"Morocco's Holy City" a Moulay Idriss Travel Page by barryg23

Moulay Idriss is named after the founder of the city and the founder of the Idrissid Dynasty, which went on to reign in Morocco from the 8th to the 11th century. It has long been recognised as Morocco’s most important religious city and is an important pilgrimage site for those wishing to pay their respects at the mausoleum of the city’s founder.

Until the mid twentieth century, only Muslims could visit Moulay Idriss. One of the guide books I read prior to my visit claimed that non-Muslims were not very welcome here and that they could not stay overnight in the city though I think this rule has now been rescinded.

Faced with all this history we were a little apprehensive about what we’d find in Moulay Idriss and about how we would be welcomed. But we need not have worried. The mosques and shrines are still closed to non-Muslims (as is the case in most Moroccan towns) but Moulay Idriss was certainly not as ancient and traditional as we might have expected. We met the same faux guides you meet in every town while anytime we walked past a restaurant we were accosted by the waiters.