Visiting Morocco, everybody has this idea of traditional medinas filled with lively markets and the smell of spices all around. The problem is, in today’s world, where westernization is in full force, more and more of these places are lost forever. Probably the biggest example of this is Marrakech. When you go there and hope to see traditional arab and berber lifestyles, you are in the wrong place. The Medina itself seems as if many shops have been abandoned over time or pushed out of business by bigger, more organized enterprises in the new part of the city. The dream of tiny cozy alleyways are destroyed by the thundering sounds of mopeds passing by, just inches away from you, filling the air with cough-inducing smoke. The only escape being the tourist attractions that cost 10€ each to enter or the overpriced restaurants, where a dish can cost anything upwards of 8€ (seems cheap, but is totally overpriced for Morocco). And then you seek refuge in the big open space of Jemaa el-Fna and get harassed by scammers every second you’re there. This about sums up our experience in Marrakech. We came with high hopes from Essaouira, a city along the Atlantic which gave us a standard, no other moroccan city could compete with. In order to give you some inspiration, I wrote this blog post, so you won’t be disappointed when visiting Morocco.

Facts about Essaouira

• 85000 inhabitants
• port city along the Atlantic coast of Morocco
• centered around fishing and tourism
• around 175km from both Agadir and Marrakech
• UNESCO world heritage title since 2001

The different parts of the city

Medina

Bay area

The bay area is located to the south of the Medina along the huge beach that allows for swimming, relaxing in the sun or your first surf lesson. The bay itself is pretty calm, thanks to the island of Mogador protecting it from the rough Atlantic. The beach is lined by a promenade with palm trees and juice vendors. Although it runs parallel to the biggest road connecting Essaouira to the main highways outside of the city, it is never too loud or too polluted, thanks to the fresh breeze coming in steadily from the ocean.

New city

The new city, as the name implies, is new and not as pretty as the rest of the town. As a tourist I would recommend you stay near the Medina and the Bay, as there is not much to do here tourist-wise. The upside though, is that there are modern stores and even pharmacies here, where selection is a bit better than in the Medina. The bus station is also located in this area. Many people who can afford seem to move away from the old town and buy a home here in one of the many apartment style townhouses. It is a pretty boring and soulless design but I can understand that from an inhabitant’s perspective the old houses in the medina are not up to modern standards, at least not the actually lived in homes.

Although the entire city is pretty safe, stay away from the parts of the city north of Bab Doukkala. This area is very poor and filled with slums. A lot of dirt everywhere and most of what seems to be former warehouses are destroyed and inhabited by the poorest people living in shacks and sorting rubbish for for a living. I do not want to say that everyone here will rob you, but I would be careful not to step into the wrong streets here. It is crazy how different the areas of the city can be, as here you will be stared at as if nobody has ever seen a foreigner and just a couple hundred meters away in the medina are dozens of fellow tourists around in every direction.

What makes it special?

The markets

The central location, everybody visiting Essaouira will come back to time and time again is the market area in the medina. The main market is spread out along the big axis connecting Bab Doukkala, Bab Marrakech and Bab El Mechouar. „Bab“ means gate, as the old town is enclosed by a wall. The market offers everything you can imagine in a country like Morocco. Fruits and vegetables from local farmers carrying their goods into the city in the morning alongside other stalls selling nuts, oils, souvenirs, clothing, meats and fish. The meat and fish areas are pretty unsanitary from a european perspective, but it feels authentic and not one part artificially spruced up, as is often the case in touristy areas. Alongside the market you will find restaurants, cafés, art studios and the many riads that accomodate guests. Sadly I cannot recommend you the amazing riad we stayed in, as it was arranged for us by a friend and is not on Google.

The location

We did not notice it until we travelled to Marrakech but what really sets Essaouira apart from many other cities in Morocco is the location. It is situated right by the sea and has a maritime climate. The air is clear thanks to the soft breeze coming in from the Atlantic and the temperatures are always around 20-30°C. Not too hot during the day and cooling during the night. We visited in October and then again in December during the „rainy“ season, but even then, we only had one day where it actually rained, the rest was mostly sunshine and clouds. Apart from the weather the location by the coast always gives you a space to escape to, whenever the city feels too crammed.

