Agadir

Agadir, the Seaside Town of the Moroccan South

Located in a great crescent moon shaped bay, Agadir, with its kilometres-long sandy beach, is the main seaside town of Morocco. Along the beach is a pleasant promenade with restaurants, leisure clubs, nightclubs, casinos and five-star hotels.

From horse or camel rides on the beach, surfing and jet skiing, golf, tennis or beach volley ball, almost all activities are catered for when you stay in Agadir.

Downtown, the boulevards of “August the 20th” and the “Hassan II” are linked by “The Valley Of The Birds”; which is an open Zoo, convenient and practical to explore. There are also lots of green spaces, and the museums offer both historical and cultural discovery of the area.

The tourism activity is, of course, focused on the water activities. The walkways that run along the beach have been upgraded by the addition of a marina, which can now welcome an increasing number of pleasure boats.

Agadir is a must-see, and it has grown to include rich array of first class hotels. While most of the luxurious establishments are mainly on the edge of the sea, there are lots of cafes, restaurants, budget hotels and hostels, more family and back packers friendly, around the downtown area and the new district of Talborj.

In addition to this significant amount of accommodations and departments stores, the city centre also offers nice green areas and museums. The Garden Of Olhao, or Portuguese Garden, commemorating the links of twinning between the two cities is in the city, close to it is a museum dedicated to the earthquake of 1960, which devastated most of the city of Agadir.

As the old “Medina” has been destroyed, a new large “Souk”, or market has been built. Called “El Had” it is a few kilometres from the centre. As colourful and animated as a souk can be, the shops are a great tourist attraction, and also a meeting place for the locals, or “Gadiri”, as they are known.

Firmly dedicated to the sea, Agadir developed to become the main fishing port of the Moroccan Atlantic Coast. With its modern fishing flotilla and its commercial port, equipped with modern efficient infrastructure, it manages to export most of the agricultural production of the valley of Souss.

A walk up the old Kasbah offers an amazing sight of the entire area. The Old Fortress now lays in ruin, but still dominates the bay. It contemplates the ocean with its ever vigilant eye.

Practical

Agadir downtown is not far from the sea front, it is rounded by the boulevard “Hassan II” and “Avenue Mohammed VI.”

Services Downtown

The Central Market, the Town Hall, the courts, Post Office, the regional delegation of tourism and most of the banking and department stores are in this area. The tourist information centre is closer to the beach on the boulevard Mohammed V.

The French Consulate is on the boulevard Mohammed Sheikh Saadi located in the northern Swiss district while the Spanish one is in new Talborj district, street Ibn Battuta.

Downtown you will found most of the religious places, large public gardens and museums. There is also lots of parking for an easy access and car mechanics around the area.

Hotels

Agadir offers a wide selection of accommodations to suit all budgets. The best clubs and hotels, with their five-star services, are around the beach, with the cheaper hotels further away from the beach front. Downtown you will also find really good quality hotels. Some of the cheaper hotels are of poor quality, but suitable for those on a tight budget.

Hospitals

Agadir has several hospitals, the main ones are the public hospital Hassan ll, on the Marrakech Road and the hospital Ben Serkaou, near the National 10 at the end of the avenue Mohammed V.

Those two hospitals cover all medical departments. Many private clinics offering various services are also present, and all types of specialists are available. There are many chemists and pharmacies.

Agadir airport

The Agadir-Massira airport is 22km from downtown following the direction of Taroudant. There is a shuttle from the airport to the downtown area every hour, the departure is located close to the Mc Donald’s.

There are domestic flights to and from Marrakesh and Ouarzazate as well as many international destinations.

Transfers

Bus station and shared taxis

The bus station, for connections everywhere in Morocco,is slightly on the outskirts on Avenue Abderrahim-Bouabi. It is close to the new Souk in the lively area of Dakhla, next to Avenue Hassan 1er.

Local buses and the taxis are located on Place Salam at the end of Boulevard Hassan II.

Bus connections

Supratours operate the direct travel in those directions.

International connections: several companies have weekly connections towards Europe, allow about 55 hours for a journey to Paris!

Bus agencies

Agence CTM

Rue Yacoub el Mansour, new Talborj. 05 48 82 12 07.

Agence Supratours

10 rue des Orangers, close to the west end of Bd Hassan II. 05 48 84 12 07.

Those companies operate from the bus station.

Surrounding area

Agadir isn’t limited to the seaside city, the back country is open to many more excursions.

Along the coast; Villages and spots famous for surfing are wonderful daytrips. The National Park of Souss-Massa is located 65 km in the south, while at the north-east you will find the valley of Imouzzer Ida Ou Tanane, nicknamed “The Paradise Valley”. This is regarded as being one of the most beautiful excursions to do in the area.

Taroudant, the Imperial City of the “Anti Atlas” or “Tafraout”, located in the heart of the Ammeln Valley, is really worth the visit too.