Essaouira

Essaouira — Morocco’s Wind City — is a UNESCO World Heritage Atlantic port with whitewashed walls, cobalt-blue shutters and a completely distinct personality from anywhere inland. Founded as a Portuguese trading post and rebuilt by Sultan Mohammed III in 1765, the city sits on a promontory battered by Atlantic winds that keep temperatures cool even in summer. The Skala de la Ville sea ramparts offer dramatic ocean views and an unbroken line of bronze cannons. The harbour is a working fishing port — blue boats, nets, cats, and the freshest grilled sardines and sea bass in Morocco. The medina streets are wide enough to navigate without a map, unlike Marrakech or Fès — relaxed, artistic, full of marquetry and thuya-wood workshops, art galleries and independent music venues. Essaouira is the world’s unofficial capital of Gnawa music, and hosts the Gnawa World Music Festival every June — a free outdoor event on the Atlantic ramparts. The beaches stretch for kilometres south of the city and are consistently rated among the best in Africa for windsurfing and kitesurfing. Essaouira is 2.5 hours by road from Marrakech and makes the ideal one-night extension or day trip.