Moulay Idriss Zerhoun

Moulay Idriss is one of the holiest towns in Morocco, built around the tomb of Idris I, who arrived from the east in the eighth century and founded the first Moroccan dynasty at nearby Volubilis. The town covers two steep hills, Khiber and Tasga, in a mass of whitewashed houses with green-tiled roofs, and it is almost vertical: everything is stairs. Non-Muslims may walk the lanes and the markets but not enter the shrine complex at the centre, which is screened by a low wooden barrier across the street. The one unmistakable landmark is a cylindrical minaret faced with green tiles carrying Quranic inscriptions, unusual in a country of square towers. Two signposted terraces at the top of each hill give the standard view down onto the shrine roofs and out to the plain.

History

Idris I, a descendant of Muhammad, came to Volubilis, then mostly a Berber town, and in 789 formed an alliance with local tribes, above all the Awraba. Because the old Roman site lay open on the plain, the settlement moved a few kilometres up towards the mountains, probably to the site of the present town, and Idris I died in 791, just before his son Idris II was born (Wikipedia, Moulay Idriss Zerhoun).

What you'll find

• The shrine quarter - the green-roofed complex at the centre, seen from above.
• The cylindrical minaret - a round green-tiled tower, rare among Moroccan minarets.
• The two terraces - marked viewpoints on the Khiber and Tasga hills.
• The stepped lanes - whitewashed streets that climb in flights of stairs.

When to go

Spring and autumn, and ideally in the morning before the heat, since the walk is all uphill. The town is busiest during the summer moussem, when accommodation fills and the streets are packed. It combines naturally with Volubilis, which is five minutes away; do the ruins early and the town at midday.

Practical notes

The climbs are steep and stepped throughout, which rules it out for anyone with mobility problems, and there is little shade. The shrine, the town's whole reason for existing, cannot be visited by non-Muslims, so the visit is essentially walking and viewpoints. Children will offer to guide you to the terraces and will ask for payment. Facilities for visitors are limited outside the small central square.

Nearby

Volubilis is minutes away by road; Meknes is about half an hour.

Key facts