Essaouira

Essaouira is the one destination on this coast that would be worth visiting with no waves at all. A fortified eighteenth-century port with a UNESCO-listed medina, it also happens to sit on a bay with the most reliable wind in Morocco.

The trade wind that blows here almost every afternoon from spring to autumn — the alizée — makes the long bay one of the best kitesurfing and windsurfing venues in the world. It also makes surfing frustrating in those months, because the same wind flattens and chops the swell.

In winter the wind drops and the surf works, though it is never as good as the points further south. The compensation is a real town: a fishing harbour, art galleries, gnaoua music, seafood grills on the quay and a medina you can get lost in.

It is the obvious choice for a mixed group, where not everyone surfs.

Where to stay in Essaouira

Riads inside the medina are the obvious choice and half the reason people come — €40 to €90 for a double, more for the carefully restored ones. The kite and windsurf centres are on the bay south of town and several run their own rooms, which saves a daily taxi if wind is what you came for.

Good to know

The wind is the entire planning question. From roughly April to September it blows hard most afternoons: excellent for kite and windsurf, awkward for surfing and cold to sit around in. Winter is calmer, greyer and better for waves. The medina is pedestrian, so travel light or expect to hire a cart at the gate.