Moroccan Gems

As Marrakech developed and sought to sell its own products (notably ceramics, leather and sugar cane) a trading route linking it with the ancient Atlantic port of Essaouira grew in significance. Finally, over time, the southern Berber port of Agadir achieved control of Marrakech’s supply of goods by sea from the south and the trading triangle that this itinerary explores was complete. The fascination in following these ancient routes derives from the rich variety of cultural, ethnic and scenic diversity that they reveal.

Essaouira, like the majority of Morocco’s Atlantic ports, was fortified and developed as a trading post by the Portuguese and having once housed a significant Jewish population is also representative of the important role Jewish communities played in the Moorish world. Originally a Phoenician port and still the best preserved of Morocco’s former Portuguese ports, Essaouira has become an artist’s town where the work of the many resident craftsmen and painters can be admired.

The coast and mountains of Morocco contain many charming towns and landscapes and the journey through the High Atlas reveals a ‘hidden gem’, the walled town of Taroudant, once the capital of the Saadians before Marrakech and indeed often known as a ‘mini-Marrakech’.