And so Castles made of sand
Fall in the sea eventually
Early evening in Essaouira, as an eerie purple hue replaces the vast, infinite blue and the incessant crowing of the town’s ever-present seagulls begin to wane, it is replaced with a new cacophony of disparate sounds. First, the clinking of glasses creeps down over the fortress walls from chic rooftop bars, joining the crackling splutter of frying pans from harbour-front seafood shacks. This is overlaid with the yells of salesman wheeling their carts of gaudy souvenirs around Place Orson Welles that is only overpowered by several guitar refrains emerging from cafes and bars, interweaving and braiding before being carried away on the Atlantic winds. The pounding toms of All along the Watchtower, the glitchy opening notes of Purple Haze, and the bluesy twang of Hey Joe.
More than 50 years since his passing, Jimi Hendrix has found an unusually prominent place in the mythology of this Moroccan seaside city. His image is everywhere and his music is unavoidable. Walls of cafes and T-shirts in souvenir shops bear his image while hotels, restaurants, and food carts are all named in his honour.
Locals will bend the ear of anyone that will listen, regaling them with erroneous tales of how Hendrix, at the height of his fame, settled in this city of blue and ivory pitched on Morocco’s wind-battered Atlantic coast for 11 days in the summer of 1969. The story goes that on arrival at Casablanca airport, Hendrix, accompanied by two friends, hired a limousine to take him to Essaouira, where he stayed in Hotel des Iles, a simple hotel just outside of the medina’s walls. During his stay, Hendrix decided that he wanted to buy the nearby village of Diabet, where the Dar Sultan Palace – once the home of Moulay Abderrahmane, Khalifa – lies ruined and buried in the dunes. An inspiration, locals claim, for his track ‘Castles Made of Sand’. Further stories of Hendrix’s Moroccan adventure say that crisscrossed the country in a beaten old van and even tried to buy an island off the Essaouira coast when his bid for the entire village of Diabat was denied.
It is important, while in Morocco, to regard such legends and tall tales with caution. Moroccans are born storytellers and you begin to feel that the people of Essaouira are so fond of their association with historical figures or events that they will embellish stories with the same flourish that is found in the embellishments of the designs on the intricately woven rugs sold in the city’s markets.
In truth, Hendrix wrote ‘Castles Made of Sand’ in 1967, two years before his visit, but he did actually spend time in Essaouira. Not long after releasing his magnum opus, Electric Ladyland, and just a few weeks away from his Iconic appearance at Woodstock, Hendrix needed some well-deserved time out. He chose Essaouira. Despite it being a fleeting visit, tales of the rockstar’s stay still echo around the tightly-packed walls of the medina wrapped in a web of misleading information and fictitious stories.
Walking along Essaouira’s ramparts and winding through narrow souks crammed with tea stalls, spice vendors and tricket shops, it is easy to see why Jimi Hendrix decided to come here. Like so many artists in the ‘free-love’ era, Hendrix travelled to both find himself and absorb other cultures. HIs home country suppressed black expression at a time when civil rights were still hard to come by, but in Morocco, he would find echos of traditional blues in the tunes of Gnawa musicians – descendants of Sub-Saharan African slaves – who pluck the strings of their camel-skinned guembris while keeping rythym on krakebs, the hand-held cymbals unique to the country.
Hendrix would never visit Morocco again, sadly passing away just over a year after his time in Essaouira.
I’m not sure if it is Hendrix’s influence or the influx of surfers that are drawn here by the Atlantic swells, but Essaouira has a distinctly bohemian atmosphere that is a far cry from the oppressive chaos of some of Morocco’s other major cities. Surf shacks and shabby-chic style cafes line the sand while inside the fortress walls you will be just as likely to stumble upon a fantastic independent art gallery as you will be discreetly offered weed by a local in a range of languages. After all, this was a mainstay on the hippie trail of the 1960s when the town also played host to The Rolling Stones, Cat Stevens and Frank Zappa. It just seems that Essaouira never moved on from the Summer of Love.
Gnawa continues to emanate through Essaouira too. Each evening, the sounds of Darija Arabic vocals ring out in a call and response from café terraces and buskers on the streets. It is a type of music distinguished by its tbilat drumbeats, scattered handclaps and bluesy melodies plucked out on 3-string lutes. Dressed flamboyantly in their colourful tunics and pointed babouche slippers, a Gnawa band is always compelling to watch as they move rhythmically with dancers spinning their tasselled hats with ever increasing speeds and dropping their bodies to the floor with sudden buckling of the knees
While Essaouira has been adopted as the spiritual capital of Gnawa, its roots are tied deeply to the medieval Sudanic Empires, an area that is now modern-day Senegal, Mali and Guinea. It is a genre that had sacred ties, used to expel evil spirits by performing lilas, all-night, trance-inducing performances that acted as exorcisms for Senegalese textile traders.
