Visiting Morocco and wondering whether you should go out of your way to visit the Roman ruins at Volubilis? The answer is an easy “yes.” While it’s not on the beaten path — you’ll either need a tour bus or a driver from Fes — it’s entirely worth it.

Settlements have existed at Volubilis since the third century BC, but what you’ll see today are the remains of the Roman occupation that took place roughly between 40 and 285 AD. Under the Romans, the site grew to cover over 100 acres; at its peak, Volubilis housed 20,000 people (that may sound small today, but it was major for a far-flung southern outpost of the empire). As Volubilis became wealthy as a center of trade and olive oil production, it became a city of wide roads, gates, and grand houses.

Sadly, though people continued to live in Volubilis for many centuries after the Romans departed, many of the buildings fell into disrepair — and then a 1755 earthquake flattened most of what was left. What you see today is thanks to repairs made by French archaeologists in the first half of the twentieth century. And they did an amazing job. The mosaics alone — built into the floors of the wealthy folks’ houses — make Volubilis a special place.

That’s a floor from what’s been dubbed the House of Venus, and it’s a depiction of Diana being surprised by Acteon while she’s bathing (all does not go well for Acteon in that story: Diana changes him into a stag, and he’s run down by his own hunting dogs). Other large mosaics include this scene of Orpheus playing the harp to a bunch of animals …

… and this one that lays out the twelve labors of Hercules:

That’s just the beginning — there are so many more! You can see all sorts of things, including an acrobat riding his horse backward, Bacchus sneaking in on Ariadne while she’s sleeping, sea life, and a wide range of geometric designs.

Not a fan of mosaics? That’s ok. If floors aren’t your thing, Volubilis offers large standing objects as well. You’ll find columns and archways galore.

Not many buildings remain, but what’s left of the basilica — which would have been the center of government life — still gives you a sense of size and scale.

On the more pedestrian side, you can see the remains of the places where ancient Romans lived …

… walked …

… and used the facilities (sorry if this offends any sensibilities, but these are the latrines).

If you poke around enough, you’ll also find this phallus, which I must admit came as a surprise (but Wikipedia assures me that “sexuality in Ancient Rome has sometimes been characterized as ‘phallocentric’”).

One of my very favorite things about Volubilis was the chance just to play in Roman ruins. How often do you get to do that — especially in Africa?

As a bonus, we visited Volubilis at a time where there were thousands of wildflowers in bloom. Wow!

Things to Know Before You Go

• Getting there: Volubilis is roughly one and a half hours by car from Fes through beautiful agricultural country. We hired a private driver for the trip.
• Cost: The good news is that Volubilis is not very expensive! As of March 2024, entry costs about $7 USD per person.
• What to bring: There’s no shade at Volubilis! Bring water, sunblock, and a hat.
• How long you’ll spend: Give yourself plenty of time — it took us nearly three hours to visit the site, and we didn’t see everything.
• Getting information: You’ll want to decide in advance whether you’ll want to hire a local guide at the entrance. We opted to wander around on our own, which we enjoyed throughly (it’s worth noting that the Wikipedia page on Volubilis is excellent and provides tons of information about the site if you decide to go guide-free).
• Food: We had an excellent lunch after our visit at the delicious (if somewhat over-the-decor-top) Roman City restaurant, which is just up the road from the archeological site.