If you travel to Morocco, the Majorelle Garden, next to the Medina and Palmeraie areas, the Gueliz district and Marrakesh railway station, is an important place to visit during your stay in Marrakesh. Moroccans are very proud of the Majorelle Garden, a beautiful botanical garden with exotic plants which is one of the most visited places in Morocco. Indeed, each year, it is visited by more than 600,000 tourists. It is a true haven of peace, an oasis within the city.
From Jacques Majorelle to Yves St Laurent
This garden was created by the French artist painter Jacques Majorelle (son of Louis Majorelle, cabinetmakers and decorator) in the years 1920 while Morocco is under French protectorate. He created there its artist studio and villa between Art Deco style and Moorish architecture. Nowadays, the painter studio has become an islamic art museum.
All the garden covers one-half hectare. You’ll wander through its paths shaded by towering palms. You discover here and there pools where turtles enjoy a peaceful life. In the Majorelle Garden, walkers can see more than 300 species of lush vegetation imported from five continents : cactus, bougainvillea, bamboo, palm trees, jasmines, lilies, lotus, coconut, yucca, etc…
Large pool
Cactus
Palm trees
Flowers of Majorelle Garden
The Majorelle blue, very intense and similar to ultramarine blue, was created by the painter. It can be seen today in the shade of the pools and the villa but also in the decor of the famous Majorelle Suite at La Mamounia, the famous hotel of Marrakesh.
Following a car crash, Jacques Majorelle came back to Paris where he died in 1962. In 1980, after it had been abandoned for several years, the Majorelle Garden is redeemed by Pierre Bergé and Yves Saint Laurent thus preventing it from being turned into a hotel. In 2008, after the death of Yves Saint Laurent, Pierre Bergé gave the Majorelle Garden to the Pierre Bergé and Yves Saint Laurent foundation. The garden houses the Yves Saint Laurent memorial. Famous fashion designer’s ashes live peacefully there. The garden is maintained on a daily basis by twenty gardeners.
A shaded exotic garden within the heart of the red city
The Majorelle Garden of Marrakesh is a pleasant place to visit. The garden is well organized with a number of benches to sit and meditate while listening to the birds singing. The atmosphere is very relaxing. Everything is very well maintained.
Palm trees
Flowers
It costs a rate of just under 10 € to access the Majorelle Garden and the Berber Museum. Allow a good hour to walk round the garden, more if you decide to stop to contemplate, in the shade of palm trees.
If you like the botanical gardens and you are a nature lover, besides the Majorelle Garden, you will find other beautiful gardens in Marrakesh including the Menara with olive trees but also the gardens around the Koutoubia Mosque, not far from Jemaa El Fna square and the souk.
So, we hope that those pictures of the Majorelle Garden will have inspired you to enjoy its freshness and quietness between two dives in your hotel pool.
Shaded area