Once the people of these regions would have been marginalised, but in modern-day Morocco, their sub-Saharan culture is celebrated. In 2019, Gnawa was added to UNESCO’s List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
After an evening of music and dancing, it is hard work to rouse myself at dawn and cross the wide sands of Plage d’Essaouira towards the battlements. Although most tourists are tucked up safely in their riads and the spice salesmen have yet to open their stalls, the mist-shrouded harbour is a flurry of activity. The region’s iconic blue boats jostle for space at the slipways, their hulls stacked ticked with loose sardines after an all-night stint at sea. One by one, skippers scoop their silver, shimmering bodies into buckets and pass them ashore while stray cats and hungry gulls fight over any misplaced fish. As a spectacle, the disorderly seafood auction that takes place at the quayside is as compelling as the bands that performed here the previous night, with rugged sailors and merchants – enveloped in a cloud of fog and cigarette smoke – all trying to outbid each other for the morning’s catch.
Rather than settling down on a bench beside the water for a breakfast of freshly hauled seafood, I am called by the crashing waves and opt to climb the sloping walkway of the city’s ramparts towards Skala de la Ville. Leaving the heady scent of grilled fish and chermoula – a local mix of lemon, paprika, cumin, and garlic – behind, I watch the swell through the square, sandstone crenels laden with historic bronze cannons and make my way towards the north bastion. From here the Atlantic opens up, with white-tipped crests tumbling beneath the azure horizon and crashing onto the rocky headland below.
I choose to wander back down to sea level once the ever-present wind rises and starts to whip the fortress walls. Passing the jumble of blue fishing boats and navigating the piles of knotted fishing tackle, I enter the medina, a maze of narrow lanes crowded with whitewashed buildings, ornate wooden doorways and cobalt blue shuttered windows. At times the alleyways appear Balearic in nature, or could even resemble the quaint towns of a Greek island until you turn a corner and find yourself back in ancient Mogador, where mortar peels away from walls and sections crumble, enough to reveal bare stonework and old, lustreless tiles. Buildings are reminiscent of archaeological diagrams, with the detritus of the centuries drawn back to show annotated cross-sections of past wonders. While much more laid-back than the chaotic labyrinths of Marrakech and Fez, wandering Essaouira’s UNESCO-listed medina is an equally enchanting way to spend your days in the town.
At the souks, you will find colourful pyramids of fragrant spices, terracotta tagine pots, and shelves stacked high with baskets of woodcrafts or pretty silver teapots. Mercifully, you are free to linger. While the locals are likely to chat extensively over their intricately woven carpets, the laissez-faire attitude of shopkeepers that is so uncommon in the country means that you can browse hassle-free.
This relaxed atmosphere could down to the influence of a flower-power fuelled past, but it is largely thanks to the fact that the occupants of Essaouira are a melting pot of both Moroccans and foreigners. There has been a seismic shift in the town’s fortunes over the past two decades and now historic mosques coexist with a new generation of stylish Moroccan designers. Crumbling riads have been transformed into chic boutique hotels and galleries flaunting expensive works by local artists are a dime a dozen.
With its steady rise in fortunes, the region’s food scene is also booming. Amongst Essaouira’s three unique districts that sit wedged in its fortified walls – the Kasbah La Scala with its lattice of narrow alleyways, the bustling Medina, and the old Jewish quarter (Mellah) – you will find a lively café culture alongside a baffling number of fantastic restaurants. You can’t turn around without stumbling upon a fantastic women’s cooperative making beautiful organic Argan oil and a few miles out of town Val d’Argan winery is producing some of the best bottles in the country. Inside the city walls, you can sample the French influence by stopping off at one of Essaouira’s many patisseries where you will find a dizzying array of treats, from perfectly baked croissants to sweet, sticky baklava.
I decided that my last meal in Essaouira should be a more traditional affair and slowly make my way back to the harbour where over 20 stands hawk the catch of the day, ruby red mullet and slices of baby squid grilled over hot coals alongside plump prawns and blackened sardines. As the sun dipped over the horizon, turning the cerulean waters of the Atlantic a deep purple haze, I wandered away from the imposing city walls back across the sand towards my riad. By this time, the only crowds are seagulls and the last remaining kite surfers that hoist their sails and dart across the waves.
With a full stomach and a sense of peace, I can see why Jimmi Hendrix may, or may not, have chosen to spend some of his last remaining days in Essaouira.
How to Get to Essaouira
The popular coastal resort of Agadir, 175km south of Essaouira, will set you back around Dh75 each way in a private taxi. Alternatively, a CTM or Supratours bus is Dh60 per person and takes around 3 hours.
There are two daily direct flights from Casablanca to Aeroport de Mogador, which is located just 15 miles south of the town. A bus to Casablanca takes around 6 hours and will set you back Dh135.
