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Saadian dynasty · storks · underground passages
El Badi Palace, Marrakech
A 16th-century palace that once outshone Versailles — then stripped to its bones by a rival sultan. Here is what survives, what it costs and how to visit without disappointment.
Yasmine El Amrani· Marrakech & Atlas Editor
Marrakech-born travel writer who has spent the last decade walking the medina’s souks and the High Atlas trails above Imlil. She covers the Red City, Berber villages and day trips into the mountains. Marrakech · 12+ years covering Morocco
Published 4 September 2025 Last updated 25 March 2026
El Badi Palace is a ruin, and knowing that before you arrive will make you appreciate it far more. The Saadian sultan Ahmad al-Mansour ordered it built in 1578, flush with the wealth of a decisive victory over the Portuguese at the Battle of the Three Kings. The name means "the incomparable," and for roughly a century it was — 360 rooms, sunken reflecting pools the size of football pitches, Italian Carrara marble traded weight for weight against Moroccan sugar. Then, in 1696, the Alaouite sultan Moulay Ismail dismantled it stone by stone and hauled everything north to build his new capital at Meknes.
What he left behind is the skeleton: great walls of rammed earth and rubble, the ghost outlines of five pavilions, dry basins and a labyrinth of underground storage tunnels. And — every spring — hundreds of white storks who nest on the crumbling towers with a kind of indifferent majesty. Come with the right frame of mind and El Badi delivers something the intact palaces do not: a lesson in impermanence, told at architectural scale.
At a Glance
Location
Place des Ferblantiers, Mellah district, Marrakech medina
Time needed
45–90 minutes
Entrance fee
indicative 70 MAD (~$7) per adult
Opening hours
Approx. 09:00–17:00 daily (check locally)
Famous residents
White storks nest on the towers March–August
Best light
Morning (east-facing towers lit, crowds thin)
The Rise and Deliberate Fall of El Badi
The Battle of the Three Kings in 1578 was one of the most consequential conflicts in Moroccan history. The Portuguese king Sebastian I invaded in support of a rival claimant to the Saadian throne, and all three principal rulers died in the fighting — Sebastian, the deposed sultan, and the reigning sultan. The survivor, al-Mansour, inherited a windfall: Portuguese ransom payments and, crucially, control of the trans-Saharan gold and salt trade from Timbuktu. He channelled that wealth into El Badi.
Construction ran from 1578 to roughly 1593. Contemporary accounts by European ambassadors describe a palace of overwhelming opulence: walls tiled in deep turquoise and gold zellige, carved cedar ceilings, vast reflecting pools that turned rose-coloured in the evening light. Italian marble was imported via Antwerp and exchanged at one-to-one weight parity against Moroccan sugar — the exchange rate that gave the palace its fortune.
Al-Mansour died in 1603. His heirs squabbled, the Saadian dynasty fractured, and by the late 17th century the Alaouite sultan Moulay Ismail had consolidated power over all Morocco. He looked at El Badi and saw raw material. Over more than 40 years his engineers stripped marble panels, gilt stucco, carved tile and cedar beams and transported them to Meknes. When a courtier reportedly asked what the palace was worth, Moulay Ismail replied: "Only what it costs to demolish it." The systematic stripping is why El Badi is both emptier and, in a strange way, more honest than palaces whose decor was replaced by later hands.
What to See Inside
The entrance fee covers the main courtyard, the perimeter walls, the underground passages and the small Koutoubia Minbar museum. Here is where to spend your time.
The Grand Courtyard (Sahn)
The palace’s centrepiece is an enormous sunken courtyard — roughly 135 × 110 metres — originally lined with marble and onyx. Four deep reflecting pools, now dry, were fed by underground channels from the Tensift river. Stand at the edge in the early morning and you get a sense of the scale that once stunned even European ambassadors: al-Mansour reportedly filled them with rose-scented water for banquets.
The Basins and Pavilions
Five pavilions once framed the courtyard. Only the crumbled bases and a few stub walls survive, but the plinth of the Koubba al-Khamsiniyya pavilion still shows traces of carved plasterwork. Scramble up the earthen ramps to the perimeter walls for overhead views across the terracotta expanse to the Atlas on a clear day.
Underground Passages (Souterrains)
Below the main courtyard a network of subterranean storage vaults runs beneath the foundations. You can walk part of this system — the tunnels are cool, dark and smell faintly of earth, a complete tonal contrast to the blinding sun above. Bring a pocket torch or use your phone; there is minimal electric lighting down here.
The Minbar of the Koutoubia
One of the palace's genuine treasures is displayed in the small museum building near the entrance: the carved 12th-century minbar (pulpit) originally made for the Koutoubia Mosque, commissioned by the Almoravid sultan Ali ibn Yusuf. It is considered among the finest pieces of medieval Islamic woodwork in the world — cedar inlaid with ivory and silver filigree — and is worth spending ten minutes with before you step into the ruins.
The Stork Towers
Between roughly March and August, white storks (Ciconia ciconia) commandeer the remnant towers to raise their young. The clatter of their bills — a dry, mechanical rattling — carries across the whole site. This is one of the most reliable stork-watching spots in Marrakech; bring binoculars if you have them, and look for the silhouettes backlit at dusk.
