Casablanca & Rick’s café from the Port

Casablanca & Rick's café from the Port

Casablanca, second largest city of Morocco was established as a town in 1906 with a population of 20,000. Later in 1907 when the French landed, Fez was Morocco’s commercial centre, whilst Tangier was set up as the country’s main harbour. The French soon moved on to seek a new port altogether and things have changed much since then. Now, Casablanca is the second largest city of Africa and resembles a Southern European city.
A short drive from the pier will bring you to the city centre, where you will set off on foot with your guide. Discover the bustling central market hidden behind a row of white arches, where just about most goods are available; fruits, vegetables, fish, flowers and a wide variety of spices. From here you will head for Avenue Mohamed V, a street filled with Art Deco style buildings, before stopping at the United Nations Square, a lively area with its modern architecture. You will also see the row of bazaars at the Bab Marrakech main entrance to the Old Medina.
Your next stop will be for an external view of the Hassan II Mosque, a masterpiece of Moroccan architecture and craftsmanship, and the largest mosque in the world outside of Mecca. At 869ft (264m), its minaret is the tallest structure in Morocco and the tallest minaret in the world. You will have some time here to try and capture all of its glory on camera before heading for your final stop of the tour: the infamous Rick’s Café.Made famous by Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman in the 1942 classic “Casablanca”, this romantic eatery has been painstakingly recreated to represent its namesake; complete with a lounge bar, roulette table and piano. Sit back and relax here with a drink while soaking up the ambience of the lounge bar, before re-boarding your minibus for the return to the ship.