Volubilis Morocco history

Volubilis Morocco history

volubilis morocco history, Roman ruins in Morocco? It might sound strange if you don’t think about how big the Roman Empire was and how far it spread over many years. But when you look at a map, it’s not hard to see that to control the Mediterranean, Rome had to take over lands that were thousands of kilometers away. And the north of Morocco was one of them. It became a part of the Empire and stayed there as a province called “Mauritania Tingitana” for at least 250 years and no more than 350. Its capital was the city of Volubilis. Below, we’ll tell you how to get to Volubilis, what its best ruins are, and how to plan this perfect day trip from Fez.

A little bit of Volubilis’s history

Volubilis was the capital and administrative center of this Roman province. It had a lot of public buildings, the ruins of which we can still see today. It grew quickly, partly because of the Romans and partly because of its fertile lands, which were especially important for making olive oil. For such a remote province, it now has about 20,000 people, which is a lot for a city. In the year 285 AD, when the state was in a lot of trouble, the Romans left Volubilis.

But the city wasn’t abandoned. Berber tribes continued to live there, and Moulay Idriss, who is known as the father of Morocco, took refuge there when he fled Syria in 789. Idriss I gave the city a new start, but after he died, his son Idriss II moved the capital to Fez. This took away any special status Volubilis had and led to its decline.

Later, it got two fatal blows. The first was when the new capital, Meknes, was named. It was named in the 1800s, and stones and other materials from this old Roman city were used to build it. And then, in 1755, there was a very bad earthquake.

In the last few decades, Volubilis has been dug up and fixed up. In 1997, it was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Even if you haven’t heard of these beautiful archeological ruins before, you can already tell that you are in a beautiful and historically important place that you should visit. Viajes a Marrakech

How to get to Volubilis and where it is

The ruins of the old Roman city of Volubilis are in the north of Morocco, above the Middle Atlas mountain range. Meknes is 30 kilometers away, and Fes is 80 kilometers away. It is also close to the sacred city of Mulay Idrs, which is an important place to see in this area.

The best way to get there is with your own car, which gives you the most freedom. If this is not the case for you, you can take a taxi from Meknes or Fez for about 300 dirhams (for around 500 dirhams). You can rent them for both the trip there and the trip back, and they will wait for you as long as you need to stay. You know, make a deal! You can also take a shared taxi (Grand Taxi) from Meknes to Mulay Idris and then from Mulay Idris to Volubilis. This costs much less, but you have to wait for the taxi to fill up with other people before it leaves.

This  tour from Fez will also take you to the nearby and interesting Mulay Idrs and the imperial city of Meknes. Volubilis will also be on the itinerary.

We went to Volubilis and saw some of the best ruins.

When you buy your ticket, you’ll get a map with a suggested route. This is the route we took, and it’s the one we recommend. Here is the order of the most important places to see in Volubilis:

  Interpretive Center

It’s the first thing you’ll see on your right, and it’s a small museum with both open-air and indoor displays. Here, you can learn about the history of Volubilis and see the first ruins of columns, mosaics, statues, and even a mill where olive oil was made.