Les Jardins Exotiques de Bouknadel

The Bouknadel Exotic Gardens are open public gardens located north of Salé, Morocco. It was created in 1949 by the French horticulturist Marcel François.

Beautiful garden with a lot to see. Our 19 month old really enjoyed it. We took the pram, don't ! It's amazing but if you want to see all the gorgeous paths and feel like you're on an adventure you can have either older children or have them in baby carriers. We really loved it, if you are around Rabat it totally worth it.

20dh per person. A beautiful enchanted forest. A surprisingly large amount of variety in what is bigger than appears from the outside. Following the numbered signs of the suggested path led us to all highlights and felt like a treasure hunt, looking for the next clue. Many lazy turtles sunbathing on the quaint bridges, and a cute duck family. Don't miss the snakes and reptiles in the vivarium. The red path was longer than we expected, but a great tour all around.

I can't give a 6/5 but I would.
Before I talk about my experience, I think I should address the reviews giving 1 star, had I listened to them I wouldn't have experienced this true wonder of nature.
Most of the people complain about the fact that it looks "not well maintained".

The goal of these gardens is to immerse you into the wild, and replicate the same conditions you would find in the wild.

The wild isn't curated, cut and cleaned. The wild is WILD.
And this garden is wild. It does it so well that the deeper you dive in, the more you forget that you're actually in civilization and very close to a main road that is busy 24/7.

The uncut leaves of palm trees and dead branches serve as habitat for the thousands of birds, insects and other living things. It's what makes this garden as close to the real thing.

With that said, here's what I think of this garden:
Visit it if you can, if not, visit it all the same.
Visit it if it's cheap because you're a local, if it's expensive because you're a foreigner visit it all the same.

If you've got the knees and the sneakers take the red path, not the green or the blue, take the red one and explore every single corner of it.

I paid only 20dh to get in, but I would've paid 100.
Go, walk, feel nature, cross the bridges and immerse yourself in the different biomes the garden has to offer.
Some places look like Egypt and the Nile, some like China, some like Japan, Mexico, Peru, Polynesia and Andalusia.

Enjoy the sound of bamboo creaking, with its leaves moving to the wind.
Close to Peru there's a small open space with a couple of trees and a bamboo bench, sit there, breathe and meditate. There's a path walking downward close by, I stood there for close to 15 minutes in the shades of a humongous ficus robusta. Biggest I've ever seen.

One of our favourite places when we visited Salé. The gardens are beautiful and it was a fun way to spend an evening with family. My kids got to run and explore. They especially loved the bridges. There are different options of which paths to follow depending on how much time you want to spend. I believe the shortest was 30 mins, longest was 3 hours. After enjoying the gardens, there’s a cafe where you can enjoy some tea or ice cream.
I highly recommend you visit.

Wow this place is amazing, ell taken care. Very cheap 20dhs per person. I highly recommend it. Is so much to see.

Easily one of the most impressive and beautiful botanic gardens I have ever seen. While the beginning seems not that impressive, the farther you go, the more interesting it gets.
There are several routes with different lengths. We took the longest (red) and it leads through the jungle via small paths, stairs, bridges and small tunnels. Some of the views are simply beautiful.

Oh and there are some snakes in a cage you can watch.

You can reach the garden from Rabat by Tram and Bus - take the tram to Terminal Station Hay Karima and then Bus 201, in doubt ask the driver. Alternatively you can take a taxi for the ~ 15min ride.

It’s true the place lacks investment and care but it’s. A stunning garden with beautiful imported plants and trees from around the world. It has many lakes and flowers , mandarin ducks and a small collection of reptiles and serpents. Great for spending a very hot day as it’s so fresh . Bring food for the homeless kitties when you come as they are super friendly and skinny …

This place is incredible ; away from the noisy and polluted cities you get to enjoy mother nature with all that she has to offer from different varieties of plants and flowers to simple things like clean fresh air . This place is heaven on earth.

Very pleasant. Many paths to enjoy. Good place to spend an hour or two.

It is a very nice place. We walked around for over 2 hours and took a lot o nice pictures of the place.

Very nice botanical garden on a long and narrow plot. The gardens can be explored by several well indicated trails that weave their way through the different sections. I especially liked the bridges and walls and small secret passages that all contribute to giving these gardens a much larger and wilder feeling than would otherwise be the case. At 20 dirham entry fee per adult this botanical garden is a cheap and very much recommended activity in Rabat!

Beautiful Botanic Garden. Easy to find. Big car park, toilets. If no fountains ask one of the gardeners to turn it on for you.

I went here with some friends living in Rabat and had a wonderful time exploring the exotic and tropical foliage in this garden. It's a great way to spend a few hours in the afternoon and is easily accessible by public transport from Rabat. It's doesn't get too busy from what I hear which is good!

Really good service ( guide is on weekends), loving how clean and therapeutic the place is

Excellent garden full of beautiful plants and trees. You can get lost here for hours.
There are resting areas. Picnic areas. Friendly cats to pet. Some beautiful ducks. Ponds and bridges to cross. Overall, it is an amazing experience, and I'd definitely go back many times. Just make sure you have a few hours to spare as it will take you some time to finish it, if you actually can in one trip. I plan to go many times and discover more parts. It is highly recommended that you visit this beautiful place.

If you are in Rabat or near by you must visit this amazing garden.

I have seen so many gardens in all over of Morocco, but this one is the best of them ever. Too many different plants, trees, flowers, roses and decorations. The garden contains plant from different countries from all over the world.

Great place to walk and get distressed near salé city.
Have birds, reptiles and many kinds of trees and plants with 3 différents circuits to follow

Nice garden to spend an hour or so in, entry ticket is like 2 Euros, 20 Morocco Dh