How to spend a weekend in Fes, Morocco.

Exploring the old medina, artisan crafts, spectacular ancient riads and mint tea on rooftops with mountain views.

Fes is Morocco's ancient city. You can feel its historical significance as soon as you arrive through the Blue Gates of the Grand Porte Bab Boujeloud into its medieval labyrinth of alleyways and ochre coloured buildings. Recognised as having some of Morocco's oldest mosques including its UNESCO listed El Quaraouiyine University dating back to the 9th century.

Of all the big cities in Morocco I've visited - Fes's old medina feels the most authentic and for the locals still. Reasonably untouched by modern development, mass tourism and European influences. It's streets are moody, smokey and narrow dotted with old world religious sites, spectacular riads, cultural museums, artisan workshops and traditional pastry cafes.

We spent 2 days and 3 nights on this trip and I felt like we only just scratched the surface of what Fes has to offer with a bit more time to explore. Day 1 we navigated the souks on our own which were hilly but all pretty walkable and easy to do, popping in and out of artist workshops, cafes, shops and boutiques.

Day 2 we spent with a local guide which I can absolutely recommend to get your bearings of the city. The second day was when we really got the full picture and significance of the history, easy entry into the mosques and visited all the little local pockets we wouldn't have found on our own.

(Tour-guide licenses are heavily regulated in Morocco with only the most knowledgable professionals permitted to operate - so you're pretty safe with whoever you choose to book with!)

The Medina & Souks - Artisan Workshops

Fes's pottery is some of the most recognisable and sort after of the traditional Moroccan ceramics. The inky blue, turquoise green and gold hand painted vessels, tiles and bowls are hand made and fired in open air kilns in family run workshops and co-oporatives on the outskirts of the city where they've been creating the same style of ceramics for generations.

I loved the copper souk and the knife sharpening street lined with men working away on big stone wheels, where I bought a couple of bone handled knives for my kitchen.

The Leather Tannery

Rainbow Street, The Artists Quarter & Cafe Clock