Where the Homes Are Caves & Every Hat Tells a Story 🏡🧶

Hey there,

This week in our Morocco Off the Radar series, we’re heading into the Saïs hills near Fez, where time is measured in tea rounds and homes are carved straight into stone. From underground living spaces to colorful caps woven in humble courtyards, you’re about to meet a side of Morocco that speaks in soft voices and enduring traditions.

Hidden Morocco
Bhalil’s Inhabited Caves — A Village Built Into the Earth

Just 30 minutes from Fez lies Bhalil, a village famous for its still-inhabited cave homes. These limestone shelters aren’t museum pieces, they’re living, breathing households, passed down through generations.

• Most caves are discreetly tucked beneath stone houses, easy to miss unless you’re invited in.
  

• You’ll find carpets laid on cool rock floors, hammams dug into cave corners, and clay ovens gently baking bread beneath centuries-old ceilings.
  

• Many hosts will offer mint tea and stories about life underground, past and present.

🧭 Insider Tip: Look for caves with blue doors, that’s the sign of an inhabited home. Some families offer spontaneous visits (a small tip is appreciated).

✨ Pro Tip: Bhalil is best explored on foot, wear sturdy shoes and bring a translator or local guide if possible.

Taste of Morocco
Fromage & Flatbread in the Saïs Hills

The area around Bhalil is rich in small-scale agriculture. You’ll find fresh cheeses, olives, and garden herbs in nearly every home kitchen, often served with warm rounds of house-made flatbread.

🍽️ What to Look For:

• Jben (fresh white cheese) 
  served with wild thyme and olive oil
  

• Cornbread flatbread
  baked on flat stones in traditional ovens
  

• Seasonal jams 
  made from figs, quince, or wild berries

🧺 Want to dive deeper? Many families will invite you to join them in baking bread or preparing simple dips, the ultimate form of local hospitality.

✨ Etiquette Tip: In these villages, tea is more than a drink, it’s a symbol of welcome. Accepting a second glass is both polite and expected.
👉 Learn more about rural hospitality in our Moroccan food etiquette guide.

Adventure Awaits
Cap Weaving, Folklore & a Living Tradition

Bhalil isn’t just known for its caves, it’s also one of Morocco’s last strongholds of handwoven cap weaving, a dying craft sustained by women’s cooperatives and generational skill.

• These caps, known locally as "chachia", are hand-stitched using dyed yarns and sometimes finished with delicate embroidery.
  

• Some workshops are open to visitors, offering hands-on weaving experiences and storytelling sessions about Berber village legends and symbolic designs.
  

• You might even hear tales of the “talking springs” and hidden saints’ tombs that still shape village rituals.

🎁 Bonus: Buying a cap directly from the maker ensures your money goes where it matters, and you’ll leave with a one-of-a-kind keepsake.

✨ Pro Tip: Ask your guide or host in Fez to call ahead, many cooperatives operate informally, but will welcome respectful, curious visitors.

In Bhalil, the homes hug the earth, the crafts speak for generations, and hospitality is measured in warmth, not WiFi. It’s a world away, just a few hills over from Fez.

Want more authentic detours from the big cities? 🧭 Check out our Best Trails For Hiking in Morocco : From the Atlas to the Sahara, to find more places where culture lives quietly and deeply.

Until next time, travel deeper.
Best regards,
The Magic Morocco Team