Hassan II Mosque

Completed 1993, With A Minaret Of About 210 M Among The Tallest In The World And Part Of The Prayer Hall Built Out Over The Atlantic; The Only Mosque In Morocco That Admits Non Muslims, On Guided Tours · Casablanca, Casablanca-Settat

The Hassan II Mosque is the reason most travellers stop in Casablanca at all, and it is the one mosque in Morocco that non-Muslims may go inside, on a guided tour. Completed and inaugurated in 1993 after about seven years of work, it stands on a platform at the Atlantic shore with part of the prayer hall built out over the water, so that worshippers are above the ocean - an idea usually traced to a Quranic verse about God's throne being on the water. The minaret is about 210 m, among the tallest in the world, and the prayer hall is commonly quoted as holding 25,000 people with perhaps 80,000 more on the courtyard and esplanade. Inside it is a catalogue of Moroccan craft: carved cedar, chiselled stucco, zellij mosaic, marble, a retractable roof and a basement ablution hall that surprises everyone. It was funded substantially by public subscription, which was not universally popular at the time, and the honest caveat is that it is a modern building: many visitors find it magnificent rather than moving, and the Atlantic wind on the esplanade can be severe.

Boulevard Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdallah, on the Atlantic shore at the northern edge of central Casablanca, Casablanca, Casablanca-Settat, Morocco

Non-Muslims may enter only on a guided tour, and only outside prayer times. Tours run several times a day in several languages, typically mid-morning through the afternoon with a long break around midday prayer, fewer on Friday because of the main weekly prayer, and often none at all on Friday morning - confirm the day's timetable at the ticket desk, and expect changes in Ramadan and on religious holidays. Tickets are sold on the day at the visitor entrance on the inland side of the platform; arrive 20 to 30 minutes early in high season. The esplanade, the courtyard and the sea wall are free and open with no ticket. Petit taxis from central Casablanca take minutes, and Casa Port station, with trains to Rabat and Al Boraq connections, is a short ride away.

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