The relaxed vibe

I cannot explain why, but the people seem way less stressed here then in other cities in Morocco. Maybe it is due to its smaller size or the clean air, but everybody was living at a slower pace then the people in Marrakech, Rabat or Tangier. The many cozy cafés overlooking the sea, the promenade and the car-free medina also play their part in making it an ideal holiday destination. While other cities tire you out, Essaouira will rejuvinate you.

What can you do in Essaouira?

Essaouira offers all kinds of activities and there is definetily something for everybody. Within the city you can enjoy traditional moroccan food, stay in a Riad and walk around the Medina all day. You can also visit the beaches within the city limits to sunbathe and swim. The main beach is the plage d’Essaouira, which is situated south of the Medina. There you can rent beach equipment and just enjoy some time by the sea all day. Another beach would be the Plage Assafi. It is not that well connected to the city, as it basically sits north of the Medina and goes on into the countryside, where no road really leads. The first part of this beach is a bit sketchy as it is right in front of the poorer communities. But once you reach the city limits, the beach opens up to an endless horizon. You can probably walk for many kilometers without meeting another human on the way.

If you are more into sports, try surfing or kitesurfing. The city is full of surf schools which teach you the basics for much less then what Spain or Portugal would charge. The only reason we came to Essaouira in the first place was to attend a surf camp. We stayed in the Medina for a week and had daily surf lessons for just 250€ p.p. which ist an absolute steal in my opinion. Other activities would include quad tours towards Cap Sim or sandboarding on one of the many dunes by the sea.

How can you reach the city?

Essaouira is connected via the N8 to Marrakech (2h) and via the N1 to Agadir (2h) and Safi (2h). If you rent a car it is pretty straightforward. Just follow the road into Essaouira, just watch out for the police checks. The quality of roads is good and as long as you can deal with the more aggressive style of driving, it is pretty safe.

If you do not want to rent a car and want take public transportation instead, that is absolutely possible, though to different extents depending on where you are coming from. There are many busses each day connecting the city to Marrakech. You can book the tickets here or just at the counter in the bus terminal, which is usually a bit cheaper. Watch out, where you buy your tickets if you choose the second option. There are many „sellers“ who bought tickets at the counter and now try to upsell them to you. They can get quite intrusive. Ignore them and walk to the actual counter. From Agadir, there are fewer busses and the one we took on that route took forever, because it stopped every so often to let new people in and others out. From Agadir, Taghazout or Imsouane it is thus a better idea to take a shared taxi. Just get to the taxi stand as early as you can and wait until it fills up. If you want to reach Essaouira from Safi or the other way around, then the number of bus connections is minimal. Either plan you day around them or try to take the shared taxi. But be warned, we had to wait 4 hours!!!! for it to fill. Usually it is 1 hour max.

Prices

• Bus Marrakech-Essaouira: 60-70 DH
• Shared Taxi Marrakech-Essaouira: around 100DH
• Bus Safi-Essaouira: 40-60DH
• Shared taxi Safi-Essaouira: 80DH
• Bus Agadir-Essaouira: 50-70DH
• Shared taxi Agadir-Essaouira: 100DH

As a rule of thumb, if you have a time take the bus. It is cheaper and more comfortable. If you want to get somewhere specific, take the taxi (or hitchhike).

What is there to see in the surrounding area?

The perfect day trip from Essaouira is a visit to Sidi Kaouki, a small village, almost entirely in the hands of the surfing community. In contrast to Imsouane, it has kept it’s charm. Wide beach, endless views across the ocean and a restaurant, that offers amazing local food at a very low price. It is the soul of the village so don’t miss it. Generally if you are a surfer, you would come here and not surf in Essaouira. The bay in the city is perfect for learners due to its mellow waves, but here you can enjoy a perfect point break. The charm of Sidi Kaouki are it’s cheap beachside accomodations. We had breakfast everyday right on the road next to the sea. A small paradise on earth.

Ideal itinerary includung Essaouira

Roadtrip through Morocco

If you want to see the best, Morocco has to offer in one trip, you will want to do a roadtrip. I already have another post with the perfect 7-day roadtrip itinerary, which is easily adjustable to include Essaouira.

Hopping surf town to surf town

If you are a surfer, Essaouira can be the ideal starting place for your journey down the coast along the different surf towns. An itinerary I can absolutely recommend would be Essaouira -> Sidi Kaouki -> Imsouane -> Taghazout -> Mirleft. In my opinion, Agadir is really not the place to visit as a tourist, except you want to stay in an all-inclusive hotel all day, so you can just skip that.

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