Essaouira Day Trip from Marrakech

Marrakech, Morocco

Visit the beach and famous port of Essaouira on a day trip from Marrakech. You'll take a guided tour of the port and have the opportunity to discover the marvelous Argan oil when you visit a Women's Co-operative manufacturing this famous product.

Formerly known by its old Portuguese name "Mogador", Essaouira is a citadel with a prestigious past. It has been occupied since prehistoric times and was famous for its Tyrian factory which supplied Rome with the legendary purple dye. A cradle for artists of all kinds, Essaouira is also well known for its fishing port and market, a hive of activity day or night.

During your time in Essaouira you will have a guided visit of the port, the Scala, the municipal market, jeweler's quarter and a handicrafts complex. There will also be time for a lunch break during the day (lunch is not included in tour price).

USD $38.30

Traveler Reviews

Review by: Nantia C	March 2012
It was a nice trip.

Review by: Paul D	March 2012
An excellent day in every respect, interesting journey, just enough time at the womens cooperative which was interesting too. The short and informative guided tour was very good and the amount of free time just right. We chose to eat at the restaurant our guide suggested , it was right on the sea front and we were very happy with the food and service.The transport was excellent and our guide Larby added to the day with absolutely excellent Engish and pleasant manner.

Review by: Erlwyn W	March 2012
I would have given the tour a 5 * as the actual trip was brilliant. The guide was exceptionally well informed and interesting. We did however have some major issues with our booking, getting it confirmed when we arrived in Marrakesh. However I would hearily recommend it to everyone!

Review by: Jean-Claire F	January 2012
It's a long drive from Marrakesh to Essaouira so we could have done without the additional stops along the way. Essaouira is beautiful though and a much more laid back place the Marrakesh; beautiful beach - if a little windy!

Review by: mrs v Henckel H	January 2012
Excellent guide and a great day out. Loved the little port and its markets. Plenty to see and if you wanted to get away from it all time to just unwind and walk along the beach.

Review by: Jessica W	November 2011
We stayed a week in Marrakech and this was one of the day trips we booked. With us travelling at the end of October, we were unlucky enough to have the one rainy day. This did impact on the experience itself as we were pretty miserable all cold and wet. I personally very much enjoyed the three hour bus journey from Marrakech to Essaouira. I enjoyed watching the landscape go by, trying to image what life must be like as it must be a hard life trying to make a living off the dry land. We had a quick stopover at an women cooperative for Argan Oil. It was certainly a 'sales stop' but we also did get to see how the oil is made and I glady did spend some coins in their shop - good for women who work there and that was some xmas gifts sorted, too, at the same time! Essaouira itself is, I suppose, pretty if the weather is nice. The beach looks really lovely and if you are in Marrakech for more than a couple of days and are looking for a nice day out by the sea then this is your trip! The tour guide will take you round on guided tour and even though at first the alleyways of the souks are just as confusing as Marrakech it is on a lot smaller scale and you will quickly get to grips with it. After the guided walk you have a couple of hours or so on your own. Take a walk to the harbour to see the fishing boats coming in at 3pm or just enjoy some relaxing time on the beach.

Review by: Joanne T	October 2011
A nice day to a fishing town; not spectacular but enjoyable and fairly interesting. Would have liked a bit more free time but apart from that no complaints.

Review by: Marta R	July 2011
Nice place but they all have deals betwin each others to take u to some places where will sale u some more expensive tuff!! Poorer get poorer and ritch get more money off of u!!

Review by: ferdinando t	June 2011
The tour and mainly the guide was perfect.Only one notice. It would be better if also people that not stay in 5 or 4 stars hotels in Marrakech could have a pick-up service and can go back to their hotel of residence.But the guide was very kind and dropped my wife and me close to the most important square of Marrakech._br/_ Ferdinando Taboga

Review by: Annette R	February 2011
Long day but well worth it. Shame about the weather, it rained all day and was very windy. So only downside was that we were all waiting for coach at collection time. Very good guide on coach and local guide was excellent.