Practical Visiting Guide
| Factor | Self-guided | Private guided tour |
|---|---|---|
| Context | Limited panels; hard to visualise original layout | Guide explains what stood where and why it matters |
| Cost | ~70 MAD entrance only | Higher, but includes transport, Saadian Tombs & Bahia Palace |
| Navigation | Easy — the site is not maze-like | Guide handles taxis, queueing and medina routing |
| Stork spotting | You may miss the best towers | Guide knows exactly where to look in season |
| Time | Flexible; 45–90 min at your pace | Typically 2.5–3 hr half-day with multiple sites |
Tips Worth Knowing Before You Go
- Arrive by 09:30 to beat the tour groups that arrive post-10:00; the site opens around 09:00.
- The site has almost no shade in the courtyard — a hat and sunscreen are non-negotiable from April onwards.
- Wear flat, closed shoes: the earthen ramps up to the walls are uneven and often sandy.
- Bring small-denomination dirham coins (10–20 MAD notes) for the entrance; change is not always available.
- Photography is freely permitted throughout — no drone flights are allowed inside the medina.
- The underground passages require ducking in places and are unlit; a phone torch is sufficient.
- A combined half-day with the Saadian Tombs (10 min walk) and Bahia Palace (15 min walk) is the most efficient way to cover the Saadian and Alaouite highlights of the southern medina.
El Badi Palace FAQs
What is El Badi Palace in Marrakech?
El Badi Palace ("the incomparable palace") was built between 1578 and 1593 by the Saadian sultan Ahmad al-Mansour to celebrate his victory at the Battle of the Three Kings. At its peak it contained 360 rooms, a great sunken courtyard, reflecting pools fed by a sophisticated hydraulic system, and Italian marble purchased at enormous cost. It stood for barely a century before the Alaouite sultan Moulay Ismail stripped it of every valuable material — marble, gilded stucco, carved cedar — and shipped them to his new imperial capital at Meknes. What you see today is the skeleton: vast earthen walls, dry basins and the occasional nesting stork.
Is El Badi Palace worth visiting?
Yes — but only if you go with the right expectations. The ruins themselves are not conventionally spectacular; there are no intact decorated rooms. The appeal is the sheer scale (the courtyard is bigger than many European squares), the melancholy grandeur of a palace stripped bare by a rival king, and the storks in season. For a deeper appreciation, read a short account of the Saadian dynasty beforehand, or visit with a guide who can explain what originally stood where. Budget around 60–75 minutes. Do not expect the ornate interiors of the Bahia Palace — this is a ruin, not a restoration.
What are the storks at El Badi Palace?
White storks (Ciconia ciconia) are migratory birds that breed in Morocco from around March to August before flying south to sub-Saharan Africa. El Badi's crumbled towers provide the kind of elevated, undisturbed platform storks prefer for their large stick nests. The birds are noisy — they perform "bill-clattering" displays at the nest — and highly visible from the courtyard walls. If you visit in spring or early summer you will almost certainly see multiple pairs. By October most have left. The storks have become one of the palace's most-photographed features.
What is the entrance fee for El Badi Palace?
As of 2025–2026, the entrance fee is around 70 MAD per adult (indicative — verify locally as Moroccan heritage site prices are revised periodically). Children under 12 are generally free. There is a separate small charge if you want to access the underground passages on some visits. Combined tickets are sometimes available at the nearby Bahia Palace. Payment is cash only at the gate, so bring small-denomination dirhams.
How long do you need at El Badi Palace?
Plan for 45–75 minutes for a self-guided visit, or up to 90 minutes if you spend time in the underground passages and linger on the walls watching the storks. The site is compact compared to, say, Versailles, but the lack of labels or interpretation panels means you will benefit from either a guide or a pre-read. If you combine it with the Saadian Tombs (a 10-minute walk) and a coffee stop in Place des Ferblantiers, half a day is a comfortable allocation.
Can you visit El Badi Palace and the Saadian Tombs together?
Yes, and it is the logical pairing: the Saadian Tombs are about a 10-minute walk away (through Rue de la Kasbah), and both sites date from the same dynasty. The Tombs were sealed for 200 years after Moulay Ismail stripped El Badi, and only rediscovered in 1917 — the contrast between the stripped-bare palace and the exquisitely intact royal mausoleum is striking. Many private Marrakech city tours combine these two with the nearby Mellah (Jewish quarter) as a half-day programme. The Bahia Palace, a very different style of 19th-century Moroccan palatial architecture, is also walkable from both sites.
How do you get to El Badi Palace from Jemaa el-Fna?
El Badi Palace sits in the Kasbah district, roughly a 20-minute walk south of Jemaa el-Fna through the medina. Head south on Rue Riad Zitoun el-Jedid and continue through the lanes until you reach Place des Ferblantiers (the tin-smiths' square), where the palace entrance is clearly signed. You can also take a petite taxi from Jemaa el-Fna — the fare should be around 15–20 MAD (indicative). Avoid the offers of guided assistance at the entrance unless you have pre-booked; impromptu "free guides" are rarely free.
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