Argan, Oysters and the Atlantic
5-Day Morocco Coast Tour: Marrakech to Casablanca
Five days up the coast from Marrakech to Casablanca
- 5 days · 4 nights
- Marrakech → Casablanca
- About 10 hours over 5 days. All paved. driving
The Atlantic coast north of Essaouira is barely on any tour route, because it does not lead to the Sahara and there is no famous monument on it. What there is instead: the only argan forest in the world, goats in the branches, a walled port full of woodcarvers, Safi's hill of potteries, an oyster lagoon at Oualidia, and a Portuguese cistern at El Jadida that looks like a flooded cathedral. Short drives, a lot of seafood, and no early starts.
Why I run it this waySand traded for surf. This is the trip for people who have done the desert already, or who never wanted it, and it ends conveniently at Casablanca airport.
The things worth stopping for
- Essaouira's 18th-century sea ramparts and its wooden fishing harbour
- The argan forest where the goats climb the trees, and a women's pressing co-operative
- Safi's pottery hill, the ceramic capital of Morocco
- Oysters at the Oualidia lagoon, straight out of the water
- The Portuguese Cistern at El Jadida, subterranean and mirror-still
- Two nights in Essaouira so you actually stop moving
Where this trip takes you
Straight lines between stops, not the exact roads — the driving is the winding version of this.
How the trip goes
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Day 1: Marrakech to Essaouira
Driving: About 3 hoursWest through the argan forest with a co-operative stop. Into Essaouira for the Skala ramparts and grilled catch of the day on the quay. Two nights.
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Day 2: Essaouira
Driving: No drivingA free day. Thuya woodcarvers, the galleries, the fish auction, and the long beach out to Diabat. Optional horse riding or kitesurfing.
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Day 3: Essaouira to Oualidia via Safi
Driving: About 4 hoursNorth up the coast to Safi and the hill of potteries, then on to the Oualidia lagoon. Oysters in the afternoon.
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Day 4: Oualidia
Driving: No drivingA slow day on the lagoon: the calm side for swimming, the wild side for the surf, and the birdlife on the salt flats.
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Day 5: Oualidia to Casablanca via El Jadida
Driving: About 3 hoursThe Portuguese Cistern and the UNESCO ramparts at El Jadida, then the coast road into Casablanca and the airport.
I'll email you this itinerary — every day, what's included, what it costs — so you can think it over and share it.
One email with the itinerary. No account, and I don't pass your address to anyone — see the privacy policy.
What's included
Included
- Private van with me driving
- 4 nights on the coast
- Breakfast daily, 2 seafood dinners
- Argan co-operative visit
- Marrakech pickup, Casablanca airport drop-off
Not included
- Flights
- Most meals
- Entry fees
- Tips
Read more about where you'll be
A closer look
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Every route bends: more time somewhere, a different start, a night added. Send your dates and I'll plan it around you.