Review by: Susan C	February 2011
An enjoyable day with enough time to explore Essaouira on our own. Taken in a minibus the trip did not feel like we were being herded about, but it was friendly and informative. The usual tourists stops at an argan oil co-operative and a wood skills co-op but both were interesting and not too much hard pressure selling. I would recommend a visit to this beautiful town.

Review by: ALISON N H	December 2010
Essaouira I would give 5 stars! But the tour- a three!

Review by: Oliver S	October 2010
excellent value does what it promises pick up details were a little shakey

Review by: Caroline W	October 2010
I was picked up from my hotel and taken to the tour operator offices where everyone else was waiting in a minibus. The bus ride was 3 hours with a stop to use the toilets and have a drink. Essaouira is a very nice little fishing village at the end of a long beach. It was so nice to breathe in the sea air. We had time to wander on our own. The guide there was excellent and very friendly. He took the time to talk to everyone and was very helpful. He spoke French and English very well. He also suggested a restaurant by the beach that was very good and reasonable. The guide on the bus was a little difficult to understand as the microphone was too loud. The trip back took a little less time. However, some of us had to get into a different car to be taken back to our hotels. I was not happy about not being dropped ast my hotel. I wsas left on the wrong side of a multi lane road, in the dark and had to negoitate trying to cross in the middle of all the heavy traffic as there were no proper crossings, and think they could have gone around the square to drop me off. Otherwise a really nice day out and can definitely recommend it as it is completely different to Marrakech.

Review by: Melissa N, United Kingdom	May 2010
It was a bit of a long trip made longer by road works, but it was nice to get out by the sea and some fresh air. The guides were a bit iffy. I was travelling alone and because I tipped a bit low, wasn't happy with the service, they just dropped me somewhere and pointed vaguely towards my lodging. But Essaouira itself was great and worth a look if you have time in your agenda.

Review by: Jennifer Z, United States of America	March 2010
Would have liked to have spent more time in the city.

Review by: JONATHAN B, United Kingdom	February 2010
Nice to see a different city. Long journey made longer by several unneccesay stops where you are encouraged to buy produce and spend money.

Review by: Roisin R	February 2010
Nice to see a different city. Long journey made longer by several unneccesay stops where you are encouraged to buy produce and spend money.

Review by: Steven O, United Kingdom	January 2010
The guide was hard to understand over the microphone on the bus, but going through the town was much better. He showed us a lot of great sites but we would have liked some history as we went around. The obligatory stops at trade outlets were fine, and people bought stuff, but you could sit them out on the bus if you didn't want to go through. We enjoyed them though. It would have been good to know the prices we should pay for souviners though as we got caught out a few times thinking we were on to a bargain.

Review by: Anonymous, United States of America	January 2010
Essaouira is a nice little place to see and the Women's Collective stop was interesting but this is an excessive amount of travel to see little. Other Viator excursions are better.

Review by: Anonymous, United Kingdom	November 2009
A good day, a lot of time on the coach but Essouira beautiful and total contrast to Marrakesh.

Review by: Jack T, United Kingdom	September 2009
A fun day, and a complete contrast to the hustle and bustle of Marrakech. The beach is beautiful, and the town is lovely!

Review by: James C, United Kingdom	July 2009
Provided the opportunity to see more of Morrocco just then Marrakech. Comfort stops on the way were interesting and the good weather ensured a pleasurable day out. There was a music festival going on at Essaouira when we were there so the place was quite busy. The coach did break down on the way back and we had to wait for another to arrive, but these things happen.

Review by: Anonymous, United Kingdom	June 2009
Great day out from Marrakech. Really enjoyed seeing Essaouira.

Review by: Anonymous, Switzerland	April 2009
Very interesting and enjoyable trip from Marrakech.