Marrakech: the Medina Rooftops and the Atlas at Sunset

Marrakech spreads across a desert plain at 460 metres, with the High Atlas rising to the south: Jbel Toubkal (4,167 m), the highest peak in North Africa, is visible 60 kilometres south on clear days, its snow cap present from October through June. The Koutoubia Minaret (77 m) stands west of the Djemaa el-Fna square; at sunset the minaret silhouettes against the western sky while the square fills with food stalls and rising smoke from the east. Rooftop terraces in the medina — restaurants and riad terraces facing east and south — frame the labyrinth of flat-roofed houses with the Atlas as backdrop at golden hour. The Majorelle Garden, 2 kilometres north of the Djemaa el-Fna, catches cool morning light; the cobalt-blue walls photograph best before 10am when direct overhead light flattens the facade. At 31.6°N, golden hour lasts about 29 minutes. October through March gives the clearest Atlas visibility and the most oblique light angles.