Essaouira

Sultan Mohammed ben Abdallah built Essaouira in the 1760s as a port on the Atlantic, to a plan by a French engineer that joined European fortification to a Moroccan town. Its medina has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2001.

You walk along the Skala ramparts among old cannon, then down to the harbour of blue boats and the fish market, where you choose what is grilled for you on the spot. In the lanes are thuya-wood workshops, argan oil shops and art galleries.

The Atlantic wind keeps Essaouira mild in summer when Marrakech is hot. It is about three hours by car from Marrakech, for a long day or a night or two.