Essaouira Day Trip from Agadir: Coastal Road, Medina & Fishing Port

You drive north along the coast, stop at an argan cooperative and arrive in Essaouira late morning for the port, the ramparts and the medina. SCHEDULE (times are estimates) 08:00 – Pick-up in Agadir or Taghazout. 08:30 – Taghazout from the road. 09:45 – Coastal viewpoint near Imsouane (short stop). 10:15 – Argan cooperative (about 30 min). 11:15 – Arrive in Essaouira; the port (about 45 min). 12:00 – Skala de la Ville ramparts (about 30 min). 12:30 – Fish lunch (about 1 hour, not included). 13:30 – Free time in the medina. 16:00 – Depart Essaouira. 19:00 – Drop-off in Agadir. GOOD TO KNOW • The road north from Agadir follows the ocean for much of the way, with several viewpoints over the surf beaches. • Goats climb argan trees mostly from late spring to autumn, when the fruit is ripe. Roadside 'tree goats' are often placed there for tips; you decide whether to stop. • In Essaouira, cars stay outside the medina; your driver drops you at the port gate. INCLUDED: private vehicle and driver, bottled water. NOT INCLUDED: lunch, entrance fees, tips. WHAT YOU'LL TASTE At the port grills you choose fish from the ice – sardines, sea bream, sole, prawns, squid – and pay by weight; it is grilled in front of you and served with bread, salad and lemon. In the medina, try a fish tagine or the almond pastries of the local bakeries. On the way, taste amlou and fresh bread at the argan cooperative. IF THE WEATHER TURNS: Essaouira is known as the 'Wind City of Africa'. On very windy days, the medina's lanes are sheltered and the galleries and museum are good indoor stops. Rain is rare and short. ACCESSIBILITY Essaouira's medina is flat and one of the easiest in Morocco to walk. The port has wet, uneven ground; the ramparts have a few steps. The driver can drop you close to each area. PHOTO SPOTS • The coast road above the ocean. • Blue boats in the harbour. WHAT YOU TAKE AWAY: wild coast and a relaxed port town.

Argan cooperative

Duration: About 30 minutes

Women produce argan oil by hand. Practical: tasting is free. You see the women crack the hard nuts between two stones, roast the kernels for culinary oil, and knead the paste by hand. It takes many hours of work to make a single litre of oil.

Essaouira port

Duration: About 45 minutes

A busy fishing port with blue boats and a wooden boatyard. Practical: wet ground. In the early afternoon the boats come in and the catch is auctioned on the quay. Walk to the end of the harbour wall for the classic view of the white town and the Île de Mogador offshore.

Skala de la Ville

Duration: About 30 minutes

18th-century sea ramparts with bronze cannons. Practical: windy. The bastion was built in the 1760s and appears in Orson Welles' Othello (1952) and in Game of Thrones. Under the ramparts, craftsmen carve and inlay the fragrant root wood of the local thuya tree.