Visiting Essaouira On a Day Trip
Getting Around Essaouira
Essaouira’s walled-off medina is compact and much easier to navigate than the labrynthine webs of streets that occupy some of the Morocco’s major cities, meaning that walking is the best option. Especially as anything larger than a bike is unlikely to squeeze through some of the city’s narrower passageways. This gives the perfect excuse to spend an evening getting lost, stumbling upon one of Essaouria’s fantastic galleries, cafes, or souks. The beach is only a short walk out of town but if you’re looking to travel further afield, taxis are abundant and cheap. Just make sure to agree on a price before jumping in.
Where to Stay in Essaouira
Down the narrow lanes and winding alleyways of Essaouira’s old town there are a host of luxurious riads, quirky Airbnbs, and cheap bunkhouses where any type of traveller is bound to find something that suits both their travel style and their budget. Those looking for accommodation in a quieter part of town will find sumptuous all-inclusive resorts just outside of the medina, a short walk south of Diabat.
Hostel
Chill Art Hostel
There is no denying Essaouira’s artistic heritage and no property in the city embraces the region’s bohemian vibes quite like Chill Art hotel. While this is very much a budget hostel catering to backpackers, its quirky, laidback atmosphere make it the perfect place to rest your wear feet with a warm cup of mint while listening to live performances from local musicians.
Hotel
Villa Maroc
One of the first modern riads to open its doors in Essaouira’s medina, Villa Maroc has been operating from this 18th century building in the heart of the city for 26 years since the owners cleverly reworked four historic homes into a network of spacious, whitewashed bedrooms, sun-filled courtyards and cosy common spaces.
LUXURY
Heure Bleue Palais
This 5-star hotel – perfectly placed outside of the medina in a slightly more peaceful neighbourhood yet just a short walk from Essaouira’s bustling old streets – is one of the city’s most luxurious options, boasting a billiards and cinema room, hammam, and a rooftop pool with views across the medina to the Atlantic.
The Best Things to do in Essaouira
The medina’s small size means that much of Essaouira can be seen in under 3 hours. However, those looking to delve a little deeper can keep themselves occupied for far longer, even if they choose just to spend their time sipping mint tea while watching the to-and-fro of city life along the seafront.
Explore the Ramparts
The dusty coloured fortifications of Essaouira date back to the days when the city was known as Mogador and the Portuguese king, D. Manuel I, ordered a fortress to be built there. Eagle-eyed film fans may be able to recognise the walls from the 1952 Orson Welles film Othello (Essaouira now has a square named after Welles) or more recently, the city walls doubled as Astapor in the insanely popular HBO series Game of Thrones. At each end of the sea walls are the Skala du Ville and Skala du pont; impressive bastions bookending the cannon-lined ramparts. From here you get a great view of both the port and City as well as it being the perfect place to watch the sunset over the Atlantic.
Get Active on the Beach
Although this is Morocco, the temperatures in Essaouira plateau at around the mid-20s thanks to the gusts of wind that continually gust in from the Atlantic (It is ‘the windy city’ after all). It’s possible to sunbathe in Essaouira if you don’t mind being sandblasted but most people opt for more active beach pursuits. I didn’t give surfing or kite surfing a go while in Essaouira as the waves were looking a little small, but there are plenty of other things to do; horse and camel rides on the beach are perenially popular pursuits.
Watch the Fisherman Unload the Catch of the Day
Essaouira is not quite the bustling trading port it was back in the 17th and 18th centuries, but the small harbour still thrives thanks to a small-scale fishing industry. At around 6 o clock each morning, Essaouira’s iconic blue fishing boats return filled with their catch, and I mean filled. In some cases, it is impossible to even see the bottom of the boat as sardines cover the entire surface and pile high around the fishermen’s feet. I woke at 5.45 to wander down to the marina, camera in hand, to watch the fisherman bring in their early morning catch. The blue rowing boats emerged from the morning mist, anchored in the harbour and began to unload while bartering and bargaining from the waiting hordes began.
Eat Some of the Freshest Fish You Will Ever Find
While you’re hanging around the harbour you might as well get involved and haggle for your own seafood. There are a number of market stalls at the port that serves the morning’s catch, even allowing you to bring your own seafood if you have made a purchase from a local fisherman, before preparing and cooking for you for a small fee.
Many people will tell you that the best seafood can be found at Les Bretons Du Sud, stand number 33, where you will be sat at a makeshift table in the middle of Essaouira’s bustling port. It may be basic and unpretentious, but the yelling fishermen and dive-bombing seagulls really add to the excitement.
