Fortified medina
A medina laid out on a grid by a French architect in the eighteenth century, so it runs straight.
Duration
2 hrs – 4 hrs
Best time
Late afternoon
Open
Every day
Entry price
Free
Essaouira is a medina that did not grow: it was drawn. In 1760 the sultan Mohammed ben Abdallah commissioned a French architect, Théodore Cornut, to lay out a fortified trading town — hence streets that run straight and cross at right angles, which is rare in Morocco.
It was the sultanate's trading port with Europe, with a Jewish community that at times made up forty per cent of the population. The ramparts of the Skala de la Ville, facing the Atlantic, still carry their Spanish and Portuguese bronze cannon.
Getting there
Two and a half hours by road from Marrakech, with regular CTM or Supratours buses. The medina is entirely pedestrian.
What to bring
- Windbreaker
Rules on site
The wind is constant and cool even in summer: Essaouira is markedly cooler than Marrakech, so bring a layer. Touts are less persistent than elsewhere in Morocco, but the harbour shops start high.