Exploring a new city and stumbling across a particularly atmospheric, funky little patch feels like you’ve hit the jackpot when you’re on holiday, but Time Out’s roundup of the world’s coolest neighbourhoods will make that a whole lot easier.
This year, 38 exciting neighbourhoods made the list, which was curated with the help of our global network of writers and editors, and three of them are in Africa.
Claiming the second-place spot overall and the coolest spot on the continent is Mers Sultan, a graffiti-covered concrete jungle in Morocco’s bustling Casablanca. The area is just south of Centre Ville, and is a magnet for the city’s artists and culture-sector workers. The place is dotted with whacky architecture, from futuristic ‘70s buildings to art nouveau corners – no wonder it’s so cool.
‘Be prepared to treasure hunt in bouquinistes, fill up on humble but delicious food in one of the many hole-in-the-wall restaurants and snack bars, or sip a nous nous (half espresso, half milk) from a little glass in a café, squeezed in among old men filling out betting sheets in a haze of cigarette smoke and up-and-coming young filmmakers, rogue graffiti artists and EDM artists,’ says our Casablanca-based writer, Lauren Schenkman.
Next up it’s East City in Cape Town, which ranked in nineteenth place over all, boasts tonnes of history, and is popular with digital nomads and creatives, and thirdly it’s Osu in Accra, Ghana, a neighbourhood which we’ve also spot-lit in our roundup of the best places in the world for nightlife.
To read more about the world’s coolest neighbourhoods, you can check out our annual ranking right here.
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