Jemaa el-Fnaa

ساحة جامع الفنا

Juice carts by day, a smoky open-air food court by night

⚠ Photos of performers cost money

Hours

Open square, 24 hours; food stalls run roughly from dusk to around midnight

Tickets

Free; keep small coins for performers and photos

Address

Centre of the Medina, a 5-minute walk east of the Koutoubia Mosque

In daylight it's just a wide, dusty square with orange-juice carts, henna women and a few men with monkeys on leads. Towards sunset it flips. Numbered food stalls roll in, charcoal smoke rises, drums and string instruments start up and crowds form circles around storytellers and musicians. This is the scene UNESCO listed in 2001 as a masterpiece of oral and intangible heritage. Chaos is the point here: stand in the middle of it once, then climb to a café terrace and watch from above.