Summary
- History of the Majorelle Garden in Marrakech
- What to see and do in the Jardin Majorelle?
- How to visit the Jardin Majorelle in Marrakech?
- How to get to the Jardin Majorelle in Marrakech?
- Opening hours and prices of the Jardin Majorelle
- GOOD TO KNOW
Are you planning a stay in Morocco? Looking for what to do in Marrakech? Here is our guide to visit the Jardin Majorelle in Marrakech!
Located in Marrakech - nicknamed the "red city" or "ochre city" -, Morocco's fourth largest city after Casablanca, Fez and Tangier, the Jardin Majorelle is a botanical garden for tourists created by the French painter Jacques Majorelle (1886-1962) in 1931. Bought by Yves Saint-Laurent (1936-2008) and Pierre Bergé (1930-2017) in 1980, it is one of the most visited sites in Morocco and attracts nearly 600,000 visitors every year. Covering an area of 8,000 m², the garden is inspired by Moroccan oases and Islamic and Spanish Moorish-style gardens. A small haven of peace in the midst of Marrakech's effervescence, the Majorelle garden offers a festival of bright colours where blue is the main theme. Are you also planning to visit the Majorelle Garden in Marrakech? Here is our little guide on this essential activity of a stay in Morocco!
Also to be read: The 17 must-do things to do in Marrakech
History of the Majorelle Garden in Marrakech
At the beginning of the 20th century, the French painter Jacques Majorelle settled in Morocco. It is 1919 and the country is still a protectorate administered by France. In 1922, he decides to acquire a palm grove in the northwest of the Medina of Marrakech. In 1929, he asked the architects Robert Poisson and Paul Sinoir to build an artist's studio villa, inspired by Moorish and art-deco styles. The painter set up his main residence there and created a tropical botanical garden, modelled on the style of the Islamic garden. On the strength of his travels, he brought back numerous species and populated his garden, composed of yuccas, jasmines, water lilies, coconut palms, orange trees, banana trees, bougainvilleas, fuchsias, cacti, agaves and, among other species, bamboos. There are also fountains, ponds, water jets, pergolas and paths. After inventing the blue Majorelle in 1937, he repainted the walls of the villa of his invention and opened his property to the public in 1947.
Repatriated to Paris due to a car accident, he left the garden abandoned for several years, but the couturier Yves Saint-Laurent and businessman Pierre Bergé discovered the site in 1966. Threatened by the appetites of real estate developers who were considering growing concrete, the two acolytes bought the Jardin Majorelle in the 1980s. They both join forces to prevent the construction of a hotel complex and become owners of the garden. After renovation work, to "make the Jardin Majorelle the most beautiful garden, the one that Jacques Majorelle had thought of, envisaged", they occupy the famous place "Villa Oasis". Today owned by the Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint-Laurent Foundation, the site is home to the botanical garden - where more than 300 species of plants grow -, an Art-deco villa with the "Maisons des Illustres" label and the museum of the history of the Berbers.
What to see and do in the Jardin Majorelle?
What to see when visiting the Jardin Majorelle in Marrakech? A predefined itinerary helps to visit the Majorelle Garden, between trees and tropical plants, ponds and fountains.
As you pass through the main gate, the lush vegetation plunges you into a resourcing silence, covered by birdsong (and the sound of tourists' footsteps). The garden as such includes the plants of the garden, the Berber museum, the museum bookshop, the Yves Saint-Laurent memorial. You won't miss one of the main attractions of the garden: the square blue Majorelle fountain and the contrast between the blue colour and the plants.
The Berber museum traces the history of this North African people whose origins go back to Prehistory, 9,000 years ago. The museum is dedicated to Berber culture, history and language in three sections: material and immaterial know-how, ornaments presenting Berber jewelry, and pomp: costumes, weapons, weaving, decorations of homes.
Book your visit to the Jardin Majorelle of Marrakech
How to visit the Jardin Majorelle in Marrakech?
You can consult a visit plan online before entering the site. To visit the Majorelle garden, one direction of visit (not obligatory, fortunately!) is possible: you start by the fountain at the entrance to see, on the right, the cactus plants. Not far away, you can't miss the famous square blue Majorelle fountain, which faces the Berber museum. You can buy souvenirs in the Majorelle shop or quench your thirst in the museum café. The visit continues on to the water lily pond. On the other side, the large palm grove makes us believe we are in the middle of the desert. Finally, the Yves Saint-Laurent Memorial and the bamboo plantation punctuate the visit.
How to get to the Jardin Majorelle in Marrakech?
- By bus: to the Boukar Majorelle stop.
- By taxi: the simplest, be careful with the fare of the trip
- On foot: the Majorelle garden is located on Yves Saint-Laurent and Yacoub El Mansour streets, about a hundred meters north of the bus station.
Opening hours and prices of the Jardin Majorelle
SCHEDULE
The Majorelle garden is open every day of the year:
- From October 1st to April 30th: from 8am to 5.30pm
- From May 1st to September 30th: from 8am to 6pm
- Month of Ramadan: from 9am to 5pm
The Berber museum is open from 10am to 6pm and the garden of the Villa Oasis - accessible to people with reduced mobility - is open from 10am to 4pm.
RATES
There are several rates to visit the Jardin Majorelle :
- Full price
- Jardin Majorelle : 70 dirhams (6,45 €)
- Berber Museum: 25 dirhams (2,30 €)
- Tariff for Moroccan citizens and foreign residents
- Jardin Majorelle : 40 dirhams (3,68 €)
- Berber Museum: 10 dirhams (0.92 €)
- Moroccan student tariff
- Jardin Majorelle : 25 dirhams (2,3 €)
- Berber Museum: 5 dirhams (0.46 €)
- International student tariff
- Garden : 35 dirhams (3,22 €)
- Berber Museum: 25 dirhams (2.3 €)
Book your visit to the Jardin Majorelle of Marrakech
