Agadir

Morocco's premier resort

With its golden sandy beach sweeping for miles and lapped by the Atlantic, Agadir is the perfect holiday resort. An impressive selection of luxury, first class hotels has developed along the southern shoreline and a dazzling array of boutiques, international cuisine and Moroccan restaurants makes Agadir a very cosmopolitan place. The region's climate provides a minimum of 300 days of sunshine a year.

Agadir is one of the world's most beautiful bays, it also has a marina which can receive several hundred pleasure boats. The coastal promenade allows you to stroll along the sea front, a popular place for a walk at any time of day, and offers a complete panorama of the whole bay.

In our opinion, although Agadir offers the facilities of a modern resort the traditional Moroccan atmosphere is not far away in the souk and in the surrounding villages where you can find a shopping bargain and a delicious home-cooked tagine for lunch. We consider Agadir a great base for families wishing to enjoy the beach and the opportunity to explore Morocco's wonderful southern region. The Anti Atlas and High Atlas are close by as are Essaouira, Taroudant and even Marrakech.

History of Agadir

The town was mostly destroyed by the earthquake of 1960 and its kasbah, high up on the hill no longer has its crenellated ramparts. However, its location still offers a complete view of the bay, the port and the new town and is enchanting at sundown, when the light is flecked with gold. Slightly to the south of the city centre the new medina was reconstructed from the 1990s onwards by Italian architect Coco Polizzi; the jewellery souk and the Moorish café are more than worth the detour.

Sightseeing in Agadir

The Amazigh heritage museum, which opened in 2000, is devoted to Agadir's Berber culture. It offers a clear and detailed educational trail, along with a rich collection of silver jewellery comprising necklaces, rings and finely crafted brooches. Just 70km due east of Agadir is Taroudant; encircling the old town, the ramparts stretch out over approximately 7km. Taking a horse-drawn carriage tour allows you to appreciate the scale of this thick crenellated adobe wall, which is punctuated with towers and bastions. Back in Agadir, stop at the port entrance for a quick bite of grilled fish or lobster; from 8am until noon you can watch the auction from a specially built balcony in the market. If you get there early, watch the men unload gigantic tuna fish, groupers and hammerhead sharks.

Holiday Activities

Why not take advantage of the many golf courses around Agadir; the choice is vast and is constantly expanding. Also try out the many water sports that are on offer - windsurfing, kitesurfing, sailing, jet-skiing – all with top-notch supervision and equipment. Morocco's Atlantic coast has waves and a climate which seduces surfers from all over the world. Try out stress-free surfing at Taghazout, a few kilometres to the north of Agadir. The range of waves there allows you to surf, whatever your level.

Nearby sightseeing

Between the ocean and the mountains, located on a migratory route, Agadir and its region are a haven of tranquility for migratory birds. Located between the sea front and the Great Mosque, take the time to visit Bird Valley, an ornithological museum featuring the main migratory birds that frequent the region. Then, don't miss out on the Souss Massa National Park, a nature reserve to the south of the town which welcomes a multitude of migratory birds like pink flamingos, storks or even the world's largest colony of bald ibises. Towards Tiznit to the south, the almond-tree road is an excursion which allows you to take in the striking landscapes of the Anti Atlas range. There are palm groves, splendid blocks of pink granite reddened by the sunset, and numerous almond trees, whose nuts are essential in Moroccan cuisine. Towards Essaouira, follow the argan-tree road; this endemic tree is desert-resistant and can live up to 200 years. Its nuts provide a precious oil which is equally as good for cooking as it is for beauty and skin treatments.

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