Oualidia
A Sheltered Tidal Lagoon Between The Open Atlantic And The Coast Road, Known For Its Oyster Beds And For Being One Of The Few Genuinely Calm Swimming Bays On A Coast That Is Otherwise Surf And Rip · Oualidia, Casablanca-Settat
Oualidia is a tidal lagoon on the Atlantic coast road halfway between El Jadida and Safi: a shallow sheltered bay held behind a long sandbar, flushed twice a day through two gaps in the sand. That is the whole point of the place. This coast is surf, cold water and rip currents for hundreds of kilometres, and Oualidia is the one bay along it where a child can stand up in warm flat water and an adult can learn to surf without being frightened. The second reason to come is the oysters: the lagoon's farms produce most of Morocco's shellfish and you eat them within sight of the beds, opened at a plastic table for a few dirhams. Behind the beach the flats draw flamingos, spoonbills and waders, and the wider lagoon system is commonly described as a wetland of international importance. Honest caveats: this is a one-street resort, packed with Moroccan families through July and August and half shut from November to March; the lagoon goes shallow and weedy at low tide; and the building along the sandbar has not been kind to it.
Tidal lagoon on the Atlantic coast road between El Jadida and Safi, about 75 km south of El Jadida, Oualidia, Casablanca-Settat, Morocco
The lagoon, the beaches, the sandbar and the ruined kasbah above the bay have no opening hours and no gate, and nothing here is ticketed. The oyster tables and the beachfront cafes run roughly from late morning to early evening, longer and later through July and August, and a good proportion of them close entirely from about November to March - out of season, confirm that your room is open and that something is cooking before you drive down. Boats across the lagoon and surf lessons are arranged on the spot in the morning rather than booked. Getting there: there is no train and no airport, so this is a drive - roughly 75-80 km south of El Jadida and 65-70 km north of Safi on the coast road, about two and a half hours from Casablanca. Grands taxis run the coast from both towns, six to a shared car at a fixed rate per seat. Rooms must be booked weeks ahead for the high summer weeks and barely at all otherwise.