Marrakech Airport to Essaouira Private Transfer

The drive from Marrakech Airport to Essaouira

Essaouira lies 190 km west of Marrakech Menara Airport (RAK), about 2 h 45 by road. There is no railway to the coast, so every traveller goes by road. The route runs west across the dry Haouz plain to Chichaoua, then through Sidi Mokhtar towards the Atlantic. For the last third the landscape turns to argan forest, the tree that grows only in this part of Morocco, and the air cools as you approach the ocean.

Drop-off in Essaouira: the medina gates

The walled medina of Essaouira is pedestrian. Cars stop at the gates, most often Bab Sbaa on the southern side near the port and the beach, or Bab Marrakech on the eastern side. Tell us your riad and the driver picks the closer one. From the gate, porters with handcarts take the luggage through the lanes for a small tip.

Hotels along the beach boulevard, and guesthouses in Diabat, Ghazoua or Sidi Kaouki to the south, are reached by car to the door.

Stops on the way and timing your return

Short stops are free. The usual choices:

• A café break around Chichaoua or Sidi Mokhtar, roughly halfway.
• A women's argan oil cooperative near Ounagha, where you can watch the nuts being cracked and pressed.
• Argan trees with goats standing in the branches, close to the road. Be aware that the animals are often placed there for photos.

Essaouira is windy, most of all in summer, so keep a jacket to hand when you get out. For a flight from Marrakech, leave Essaouira about 6 hours before departure: 2 h 45 on the road plus check-in time. Our comparison of bus, shared taxi and private transfer from Marrakech to Essaouira sets out the alternatives. Continuing down the coast? See the private transfer to Agadir.