If there’s one place in Morocco where a shopping centre the size of Morocco Mall makes sense, it’s Casablanca. The biggest city in the Maghreb is also Morocco’s financial capital and the country’s economic driving force. It’s more than 4 million inhabitants live, work and shop in a city with business centres, an important trading port and universities that are a big draw for young people. These factors mean that Casablanca’s population uses both its medinas and souks, but also needs modern shopping spaces where shopping and leisure go hand in hand.
While Casablanca has neighbourhoods such as Maarif that are home to European and American brands, you’ll also find small shops in the Old Medina, souks in Habbous neighbourhood and several international-style malls. This might initially surprise you as it’s not what you’d expect in Morocco, but going shopping in these spaces is a real delight. You’ll find high quality products, discover Moroccan brands, and admire store designs that are nothing like the local neighbourhood shops. Plus…you don’t have to haggle! Shopping centres like Morocco Mall are highly recommended when you’re short on time and would like to buy something special.
- Shopping and interesting facts about Morocco Mall
- Leisure activities
- Useful information (how to get there, prices, opening times, etc.)
Shopping and interesting facts about Morocco Mall
If you didn’t know it existed, Morocco Mall comes as an even bigger surprise because it’s slightly out of the centre but if you stroll along the long La Corniche boulevard you’ll be there before you know it. It’s right at the end of this seafront promenade that starts close to Hassan II Mosque.
Morocco Mall covers a surface area of 250,000 m2. It’s the biggest shopping centre in Africa! 70,000 m2 of the total surface area are spread across three levels and are used for commerce. This part has over 600 establishments, including shops, cafés, restaurants, etc. and there are also another 14,000 m2 of gardens.
Its appearance might seem familiar because it’s similar to large malls in other parts of the world, but it’s still surprising to see it in Morocco. We recommend finding shops that sell local and Moroccan products; many young Casablanca-based designers are currently producing excellent work. Of course, it’s impossible to walk past the windows of French department store Lafayette or brands like Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Dior without taking a peek inside.
The beautiful window dressing and impressive interior decoration is particularly eye-catching. Shops selling Moorish slippers with shoes displayed in a spiral, colourful towers formed by boxes of tea, rest areas inside the stores… It’s definitely a very different shopping experience from the lively souks! However, they’re not two mutually exclusive experiences: you could buy small hand-crafted items and souvenirs in the souks, and high-quality products in shopping centres like Morocco Mall. There’s also an area inside the shopping centre called El Souk that recreates the style of a traditional souk and sells the products you’d typically find there: argan oil, hijabs, kaftans, incense, etc. You won’t be leaving empty-handed!
Leisure activities
Just like other large shopping centres of this kind, at Morocco Mall shopping and leisure go hand in hand. It has numerous cafés, Moroccan and international (Italian, French, Chinese, wok, etc.) restaurants, delicious Amorino ice creams and all the fast-food hamburger, pizza and fried chicken chains that you can imagine.
But food isn’t all you’ll find… You can also go shopping at supermarket Marjane, watch a film on a 3D IMAX screen, or visit family-friendly attractions such as the Adventureland theme park and Aquadream aquarium. And that’s not all! Don’t miss the musical fountain – the third largest in the world – and the mosque, so no one need miss prayer time. Surprising, right?
Useful information (how to get there, prices, opening times, etc.)
Morocco Mall is very close to Ain Diab Beach at the junction of Boulevard de la Corniche and Boulevard L’Ocean Ain Diab. Taking Hassan II Mosque as a reference point, it takes about two hours to walk there (it’s about 8 km). We recommend taking a taxi, which takes about 15 minutes and is an inexpensive option.
Morocco Mall opening times (shops and restaurants) are from 10 am to 9 pm from Sunday to Thursday, closing an hour later on Friday and Saturday. The cinemas stay open later.