Wander the Medina
Unlike the labyrinthine Medinas of Marrakech and Fez, the old town of Essaouira is relatively easy to navigate. As it is of French design, the streets are arranged in a simple grid pattern (Essaouira means ‘beautifully designed’) making it almost impossible to get lost. The Souks are a little less intense than Marrakech thanks to Essaouira’s laid-back attitude, allowing you to shop without the hassle in the flea market of La Joutia square or browse the aromatic spices and jewellery of the covered souks in peace. It’s worth wandering through the tiny alleys between the Medina walls as these buildings host some fantastic hidden shops and cafes.
Where to Eat & Drink in Essaouira
Despite its small size, Essaouira has a surprisingly varied restaurant scene crammed with French patisseries, organic wineries, and a lively café scene. Its bustling port means that seafood figures highly on menus around town but the numerous organic farms surrounding Essaouira have inspired an increasingly plant-focussed approach to food which is bolstered by the town’s hippy credentials.
Restaurant Café Des Arts
Despite being in plain view on one of the medina’s main thoroughfares, Restaurant Cafe Des Arts feels hidden and rather under-visited. Wander through the doorway up its narrow staircase and you will find a fairly mundane Moroccan cafe serving the usual mint teas, tagines and couscous dishes. However, the cafe’s main draw is the owners who will take hold of their guitars and sintars at random intervals to entertain diners with a song or two.
Where: 56 Av. de l’Istiqlal
When: Daily 10am – 11pm
Taros
Sitting in a prime location above the medina walls with a view of the ramparts on one side and the beach on the other, the rooftop of Taros is the perfect place for a sundowner cocktail or for nursing an ice-cold glass of Casablanca lager. The creation of interior designer John Quinn and named for the city’s incessant gusts of wind, the whitewashed, layered terraces wouldn’t be out of place in the Balearics and their prix-fixe menu of sea urchins, goat tagine, and smoked fish is reasonably priced. The speakers pumping out Moroccan house music only add to the Ibiza vibes, although they are occasionally replaced with wonderful, live performances of Gnawa music.
Where: Place Moulay Hassan
When: Daily 10am – 12am
Caravane Cafe
First opened by French artist, Didier Spindler, to showcase his abstract works of art, this exuberant restaurant is a dreamy maze of rooms leading from a beautiful courtyard where you can indulge in dishes of roast lamb and locally produced goats cheese glazed with Argan honey. Make sure to stop by on an evening when the flamboyance is turned up a notch thanks to magicians, acrobats, and firebreathers who put on a show fuelled by complimentary glasses of Didier’s formidable cocktails.
Where:22 Avenue al Istiklal
Ocean Vagabond
Around 20 to 30 minutes walk from the medina, close to the crumbling castle ruins that sit at the far end of Essaouira’s beach, you will find a host of surfer hangouts and laid-back bars with beer gardens that border the sand. Of these, Ocean Vagabond is the best thanks to the secluded terrace and relaxed Gnawa beats. The food caters to the international backpacker crowd with pizza, burgers and an extensive vegetarian selection.
Where: Boulevard Mohamed VI
When: Thurs to Sun 9.30am – 10pm; Mon to Weds 9.30am – 6pm
La Table by Madada
For those looking for a more romantic, upmarket evening in Essaouira, La Table by Madada occupies the site of a former 18th-century carob warehouse where the dining rooms are filled with tables daubed in white linen and lit by the glow of candlelight. The chef, Souad, is a rising star of the Moroccan culinary scene and fills her menu with her own inventive, modern take on the local cuisine using locally caught seafood.
Where: 7 Rue Youssef El Fassi
When: Weds to Mon 7pm – 11pm
When is the Best Time to Visit Essaouira?
The shoulder season of early spring guarantees the best weather in Essaouira, when the perfect mix of cloudless skies, warm weather, and gentle winds convene to give you the perfect recipe for beach relaxation and wandering the medina without scorching temperatures. Although July and August are much more bearable in Essaouira than elsewhere in Morocco, these are also the windiest months.
Ideally, you can time your visit to coincide with one of the city’s music festivals such as Alizes in April, Gnaoua in May, and Atlantic Andalous in October.
How Long Should You Spend in Essaouira?
Essaouira is an ideal place for a short getaway meaning that a long weekend or 3-day break should be more than enough to experience all the city has to offer, and the laid-back, relaxed atmosphere acts as a great respite from some of the country’s more chaotic destinations.
2 Responses
Very nice. worth reading culture of Essaouira. I started following your blog pages on social media too
You do have the power of storytelling! I enjoyed reading about the rich culture of Essaouira, and I never would have guessed the much influence Jimi Hendrix had on this Moroccan city. It’s incredible how his presence continues to resonate, with his image adorning walls, cafes, and even souvenir shops. It’s as if Essaouira has become a living tribute to his legacy.
What other surprising connections or influences have you come across between iconic figures and the places they’ve visited? I bet there would be at least one, for the legend, Michael Jackson.
Cheer,
Femi.