The Agdal gardens, which stand to the south of the Royal Palace, were created, according to the official historian of the Almalohade dynasty, as early as 1156 by El-Haj Ya’is, who had also created the prestigious Koutoubia. The word ‘aguedal’ is a Berber word that means ‘garden’. It was only towards the end of the 18th C that it became known as the gardens of Aguedal. The existence of the gardens is closely linked to the judicious use of the hydraulic resources there. The use of the underground water was made possible towards the end of the 11th century thanks to an important network of ‘khetarras’, later supplemented by a system of more elaborate viaducts coming from the city of Aghmat, situated to the south, towards the Ourika valley. Finally, the storage of rain water was made possible by two huge tanks, the largest one of which, called Es Sala, was used to train the army to swim across the Strait of Gibraltar.
Gueliz : The area of Gueliz takes its name from the Jbel Gueliz, a sandstone mountain situated to the north-west of the old medina. This was the first area situated outside the fortifications, and was used in ancient times as a cemetery. Spreading around the modern Mohammed V avenue and joining the Foucault square and bab Nkob to Jbel Gueliz, the Gueliz area is where the majority of Marrakech banks and shops are located. The post office, on the 16 November square, also dates from the protectorate era, just like the old market of Gueliz which was recently relocated in order to make space for the Carre Eden complex (shopping, residential and hotel trade).
L’Hivernage : The l’Hivernage area is situated to the south west of Gueliz and is home to rich villas and numerous hotel complexes such as the Sofitel, the Sheraton, the Golden Tulip Farah, to name only the most prestigious ones. The Mohammed VI Avenue, formerly the Avenue de France, was recently extended to link with the road to the Ourika to the south-east, along the fortifications of the Agdal. This wide and green avenue, along which are built the Theatre Royal, the Palais des Congres, as well as the new station, plays an important part in the L’Hivernage area.
The Mohammed VI avenue :
Recently inaugurated in May 2004, the 5km section of the Mohammed VI avenue that links the Menara avenue to the road to the Ourika has already witnessed the rapid development of high class residential and hotel compounds.
It is along the Mohammed VI avenue that was built the largest nightclub in Africa, the Pasha , a place that has enabled Marrakech to gain, at last, its new status of meeting point for fashionable young people and clubbers. It is also here that was built the first multiplex in Marrakech, the Megarama, that succeeded to two large cinemas– The Colisee in Gueliz and the Rif cinema, in Daoudiate. Marrakech has expanded these last few years to the west, with new areas on the road to Essouira, like Massira1, 2 and 3. hay Azli and Hay Socoma and the neighbouring bouars like Douar Cherki and Douar Berrada.
- Essouira
- Koutoubia
