From your hotel or riad around 8:00.
This Essaouira day trip from Marrakech heads west to a walled port town on the Atlantic, a drive of two and a half to three hours. Its 18th-century medina, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is smaller and calmer than the one in Marrakech, with white and blue houses, woodcarvers’ workshops and the Skala, the sea bastion lined with old cannons.
On the way you stop at an argan oil cooperative, and if you are lucky you see goats climbing the argan trees by the road. In Essaouira you have free time to walk the medina and the ramparts, watch the fishing boats come into the port and eat grilled fish by the harbour before the drive back. For a shorter trip out of Marrakech, see the Ourika Valley Day Trip.
From your hotel or riad around 8:00.
A stop to see argan oil being made.
Free time in the lanes and souks.
The ramparts, the cannons and the fishing harbour.
Fish by the port or a restaurant in the medina, if you choose.
Back in Marrakech in the evening.
Two and a half to three hours each way, with a stop on the way.
About four to five hours.
Often, especially in summer. Bring a jacket even on sunny days.
This is a day trip, but a one-way transfer to Essaouira is also possible. See our transfers.
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