Ben Youssef Madrasa
Four centuries as a Quranic school, then a long restoration: the reopened madrasa is worth visiting mainly for its courtyard and its walls - zellige, chiselled stucco, painted cedar. An hour is enough, early morning, before the court fills up.
History & context
The first madrasa was founded around 1350 by the Merinid sultan Abu al-Hassan, next to the Ben Youssef mosque. But the building you visit today is the Saadian rebuild: in 1564-1565, Sultan Abdallah al-Ghalib rebuilt it entirely and made it Morocco’s largest Quranic school.
More than one hundred and thirty cells on two floors, around a marble courtyard: at its height, the madrasa reportedly housed up to nine hundred students, come to learn law and theology two steps from the great mosque. It ran as a school for four centuries, until it closed in 1960.
Then a long interval, and a restoration led by the Ministry of Habous. The madrasa reopened to the public in April 2022. Emptied of its students, it is now visited for what once formed their daily setting: zellige, carved plaster, painted cedar, and that courtyard whose pool doubles every façade.
You once came here to study the Quran. You come now to look up.
What to see - the highlights
The central courtyard and its pool
A marble court set around a shallow pool, framed by carved façades. The high point of the visit.
The great carved façade
The master wall of the courtyard, entirely worked around its central doorway: zellige, stucco and calligraphy.
The zellige
Geometric mosaic wainscoting at human height, topped with chiselled plaster and carved wood.
The plaster and the carved cedar
Openwork stucco friezes, Quranic inscriptions and cedar lintels running along the walls.
Gallery
The best photo spots
Where to point the camera, and when the light is at its best.
The reflection in the pool
Stand at the edge of the pool to catch the façade and its reflection; wait for a lull for a shot without crowds.
The court seen from above
From the students' cell gallery, a plunging view over the courtyard and its arcades.
Zellige and plaster
Frame tight on the geometric friezes and the calligraphy: raking light reveals the relief of the stucco.
La médersa Ben Youssef
Morocco's largest madrasa, reopened in 2022 after restoration: zellige, carved cedar and stucco around a pool-set courtyard. Best turn up at opening to have it almost to yourself.
Tickets & guided tours
Book ahead - useful during peak hours, when the queue can top thirty minutes.
Ben Youssef Madrasa, Secret Garden & souks
Ben Youssef, Secret Garden & souks walking tour
Bahia, Ben Youssef Madrasa & Secret Garden
Booking via GetYourGuide, our ticket partner. Indicative prices ; we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
Visitor tips
At opening, around 9am: the only reliable way to have the court almost empty. The morning light there is also the softest.
The middle of the day: the court is very bright, crowded, and a shot without people becomes a test of patience.
- Tickets are bought online or on site; the timed ticket saves time at peak hours.
- If someone tells you the monument is 'closed for prayer', it is false: entry is at the official ticket office.
- Combine with the Almoravid Qoubba and the Marrakech Museum, two minutes on foot.
Location & access
In the north of the medina, near the Ben Youssef mosque, next to the Marrakech Museum and the Almoravid Qoubba. Reckon on ten to fifteen minutes on foot from Jemaa el-Fna, through the souks.
