Essaouira is a laid back coastal town that offers travellers a welcome respite from the hubbub of Marrakech just a few hours away.
Essaouira's medina is walled like many of the old towns in Morocco and locals and visitors alike enjoy strolling along the impressive ramparts (built upon cliffs) as the sun sets. The souqs within are relativley quiet and clean and thus the medina offers shoppers a relatively relaxed experience (but not necessarily a cheaper one!) and, as it is free from cars, one can walk around at ease.
As Essaouira is on the Atlantic coast the water is pretty cold and it is also quite windy and so not ideal for swimming or sunbathing (although great for both surfing and kite surfing) but the beach is lovely for a stroll and since it runs for about 6 miles (10km) there's plenty of it.
The port is always alive with fishing boats and watching the daily catch being sold every afternoon to the restaurants around the harbour is a fun experience.
