Exploring Essaouira
Ideas for your free time
The main streets of the medina have sadly been taken over by fairly average souvenir stalls, but if you get onto the smaller side streets, or deeper into the medina away from the port, there are still some more authentic craft stalls and galleries for the renowned Essaouiran “art naïf”. The port is a fascinating place to wonder around: the fishing fleet is much reduced from its former pomp, but there will still always be men repairing their nets and repainting boat hulls against the backdrop of the fortifications. The Place Moulay Hassan at the entrance to the port is a good place to eat and drink: one side is lined with the stalls cooking fish straight off the boats for you, the other with cafés and ice cream vendors. There’s a great stretch of ramparts to walk along, with cannons peaking through and a solid bastion to explore; beneath this stretch of ramparts are the workshops and stalls working with the well-known local thuya wood.
The steady, strong winds that allow Essaouira to promote itself as “Windy City, Africa” are a magnet for kite surfers and windsurfers. There are several surf schools dotted along the beach to the south of the city and the sky is filled with kites most days. Arranging a lesson for beginners or hiring good quality kit for the more experienced is easy – just let us know.
Essaouira is also one of those wonderful places where you can live out the romantic fantasy of riding a magnificent steed along a sandy beach. Head to a ranch a short distance inland where you’ll meet your guide and local thoroughbred (a “Barb”, known for stamina and hardiness) before setting off for a horse ride. You may stay inland and ride amongst the thuya and juniper forests, or head down to the beach for that classic surfside gallop!
A short distance offshore from Essaouira is the Ile De Mogador, an island with an interesting history, being one of the places the Roman Empire made their Tyrian Purple dye (used, amongst other things, to colour Senatorial robes). More recently it’s served as a woman’s prison and a quarantine centre. Today it is uninhabited and it’s very difficult to secure permits to land there, as it’s a major breeding site for the Eleonora’s falcon. You can however arrange boat trips around the island, an interesting way to spend an afternoon.
