City guide · Morocco · Africa
Marrakech is not a dog city in the European sense: the medina is culturally conservative about dogs, most venues publish no pet policy at all, and off-leash space is essentially nonexistent. Realistic dog outings mean shaded public gardens on the Gueliz side of town and a table on a courtyard or rooftop terrace, always confirmed by phone first.
6 places5 categories6 neighbourhoods
6 places, each checked against the venue's own information
Neighbourhoods covered: Medina edge / Gueliz, Menara, Medina (Rahba Lakdima), Medina (Rue Mouassine), Gueliz, Route d'Amizmiz (Palmeraie edge).
No photo yetAn eight-hectare 18th-century princely orchard opposite the Koutoubia, rehabilitated in 2005 with Maroc Telecom money into a free public garden with shaded alleys, olive and citrus trees, pools and a small communications museum. It is the only large green space within walking distance of Jemaa el-Fna.
No photo yetA 12th-century Almohad olive grove wrapped around a 200-by-150-metre reflecting basin, with a Saadian-era pavilion and the Atlas Mountains as a backdrop. It is one of the oldest gardens in the western Muslim world and still irrigated by the old khettara channels.
No photo yetA red-tadelakt cafe on the spice square, spread over three floors with a roof terrace looking over the souk towards the Atlas. The menu runs from beldi breakfast and fresh juice to salads, burgers and tagines, and it has been the square's anchor since the 1990s.
No photo yetA riad restaurant and rooftop bar off Rue Mouassine serving Moroccan and Italian food continuously from late morning to midnight, with a courtyard patio, a misted roof terrace and Koutoubia views at sunset.
No photo yetA 1920s colonial-era brasserie on a Gueliz corner, restored by Studio KO, with high ceilings, a long bar, an upstairs music salon and a 70-seat terrace under the trees. The menu is French with Moroccan accents, from oysters and steak tartare to lamb tagine.
No photo yetA 135-key resort about 12 km south of the city on the Amizmiz road, built around a golf course, one of the country's largest pools, a spa and olive and palm gardens with the Atlas behind. It is a self-contained estate rather than a city hotel.
Leash rules, off-leash hours and whether dogs are allowed inside are set locally and change without notice. Each listing here says what the venue or the responsible authority publishes, and the listing page links to the page we checked, so you can confirm the current rule before you set out. Outside a signed off-leash area, keep the dog on a lead.
No venue can pay to be listed or to rank higher, and no listing carries an invented rating or a stock photograph standing in for the real place. If something here is out of date, tell us and we will re-check it.
Cape Town is one of Africa's easiest cities to travel with a dog: a long Atlantic and False Bay coastline with several free-run beaches, fenced suburban parks, and a national park that sells dog-walking permits. The catch is that the rules differ beach by beach and season by season, so read the signage at each access point.
Lagos has a genuine dog scene - monthly meet-ups and a carnival that drew hundreds of dogs - but almost no venue publishes a pet policy, and the city's best-known beach and its flagship nature reserve both ban dogs outright. Treat every listing here as outdoor-first and approval-based: call before you go.
Accra has no dedicated dog parks and almost no venue publishes a pet policy, so access is decided case by case, usually for leashed dogs in gardens or on the sand at quiet hours. Read these listings as ask-first rather than guaranteed welcome.
Nairobi is East Africa's most dog-friendly capital, largely because Karura Forest runs a formal dog-licence scheme and signed off-leash tracks. The scene is still forest-and-garden based: most malls and bars say no, so plan around daylight walks, garden cafes and a handful of hotels with written pet policies.
Cairo is not a dog city: most parks, malls and restaurants refuse dogs, streets are full of strays, and the reliable yeses are a handful of hotels, one desert protectorate and a few cafe gardens in New Cairo and Sheikh Zayed. Assume you will taxi everywhere and always call before turning up.
Dogs are uncommon in Zanzibar, an overwhelmingly Muslim island where most dogs are guards or expat pets, so expect attention and the occasional quiet refusal. Dog travel here means a handful of resorts with real pet policies, early leashed walks on public seafront space, and asking before you sit down anywhere.
Send it in and we will check it against the venue's own information before it goes live. Venue owners can also send a photograph of their place — free, with the credit kept.