On a normal weekend, getting to Essaouira is easy. On a festival weekend, it is a different story: buses from Marrakech sell out, the car parks by the medina fill up, the medina itself is closed to cars, and the concert you came for ends long after the last bus. A little planning makes the difference between arriving relaxed and spending your first evening negotiating a taxi.

Here is how to plan your transfer to Essaouira for a festival — and back.

Getting to Essaouira from Marrakech: your options

OptionJourneyGood to know
Bus (CTM, Supratours)about 3 hCheap, but limited departures that sell out on festival weekends; drop-off outside the medina
Rental carabout 2 h 30Freedom, but parking near the medina is scarce during festivals
Grand taxiabout 2 h 30Shared until full, cramped with luggage
Private transferabout 2 h 30Door to door, at your time, fixed price per vehicle

Our Marrakech to Essaouira transfer picks you up at your riad, hotel or at Marrakech airport and drops you at the medina gate nearest your accommodation. At the time of writing it costs €100 per vehicle for up to three passengers, €120 in a van for four to seven and €170 in a minibus for groups of up to seventeen. Split between seven friends, the van comes to around €17 each — not far from the bus, with none of the waiting. For a detailed comparison, read Marrakech to Essaouira: bus or car.

Flying in for the festival

Festival-weekend tips

  • Book your return when you book your arrival. On the Sunday after a big festival, everyone leaves at once; drivers and buses are fully booked.
  • Leave early or late. The road is busiest at midday on the last day. An early-morning departure is calmer — and you can sleep in the car.
  • Share your accommodation's location. The medina is pedestrian, so we stop at the nearest gate; give us your riad's phone number so someone meets you.
  • Travel light into the medina. Porters with hand carts wait at the gates; agree the price before they load your bags.
  • Plan late nights. Petits taxis run inside town, but if you are staying in Diabat, Ghazoua or Sidi Kaouki, arrange a driver for the end of the evening — we can wait for you after the last concert.
A black Mercedes V-Class van parked in a city street
A Mercedes V-Class, one of the vans we use for groups. Photo: Alexander Migl, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Getting to Essaouira with children, instruments or boards

Festival trips often come with extra luggage. A few tips from the road:

  • Children: ask for child seats or boosters when you book; a van leaves room for the pushchair, and a stop halfway is easy to arrange.
  • Musicians: guitars, ouds and drums travel safely in the boot of a van; tell us the size of your cases.
  • Surfers and kiters: board bags are welcome on request — some festival-goers combine the Gnaoua weekend with a surf week in Sidi Kaouki.
  • Elderly travellers: door-to-door transport and a driver who helps with the bags make the trip much easier than the bus.

Getting to Essaouira should be the easy part of your festival — let the music be the adventure.

Our tip: send us your flight number rather than a pick-up time — we track the flight and adjust automatically, so a delay never costs you your first concert.

Coming as a group

For a group of friends, a choir, a dance school or a company, one minibus is simpler and cheaper than several taxis, and it can follow your programme for the whole stay: airport, hotel, concerts, an excursion, the return. Read our guide to group transport in Essaouira and see our vehicles.

Good to know: we drive every day of the year, including festival nights.

Which festival are you coming for?

Every date is in our Essaouira events calendar. When you know yours, check the price list and book your transfer — or send us your plan and we will suggest the simplest way to do it.