Is Asilah worth visiting?

Asilah is one of those small Moroccan towns I am always delighted when clients ask about, because it is genuinely lovely and still relatively under the radar. It sits on the Atlantic coast about 45 minutes to an hour south of Tangier, an easy hop by car or even on the train line, which makes it a natural pairing with a northern trip. The town is a compact, dazzlingly whitewashed medina wrapped in honey-coloured Portuguese ramparts from the 15th century, with the ocean crashing right against the walls — a calm, photogenic, distinctly Andalusian-feeling place.

What sets Asilah apart is its art. Since the late 1970s the town has hosted a summer arts festival (the Moussem Culturel) during which artists paint huge, colourful murals directly onto the medina's white walls, refreshed regularly — so wandering the lanes is like walking through an open-air gallery, all blue shutters, bougainvillea and bold contemporary murals. It gives the town a creative, bohemian, easygoing personality that is quite different from anywhere else in Morocco. If you can time a visit for the festival (usually summer), the place buzzes with culture; outside it, the murals remain and the town is peaceful.

The other great virtue of Asilah is how relaxed and low-hassle it is. After the intensity of Tangier or Fes, this is a town where you can amble the ramparts at sunset, watch the fishing boats, eat fresh seafood, browse a few galleries and craft shops, and simply do very little. The faux-guide and hard-sell energy is minimal; it feels gentle and safe and unhurried. There are decent beaches just outside town too (Paradise Beach to the south is the local favourite), so it doubles as a low-key seaside stop.

My honest verdict: Asilah is absolutely worth visiting if you appreciate atmosphere, art and a slow pace, and it is one of the easiest, most rewarding additions to a northern Morocco itinerary — a half-day trip from Tangier, or better, an overnight to catch the ramparts at golden hour. It is not a place of must-see monuments, so if you only want headline sights it may feel slight. But for charm, colour and calm, few Moroccan towns do it better, and it is a perfect counterpoint to the bustle of the bigger cities nearby.