When is the best time to visit the cities like Marrakech and Fes?

For the great imperial cities — Marrakech, Fes, Meknes, Rabat — I steer almost everyone toward spring and autumn, and I do it for a very physical reason. These are dense, walled medinas where you spend your days on foot, threading narrow alleys, climbing to rooftop terraces and wandering the souks. The whole pleasure of that depends on the temperature being kind, and March to May and September to November is exactly when it is: warm, clear, comfortable days made for slow exploration.

Summer is where I am bluntly honest. Marrakech and Fes sit inland, away from any cooling sea breeze, and from June to August the heat inside the medina is genuinely punishing — the high walls trap it, and midday can climb past 40°C. You end up hiding indoors through the middle of the day and only emerging at dusk, which wastes the trip. People do visit in summer, and a riad with a plunge pool helps enormously, but you are working around the heat rather than enjoying the city freely.

Winter, by contrast, is an underrated time for the cities and one I happily recommend. December to February brings mild, sunny days — perfect for medina walking, palaces, museums and gardens — and the bonus of thinner crowds and lower prices. The honest catch is the night: once the sun drops, these cities get genuinely cold, and many riads are stone-built and under-heated, so you want warm layers and a riad that takes heating seriously. Pack for two climates in a single day and winter is delightful.

My steer: if you want the easiest, most comfortable city experience, target April, May, October or early November. If you are happy to plan around the weather, winter offers value and calm, and summer is survivable with a pool and a dusk-and-dawn rhythm. And remember the cities pair beautifully with the seasons elsewhere — spring and autumn let you combine the medinas with the desert and the Atlas in one balanced trip, which is exactly how I like to build a classic Morocco loop.