a UNESCO site since 1981.
VolubilisThe best-preserved Roman ruins in Morocco, UNESCO 1997, near Meknès.- Chouara TanneryThe great leather tannery, unchanged for centuries; view it from the balconies.
Bab MansourThe monumental 1732 gate, the grandest of Moulay Ismail's imperial city.
University of al-QarawiyyinFounded in 859 by Fatima al-Fihri; the mosque and library at Islam's scholarly heart.
Bou Inania MadrasaThe 14th-century Marinid school, open to non-Muslim visitors.
Mausoleum of Moulay IsmailThe tomb of the sultan who made Meknès an imperial capital.
Azrou cedar forestCedar Gouraud's ancient cedars and wild Barbary macaques.
Bab Bou JeloudThe blue gate into the medina, built in 1913.
Heri es-SouaniMoulay Ismail's vast granaries and stables in Meknès.
Moulay Idriss ZerhounThe holy hill town above Volubilis, closed to non-Muslims until 2005.
Dar Batha MuseumFès crafts in a 19th-century Hispano-Moorish palace.
IfraneThe 'Little Switzerland' of the Middle Atlas, a ski town in winter.
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Top Cities & towns in Fès-Meknès
Regional food
- Pastilla (the sweet-savoury pigeon or chicken pie, a Fassi classic)
- Harira and chebakia (the Ramadan pair)
- Mechoui (slow-roasted lamb, a Meknès souk specialty)
Getting there
Fès-Saïss (FEZ) is about 15 km from the city. ONCF trains run Fès to Casablanca and Rabat (about 4 hours) and east to Oujda. Meknès is 40 minutes by train from Fès. Volubilis is reached by grand taxi from Meknès.