Day 01
Full-Day Trip to Essaouira from Casablanca
- Connect with your tour guide, who will pick you up from your hotel in Casablanca to begin the itinerary.
- Begin the trip to Essaouira, the former Mogador, built on a rocky peninsula. Admire its ramparts standing watch over the ocean, its medina in white and blue tones, its busy port, and its long sandy beaches.
- Understand the history of Essaouira, which dates back to the 8th century BC. The Phoenicians stopped here on the road to the equator. The real founder of the city was the Alaouite Sultan Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah, who entrusted its construction to Theodore Cornut, an architect and student of Vauban. Essaouira is now a charming little fishing port, especially lively when the boats arrive and sardines and crustaceans are sold at auction. On the docks, fishers repair their red nets.
- Enjoy grilled sardines outdoors in the harbour's small restaurants, then discover the Sqala du Port, a crenellated bastion built to protect the harbour and the city. It consists of two fortified wings behind the Navy Gate.
- Leaving the port Sqala, enter Moulay Hassan Square. Discover the Kasbah, a district surrounded by ramparts with foundations anchored in the rock.
- Walk along the ramparts on the street leading to the Sqala of the Kasbah, where the famous guns of Essaouira line up. This place was chosen by Orson Welles for the exterior scenes of his film Othello.
- At the heart of the Kasbah, visit the Museum of Popular Arts and Traditions, the mirror and collective memory of the province of Essaouira. Explore the ritual and profane musical instruments of the Aissaoua, Hamadcha, and Gnaoua brotherhoods. Every year in June, the city hosts the world-renowned Gnaoua Festival of Essaouira.
- Later, return to your accommodation in Casablanca to conclude the tour.
