Lixus Ruins

Lixus stands on a hill above the Loukkos river where it meets the Atlantic, and it is one of the oldest urban sites in Morocco - Phoenician occupation from around the seventh century BC, then Mauretanian, then Roman from the first century AD, then Islamic before it was abandoned. The classical writers placed the Garden of the Hesperides here, which is a claim several sites make. What survives across the slope is substantial and almost entirely unvisited: a large complex of fish-salting vats at the bottom, among the biggest known in the western Mediterranean, an amphitheatre and theatre combined in one structure, baths with a mosaic of Oceanus, an acropolis with temples at the top, and a defensive circuit. Interpretation is minimal and the site is often unstaffed, with sheep grazing among the walls. The view over the estuary and the salt pans is part of it.

What you actually see

• Seventh-century BC beginnings - one of the oldest urban sites in the country.
• Industrial salting vats - among the largest such complexes in the western Mediterranean.
• A theatre and amphitheatre - combined in one structure on the slope.
• An unvisited hill - walls, temples and baths with sheep grazing among them.

When to go

Spring and autumn. Two hours. Morning light over the estuary.

Honest expectations

Staffing is irregular and the site is often simply open with nobody there. There is almost no signage. The ground is uneven and overgrown in places. The mosaic is exposed to weather and has deteriorated.

Nearby

Larache is south across the river; the Atlantic beaches are west.