Rabat – The magazine Travel + Leisure has featured Moulay Idriss Zerhoun on its list of the world’s best 23 villages.
In the ranking, released earlier this month, the magazine placed the Moroccan village 14th on its list of the world’s best villages for tourists.
The “maze-like town of Moulay Idriss Zerhoun in the Fes-Meknes region of northern Morocco definitely deserves attention,” the magazine wrote.
“Extending over two hillsides at the bottom of Mount Zerhoun, this holy destination houses one of the country’s most significant sites, the mausoleum of ruler Idris I. It also has many stairs, alleyways, and terraces for a bird’s-eye view of everything,” it added.
Located 60 kilometers west of Fez and five kilometers away from the Amazigh (Berber) and Roman remains of Volubilis, Moulay Idriss Zerhoun is famous for being Morocco’s spiritual capital.
The village has a far-stretching history as it was founded in the 8th century. It also holds spiritual significance: Every year, thousands of Moroccans visit the village to commemorate its founder.
The town was named after both the mountain on which it is located and its founder, Moulay Idriss Zerhoun, a sixth-generation descendant of the Prophet Muhammad.
Historical accounts indicate that in the late 8th century, Moulay Idriss left the city of Mecca, in Saudi Arabia, to escape the Baghdad-based Abbasid caliphate.
He fled all the way to Volubilis in Morocco, where he settled down and spread the religion of Islam, converting the local population.
Moulay Idriss Zerhoun is now widely considered the founder and leader of Morocco’s first Islamic dynasty, called the Idrisid dynasty, which he ruled from 788 to 791.
Read Also: Moulay Idriss Zerhoun: A Piece of Largely Untouched Moroccan History
