Villa Harris

Walter Harris was the Times correspondent in Morocco from the 1880s until his death in 1933, and he is a genuinely odd figure - fluent in Arabic, close to sultans and to the bandit Raisuli who once kidnapped him, present at most of the events that ended Moroccan independence, and the author of books that are still read for their detail and distrusted for their embroidery. He built this house on the cliff at Malabata east of Tangier, in a Moorish revival manner with gardens down towards the sea, and left it to the British community; it passed through several hands, decayed badly, and was restored by the national museums foundation and reopened in 2021 as a museum. The collection is orientalist and modern painting of Tangier and the north - Delacroix's successors, Matisse's contemporaries and Moroccan painters - hung in the restored rooms, with the garden and the sea view included.

What you actually see

• Harris's house - built by the Times correspondent who covered Morocco for forty years.
• A 2021 restoration - reopened as a museum after long decay.
• Painting of the north - orientalist and modern work of Tangier and its coast.
• Cliff gardens - grounds running down towards the sea east of the city.

When to go

Spring and autumn. Two hours; a taxi each way.

Honest expectations

It is outside the city and needs a taxi both ways. Closed on some weekdays - check. The collection is specific and will not suit everyone. Entry is charged.

Nearby

Cap Malabata is further east; Tangier's medina is west.