What is Essaouira like in December?

Essaouira has one of the mildest winters in Morocco because the Atlantic, cooled by the Canary Current, keeps temperatures even all year. In December, average highs are about 19°C and average lows about 13°C, so nights are far softer than in Marrakech or the desert. Rain falls on around five days in a typical December, usually in short spells between sunny days, and the clear days after a front has passed are some of the brightest of the year.

The sea is cool for swimming at this time of year, so most visitors walk the long beach south of the town rather than swim. Essaouira is famous for its wind, which is strongest in summer; in winter it is often calmer, although an Atlantic breeze can still make a sunny day feel cool by the water. Surfers and kitesurfers still come, using the beach and the coast to the south.

It is a relaxed month to explore the town itself. The walled medina, the former Mogador, is a UNESCO World Heritage site, laid out in the 18th century as a fortified port. Walk the Skala ramparts with their old cannons facing the ocean, watch the blue fishing boats come in to the port, where you can choose fish at the grill stalls, and look into the woodworkers' workshops, where the town's thuya-wood marquetry is made. Cafés and galleries are less crowded than in spring or summer.

The week between Christmas and New Year is the exception, when the town gets busier with visitors from Morocco and abroad and the best riads book up early. If your dates fall then, reserve your room and any restaurant for New Year's Eve well ahead.

Essaouira pairs well with Marrakech, about 190 km away and around 2.5 to 3 hours by road, for a winter trip that mixes city, coast and sunshine; the road passes through argan country, where women's cooperatives make argan oil. From Essaouira, the small surf village of Sidi Kaouki, roughly 25 km to the south, makes an easy half-day out. Pack layers: a light sweater or fleece, a windproof or waterproof jacket, comfortable walking shoes and something warmer for the evenings, as many riads are cool inside in winter and not every room is heated.