Is Rabat, the capital, actually worth visiting?

Rabat is the city I most often have to talk people into — and the one they most often thank me for afterwards. It sits in the shadow of flashier siblings, so travellers assume "capital = boring administrative town." It is the opposite of boring. It is calm, green, coastal, dignified and remarkably easy, which after the sensory assault of Marrakech can feel like a deep exhale.

The headline sights are genuinely lovely. The Kasbah of the Udayas is a hilltop fortress of cobbled lanes painted blue and white — a Chefchaouen-in-miniature overlooking the river mouth where it meets the Atlantic, with a serene Andalusian garden tucked inside. The Hassan Tower, the unfinished minaret of a 12th-century mega-mosque, stands beside the gleaming Mausoleum of Mohammed V, where the guards in white cloaks are a photographer's gift. And on the city's edge, the Chellah is a haunting walled site where Roman ruins and a medieval Muslim necropolis are slowly being reclaimed by storks and gardens.

What makes Rabat special, though, is the texture of everyday life. The medina is a working UNESCO World Heritage site but it is human-scaled and low-pressure — you can browse without the relentless sales energy of the big tourist medinas. There is a long ocean promenade, leafy boulevards, good cafés, and a confident modern art museum. It feels like a place Moroccans are genuinely proud to live in, because it is.

My honest framing: Rabat is not a "drop everything and fly here" destination on its own, but as a stop it is excellent value for your time and nerves. One full day covers the highlights comfortably; two lets you slow down and enjoy the coast. And because it sits on the high-speed train line between Casablanca and Tangier/Fes, slotting it in costs you almost nothing logistically.