Essaouira
~Overview~
I don't have a long list of regrets when I reflect on my tour of Morocco, but foremost among them nonetheless is that I wish we had spent more time in Essaouira.
A charming seaside town with impressive fortifications, Essaouira was historically the most important commercial port in Morocco and served as the country's diplomatic capital. Today, the city is perhaps best known among tourists as a popular destination for kitesurfing and windsurfing, with powerful trade winds from the Atlantic blowing almost constantly into the protected bay. That, and the otherworldly tree-climbing goats unique to the region, which we were fortunate enough to spot during our roughly two hour bus ride from Marrakesh.
Possessing an easygoing energy similar to Chefchaouen, Essaouira is a welcome respite from the hustle and bustle of Marrakesh. Perhaps it's the pervasive go-with-the-flow mentality of a surfing community, but I felt that time moved a bit slower here — that people took just a bit longer to finish their tea or to peruse an artist's stand — not out of laziness or lethargy, but from an admirable ability to simply take it easy. This attitude, combined with a gently constant oceanic breeze to temper the sun's heat, made even a routine trip down the street into a welcome excursion.
Besides being a destination for water sports, Essaouira is also a hub of art and culture in its own right, with streets lined with arts-and-crafts businesses and galleries. And though we just missed it, try to plan to be in Essaouira toward the end of June when it hosts the Gnaoua Festival of World Music (you may recognize the Gnaoua from our time in the Sahara Desert), which lasts four days and attracts annually around 450,000 spectators, and which has come to be known as the "Moroccan Woodstock."
Simply put, Essaouira is a necessary addition to your itinerary. Whether you attempt to test your balance on the waves or prefer to plant yourself in the sand with a good book, let Essaouira be a refreshing compliment to your ongoing travels, wherever they may take you.
~Accommodation~
We spent our singular night at the charming Villa Garance, a restored rabbinical residence constructed in the late 19th century which today functions as a riad for visitors to Essaouira. Conveniently nestled among the shops of the medina and within a stone's throw of the beach, the villa provided everything we could possibly need, and then some — spacious rooms, meticulous housekeeping, delicious breakfast, and incomparable hospitality, with a 360-degree panoramic rooftop view of the ocean and surrounding city, and a number of supplemental services, including cooking classes, a spa, private dinner, and excursions. Given we were only staying in Essaouira for a night, we chose to spend more than we may have otherwise, but it all came out to a fairly reasonable $40/person ($80 total for the room for the night).
Marie and Pierre, the riad's French-Portuguese owners, could not have been more attentive, even arranging us private transportation from Essaouira to the airport in Marrakesh in time for our flight. Besides being genuinely lovely people, they are also committed to sustainable tourism — offering only dishes prepared with local ingredients and employing only local people — and they belong to the Moroccan Guest Houses Association, ensuring a commitment to safety and hygiene. What you may be surrendering in terms of price you'll earn back in the form of convenience, cleanliness, and hassle-free peace of mind — a good bargain, if you ask me.
~Airbnb Experiences~
Amazing surf lesson with local surfer hosted by Redouan
Our priority for the less-than-24 hours that we were in Essaouira — really our entire reason for being there — was to go surfing. Neither of us had ever been before, but there seems to be something about prancing around another continent for two months that gets you in the mood to try new things, and when we learned that Essaouira is known for its surf scene, we thought, why not?
As we had first done in Chefchaouen and in Fes and Marrakesh after that, we turned to our new favorite travel companion, Airbnb Experiences, finding almost instantly a popular surf lesson offered in walking distance of our riad for only $24/person. We selected the 4:30-6:30pm option for the day of our arrival to Essaouira to allow ourselves a nice buffer to get acquainted and grab lunch before venturing to the beach. We met our host, Redouan, a local surf shop owner and surfing instructor, at a popular restaurant and followed him to his shop, where we changed into wetsuits, secured our valuables in lockers, grabbed our surfboards, and headed for the water. Accompanied by two of Redouan's instructors — Mohammad and Abdul — as well as a third participant — an older German man named Joe — we spent the first thirty minutes on land learning the basics of paddling and jumping up onto the board. Then, it was off to the races.
From left to right: Abdul, Aidan, Mohammad, and me.
Mohammad and Abdul's teaching philosophy appeared to be trial-by-fire, as we quickly took to the waves and worked on incorporating their advice into the next swell, and the next, and the next. Though the entire experience was only advertised as two hours, our expectations of Airbnb Experiences were again surpassed, as we were out on the water for at least that duration. Including as well the time to change in and out of our wetsuits, to transport our gear to/from the beach, and our on-land instruction, the entire experience likely pushed three hours. Our instructors were endlessly encouraging, and we were each eventually able to get up on a wave and feel that natural high of conquering a new domain, and of becoming immersed in the task at hand. Despite our exhaustion, all of us left the beach smiling. And once again, Airbnb Experiences became a purveyor of unlikely friendships, as we joined Joe and his wife for drinks afterward to toast Essaouira and our newfound hobby.