Casablanca is Morocco's most expensive city on paper and its cheapest in practice. Public parks, colonial churches, a free contemporary art villa and a tidal island shrine cost nothing, while the tram links them all for 6 MAD a ride.
The 30-hectare palm park laid out by architect Albert Laprade in 1918, reopened after a full replanting. Gates open free from sunrise to roughly 21:00, and the canal alleys fill with joggers and card players before the heat arrives.
A stark 1954 concrete church wrapped in 800 square metres of stained glass by Gabriel Loire of Chartres, retelling Morocco's Christian history in cobalt and ruby. Admission is free and the interior light peaks between noon and 14:00.
The 1930s Nouvelle Médina built by the French in Moroccan style: arcaded lanes, olive sellers, and the Mahkama du Pacha courthouse with 64 carved-cedar rooms. Wandering the arcades and bookstalls costs nothing at all.
Casablanca's pre-colonial walled quarter, rebuilt after the 1755 earthquake. Follow the ramparts from Bab Marrakech to the 18th-century Sqala bastion, where Portuguese-era cannon still point at the Atlantic and entry is free.
The 1917 covered market where Casablancais buy Atlantic sardines, sea bream and mounds of olives. Pick a fish at the stalls for 30-60 MAD a kilo and the grill kitchens at the back will cook it for about 20 MAD extra.
One block of charcoal smoke behind the Central Market: brochettes, merguez, kefta and liver sandwiches handed over in half-baguettes. A loaded sandwich runs 25-35 MAD and a bowl of harira soup is 8-12 MAD.
A sprawling warren of several thousand stalls selling secondhand electronics, vinyl, football shirts, phone parts and Moroccan bric-a-brac. Nothing here has a fixed price, and browsing the alleys costs nothing but attention.
A tiny Habous institution since 1930, still baking cornes de gazelle, ghriba and honey-soaked chebakia in a wood-fired oven. Pastries are sold by weight, so 30-50 MAD buys a paper cone big enough for two people.
A whitewashed shrine village on a rocky islet off the Atlantic shore, reachable on foot only at low tide across the sand. Non-Muslims cannot enter the tomb, but the causeway walk and the rock-pool coastline are free.
The free stretch of Atlantic sand west of the private beach clubs, where Casablanca families picnic and surfers work the beach break. Bring your own food and you spend nothing; deckchair hire from vendors is 20-30 MAD.
A restored 1934 Art Deco villa on Boulevard Brahim Roudani, run by Fondation ONA as a contemporary art centre. Rotating Moroccan and international exhibitions across two floors, and admission has always been free.
The 51-metre 1916 lighthouse on the headland between the port and Ain Diab, still guiding ships into Casablanca. The rocky shelf below is a free public sunset spot with the Hassan II minaret framed to the east.