If you’re traveling to Marrakesh, visiting the Jardin Majorelle (Majorelle Garden) is a must for many people. The garden is a beautiful mixture of vibrant colors and around 300 different types of plants from all over the five continents. Beside an extensive collection of palm trees you can also find all sorts of different cacti here.
One of the most famous features of the garden is without doubt the cobalt blue Art Deco villa, located in the center of the garden.
Beside that you can also find the Islamic Art museum and a Berber museum. Some of Yves Saint Laurents most famous clothing pieces are also featured in an exhibition next to the garden.
The Jardin Majorelle is one of the few famous tourist attraction in Marrakesh that is located outside the old town, “Medina”. Instead, the garden is located in the Gueliz district.
A short history of Jardin Majorelle
The garden was designed by French artist Jaques Majorelle who commissioned architect Paul Sinoir to design a cubist villa within the property. Although Jaques Majorelle was mainly an Orientalist painter, the garden is what he is mostly remembered for nowadays.
After his death the garden was left to its own devices and neglected until it was rediscovered in the 1980s by French fashion icon Yves Saint Laurent and his partner Pierre Berge. Both set out to restore the property and to finance and secure its upkeep they started The Majorelle Trust.
Jardin Majorelle
What to expect from Jardin Majorelle & my thoughts
We visited the Jardin Majorelle on a Friday and queued for around 40 minutes to buy a ticket. You are mostly in shade while waiting so it wasn’t too much of a problem. Be aware though that, especially during more popular seasons, weekends and times, the garden will be packed, seeing that it’s one of the biggest tourist attractions in Marrakesh.
Of course this takes away from the calmness and tranquility that the garden seems to try to convey.
People were queueing to take photos in front of the blue walls and yellow windows of the villa (one of the most popular Instagram spots in Marrakesh mind you- and of course I was one of the people queueing).
Personally I just didn’t feel the garden was one of the most beautiful places in Marrakesh. But I had recently been to the orchid garden in Singapore and the Botanical garden in Rio (which I loved!) so I might be a bit biased.
We have friends who traveled to Marrakesh and were greeted with a mostly empty garden Majorelle and loved everything about it. So you know, it’s all about your personal experience and perspective.
Why it’s worth a visit
The Colors of the buildings within the garden are beautiful and there are some cacti and plants that are worth the entrance fee alone.
We paid extra for entry to the museums on the property and the Yves Saint Laurent Museum that had just opened- just because we didn’t want to “‘miss out” by not going for the deal that they offer at the entrance.
I don’t think it’s really worth it though. Unless you’re a haute couture or extreme fashion lover/ fashion designer etc the Yves Saint Laurent museum won’t be that interesting for you. The Berber museum and museum of Islamic art had interesting exhibits but unfortunately most of it was labelled in French so we didn’t get too much out of it.
If you like the calm of parks or just need to escape the hectic life of the Medina for a couple hours you can also visit some of the free parks outside the Medina.
If you have been to the Jardin Majorelle or plan on going let me know about your experience/ plans.
Did I get it all wrong or do you agree with my opinion? Don’t be shy and let me know! 🙂
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[…] been to many botanical gardens around the world. Take the famous orchid garden in Singapore or the Jardin Majorelle in Morrocco. Botanical gardens are so fascinating and they can tell you so much about the country you are […]