Getting around · Marrakech · Morocco
Getting around Marrakech
Public transport, passes, airport connections and when a car makes sense.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: YoTuT from United States, CC BY 2.0
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Quick answer
The medina is a car-free maze best explored on foot, though scooters and carts share the lanes. Beige petit taxis cover the rest of the city, including Gueliz, Hivernage and the train station, and city buses and horse-drawn calèches are alternatives for short hops. No.
Key facts
- Main way around
- Walking
- Airports
- RAK
- Need a car?
- No
Ways to get around
Walking
Most medina sights are within a 20-minute walk of Jemaa el-Fnaa, but the lanes are narrow, poorly signed and shared with scooters and donkey carts.
Download an offline map, note your riad's nearest landmark and decline offers of directions from strangers.
Taxi
Petit taxis — beige cars carrying up to three passengers — run within the city on the meter or at an agreed fare, while larger grand taxis cover longer trips.
Ask for the meter or agree the fare before getting in, and carry small notes.
Bus
City buses link the medina, Gueliz, the train station, Jardin Majorelle and the airport, and a hop-on hop-off sightseeing bus loops the main districts.
Train
ONCF trains from the station in Gueliz run north to Casablanca, Rabat, Fes and Tangier, the way most travellers continue around Morocco.
Car
Hiring a car with a driver is a common way to reach the Atlas valleys and Aït Benhaddou; self-drive works outside the city, though traffic around the medina is chaotic.
From the airport
Marrakech Menara (RAK) is about 6 km southwest of the medina. Taxis take about 15–20 minutes to Jemaa el-Fnaa or Gueliz — agree the fare at the rank first — and an airport bus runs to the medina and Gueliz. Many riads arrange a pickup, which helps because cars cannot reach most riad doors.
Do you need a car?
No. The medina is walkable and taxis are inexpensive. A car with a driver, or a self-drive hire, only makes sense for the Atlas Mountains, Essaouira or the desert.
Reaching the day trips
| Destination | Travel time | How |
|---|---|---|
| Imlil and Toubkal National Park | About 1.5 hours by car | Car with driver, grand taxi or tour |
| Ourika Valley | About 1.5 hours by car | Car with driver, grand taxi or tour |
| Essaouira | About 2.5–3 hours by bus or car | Supratours or CTM bus, car or tour |
| Ouzoud Falls | About 2.5–3 hours by car | Car with driver or tour |
| Agafay Desert | About 45 minutes by car | Car, quad tour or camp transfer |
| Aït Benhaddou | About 3.5–4 hours each way by car | Car with driver or tour over the Tizi n'Tichka pass |
Questions travellers ask
+Do you need a car in Marrakech?
No. The medina is walkable and taxis are inexpensive. A car with a driver, or a self-drive hire, only makes sense for the Atlas Mountains, Essaouira or the desert.
+How do you get from the airport to Marrakech?
Marrakech Menara (RAK) is about 6 km southwest of the medina. Taxis take about 15–20 minutes to Jemaa el-Fnaa or Gueliz — agree the fare at the rank first — and an airport bus runs to the medina and Gueliz. Many riads arrange a pickup, which helps because cars cannot reach most riad doors.
+What is the best way to get around Marrakech?
Walking: Most medina sights are within a 20-minute walk of Jemaa el-Fnaa, but the lanes are narrow, poorly signed and shared with scooters and donkey carts.