Essaouira is a port city on the Atlantic coast of Morocco. We spent 5 days here and recovered from the hectic life in Marrakech.
Travel to Essaouira
We started our journey to Essaouira from Marrakech. Trains do not run south of Marrakech, here everything is reached by car or bus.
Online we looked at the two major bus companies and chose the bus company Supratours. We bought the ticket online 2 days before departure and received a QR code by mail. It costs 80 MAD per person for the one way, so about 8 €.
From our riad we were taken by shuttle in the morning to the bus station of Supratours. Shortly after our arrival, the fairly new bus arrived to take us to our next destination.
The luggage doors were opened and everything streamed to the bus. Yes, and then the first ones came back without having handed in their luggage. One needed additionally – and this was not on the Internet side – a ticket for the luggage. For 5 MAD (about 0,50€) per piece of luggage we got our tickets in the waiting hall at the bus station. Then we could load the luggage and board.
In the bus there were numbered and assigned seats, but no toilet. And so, about halfway through the journey, the driver stopped at a snack bar with a toilet. There was a break of about 20 minutes before we continued towards the coast.
The ride was very pleasant and quiet. It went through small towns, stone deserts and very barren landscapes. I was busy almost the whole trip to look at Morocco’s landscapes, while other passengers slept, read or talked quietly on the phone. After 3 hours on the dot, the bus pulled into Essaouira at a small bus station.
Tip: There are several men with small carts at the bus station. They want to help immediately and get the luggage from the bus and, of course against payment, show the way to the Riad. Despite pouring rain, we unloaded our luggage on our own and set off with the sat nav to find our accommodation. The city is small and it is quite feasible to master the way alone.
Medina of Essaouira
The medina of the coastal city already exists since the 18th century. Completely untypical for Morocco, there are two city gates and an almost symmetrical street network. There are only a few winding alleys here, most of the streets run straight ahead. Cars are not allowed in the medina, handcarts are used for transportation.
The Scala de la Kasbah, the city wall by the sea, is one of the tourist highlights of the city. Here are cannons made of bronze and iron. At the end of the wall is a small round citadel, from which you can look out over the sea.
Walking through the streets of the medina you will find several stores selling handicrafts made from the wood of the sandarac tree (species of tree from the region). Especially in the former casemates of the fortress are numerous arts and crafts stocks, which offer their goods. Yes and completely past I could not go then nevertheless and bought the first time for a long time in a vacation place something. Our luggage expanded to include a beautiful luminous blanket.
We were also in some very nice galleries and have discovered partly impressive pictures of local artists. Unfortunately, we could not take these home.
Art is very important in Essaouira. Everywhere you meet street musicians, acrobats and painters who captivate visitors.
You should not miss to stop at one of the numerous cake stands. Here there were really super delicious cakes at very fair prices. And, to stay on the topic of eating, a visit to the numerous small restaurants is worthwhile. One should not be deterred in the narrow streets by the fact that the restaurants often look like snack bars. Many restaurants have a beautiful roof terrace where you can sit and eat.
Essaouira – the harbor city
The old town of Essaouira is quite small and is located directly at the port of the city. At the city wall you walk past a tower of the fortification, directly to the harbor basins.
If you have the opportunity, you should visit the harbor at different times of the day. Here life is raging and you can hardly get out of looking. The harbor is a classic fishing port. Here the boats anchor close to each other. Nets are mended and cleaned, fishing lines are baited. A little off to the side, there is a shipyard where the boats are still traditionally made of wood.
I was particularly captivated by the sunset. Countless seagulls circled around the fishing boats and over the sea. If you then stand at the city wall, the sun sinks behind the tower in the sea. During our stay, we were lucky enough to experience a truly spectacular sunset twice. I have never seen the colors of the sky like this anywhere before.
A culinary tip
At the entrance to the port area there are small fry kitchens with chairs and tables in front of the door. Here you choose your personal favorite from the freshly caught fish. It is weighed and the price is set. Then the cook fries the fish right before your eyes and you can eat there.
We have eaten there twice. Each time with a different selection of seafood and each time at a really super fair price. For me, the food in these cookshops was the best fish meal I had the pleasure to enjoy during our Morocco trip.
The beach on the Atlantic Ocean
A walk on the beach is a must in Essaouira. The place is not called “city of the winds” without reason. There is always a fresh breeze blowing here, inviting kitesurfers, windsurfers and beach sailors to enjoy the sport. We watched for quite a while as kitesurfing novices learned how to handle the kite on the beach and made their first attempts in the water. I think if the water had been a little warmer, we would have taken a taster lesson as well.
On weekends and when the tide is still out, the beach is transformed into numerous soccer fields. Lines drawn with the foot, shoes to mark the goal and a ball, that’s all it takes to play. When the tide comes back in, the pitch sinks into the water and the walkers are drawn back to the beach from the paved promenade.
On the beach were only a few merchants on the road during our visit at the end of January. There were some offers for quad biking and camel riding, but the vacationers hardly used them. We enjoyed feeling the wind and the sun on the beach and taking long walks.
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