FOR YOUR LEISURE ...
you want an unforgettable stay? Discover Essaouira in Morocco, visit its medina, its ramparts, stroll on its famous port and on its ten kilometers of beach.
Infos & Résa : +212524475907 | riadalmadina@menara.ma
THE ESSAOUIRA MEDINA
Small but charming, the Medina of Essaouira which starts from Place Moulay El-Hassan offers a charming colorful stroll in the middle of small shopping streets. It is attributed to the Avignon architect Cornut. The Moroccan-Portuguese style, the great mosque, the belfry, the shaded terraces, the Moorish cafes, the souk, are all different places to please the eyes. As you walk, you will see the cabinetmakers working with thuja near the ramparts, then you will reach the town's sqala where the superb ramparts, with their Spanish bronze cannons, seem to protect the town against imaginary invaders.
ESSAOUIRA BEACHES
It stretches over 6 kilometers. You can bask in the sun in the best conditions even if it is not recommended to cover yourself with sunscreens because of the omnipresent wind, which reigns supreme. However, be careful with swimming because even if it is supervised in busy months, very strong eddies are often dangerous. Only surfers really find their value there, with imposing waves and a very popular wind. All along the beach, small cafes and restaurants have recently settled, offering quick lunches on sunny terraces where it is good to rest and drink mint tea.
GNAOUAS
The gnaouas are the descendants of black slaves from Morocco. Their geographical origin would be Sudan. It's trance music similar to voodoo or macumba. Moroccans, especially young people, love this haunting, melancholy and bewitching style of music (close to blues) and flock to the city's Gnaoua festival every year in June. The singers are adored and some are known worldwide and sometimes come to Essaouira from far away, as real stars. They use the guenbri, drums (ganga) and rattlesnakes (qraqeb) made up of two half-spheres (in iron) attached to a bar and which are struck against each other in a particular rhythm. Gnaoua is music without borders.
THE KASBAH RAMPARTS AND SQALA
Essaouira was built at the same time as its ramparts which served a very long time as defense against the invaders. This enclosure is crenellated and pierced with large doors. On the sea side, there is still a bastion with its cannons. The fortifications recall those of Vauban in France. They surround neighborhoods whose plans were drawn by Théodore Cornut. Along these ramparts, you cannot escape visiting the sqala of the kasbah, with its bronze cannons bearing the arms of Aragon and Castile and its 200-meter-long platform; this old Portuguese battery is certainly the most symbolic and picturesque place in Essaouira.
MOGADOR ISLAND
If you go to the port and look out to sea, you must notice two islands and tiny islets very close to the coast. This archipelago is called the Mogador Islands or Purpuraire Islands. The larger 30-hectare island, called "Pharaoh's Island", houses a disused prison built at the end of the last century as well as a mosque with its minaret and some abandoned fortifications. The site is a bird reserve (among others seagulls and gulls), and in particular a place of reception for Eléonore falcons. The islands also have a role in protecting the bay from the mighty Atlantic waves.