Plaza Uta el-Hammam

Plaza Uta el-Hammam, also written Place Outa el Hammam, is the main square of the medina in Chefchaouen, in the Rif mountains of northern Morocco. The name refers to the old hammam that once stood here, and the square is the natural starting point for almost every walk through the blue-washed lanes. On one side stands the red-ochre wall of the 15th-century Kasbah, with its tower rising above the roofs; beside it is the Grand Mosque with its unusual octagonal minaret. The remaining sides are lined with cafe and restaurant terraces under awnings, with plane trees and a paved central area where visitors sit and watch the town go by. What visitors actually do here is simple: order a mint tea or coffee, often around 15 MAD, climb the Kasbah tower for a view over the roofs, photograph the minaret and the walls, and then choose one of the lanes that radiate from the corners of the square. A typical stop lasts 30 to 60 minutes, though many visitors return in the evening for dinner. The best vantage points are the upper terraces of the cafes facing the Kasbah, which give a straight view of the walls and tower, and the Kasbah tower itself looking back down on the square. The square is quietest and best lit before 9am, when shopkeepers are still opening and the light on the walls is soft. Crowds build from late morning as day-trippers and tour groups arrive from Fes, Tangier and Tetouan, and the terraces are busiest at sunset and after dinner, particularly in spring and summer and at weekends. Evenings are lively and social, with local families and visitors sharing the space. Because the square is the hub of the medina, it is also where guides and touts tend to approach newcomers, so a polite refusal is usually enough. The square is a short walk from Bab el-Ain and the Ras el-Maa road, and the main shopping lanes begin within minutes. No ticket is needed to enter the square itself; only the Kasbah and its museum charge admission.