Tours and Culture | Kaouki Hill

Tours and Cultural Experiences

Essaouira and Sidi Kaouki, located along Morocco’s Atlantic coast, are vibrant and adventurous destinations. Essaouira steeped in its culture, tradition, and history contrasts with Sidi Kaouki's sleepy, surfy beach town allure. Both offer a variety of tours and activities that showcase their unique heritage and attraction. Below is an exploration of the rich cultural offerings, adventurous experiences and tour options available in and around these two amazing locations.

Essaouira

Essaouira, traditionally referred to as Mogador, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site known for its fortified medina, vibrant arts scene, and historical blend of Moroccan, Berber, Jewish, and European influences. Its history as an 18th-century port city, designed under Sultan Sidi Mohammed ben Abdallah, reflects a fusion of cultures, with Phoenician, Roman, and Portuguese traces adding depth to its story.

Spend a day getting lost in the narrow streets sipping tea with street vendors or eating local Tajines in the abundant restaurants and cafes (see our restaurants and cafes page for more info). It's a fantastic place for gift shopping, featuring hundreds of stores offering locally crafted clothing, souvenirs, interior decor, and authentic antiques, renowned for blending modern and traditional styles.

Enjoy an hour wandering around the ramparts and old fortified walls of the city and finish off buying some fresh fish in the old Portuguese port.

Around the region

The wider region is littered with traditional villages and markets many that have not changed in hundreds even thousands of years. Sunday offers the impressive Souk of Had Draa where a long morning can be spent buying everything from food and livestock to tools and building materials. Many locals still make the journey to buy and sell by Donkey or even Camel. Its culture is unchanged for centuries and is best visited early in the morning as it starts to pack down by the time the midday sun arrives. There's also the sprawling Sunday Souk of Essaouira located in the old industrial area it's mostly food and clothes but there's furniture and old junk for restoration in the Joutya.

There's also the village near the Ancienne Sucrerie d'Ida Ougourd that has a good food market every Wednesday morning located in the village. It's a rustic experience but worth seeing how these small traditional markets still serve the needs of the local communities. The fruit and veg is usually pretty fresh and often locally grown in season.

For those interested in history there are various Kasbahs located around the region one of the most impressive is en route to the

Lac Barrage Zerrar called Dar Caïd M’barek Neknafi. There are various routes to get there depending on your mode of transport and thirst for adventure. The drive up and back from the barrage is really impressive and you get the feeling you are in the Atlas mountains in places. There are two hill tops which make for an amazing picture as you can see Sidi Kaouki and the wider Atlantic Ocean framed perfectly between the two peaks. At the North end of the Barrage is a small farming village, when the Lake is full the old Palm trees poke out of the water and it feels more like India than Morocco. There's also a winding tributary river travelling eastwards that has hectares of olive trees and traditional farm land centuries old.

Please enquire with us and we will be happy to help you with routes and directions.

There are three notable beach spots outside of Sidi kaouki itself. The first is called Takaoucht Beach and is 8kms from Kaouki Hill along the coast road going south. It's pretty easy to find and is a good option in summer as there's a section under the cliffs where it's sheltered from the wind.

The next is Sidi M’barek beach which is only a few KMs further south, it's accessed by a small car park labeled Cascades on the right hand side. It's a bit of a walk down but worth it as huge sand dunes meet the wild Atlantic coast and there's even a small Mosque located near the waterfalls which can be found on Google as Sidi M’barek. It's a place of cultural and religious significance so please be respectful and avoid visiting the Mosque and waterfall in Bikinis etc. It's best visited in winter if you want to see the small waterfall and river flowing.

Further south access by dirt road is Iftane, a stunning little beach but don't try accessing the beach by car unless you have a 4x4 or you are an experienced driver off-road.

Lastly is Tafedna where five dry rivers meet into the middle of a stunningly wide expanse of sand framed by towering cliffs at either end. There's a few rustic restaurants and a couple of shops in the fishing village but apart from that it's pretty quiet. There good surfing and some fisherman to buy fish from.

Organised Tours and Experiences

There are various businesses operating tours and activities around the local area. Here are some highlights of businesses we partner with and feel confident in recommending.

L'Atellier Cooking, traditional embroidery and more. Also has a great coffee, clothing and gift shop.

Hafida and Family 00212 6 71 72 00 28 Traditional bread making and more. Quote Kaouki Hill when booking.

BerberLands 00212 6 62 61 66 78 Claudia offers tours using local guides to many of the above locations.

Enjoy Essaouira +33 7 69 25 90 24 Illias offers a list of tours and experiences, use the button to get his instagram to find out more.