Day rhythm
06:33
20:43
14.2h of daylight — 06:33 → 20:43
Essaouira — Plage Sidi Kaouki
Partial dataMorocco
Essaouira — Plage Sidi Kaouki is a kitesurf spot with waves, medium depth, with no significant tide, in Morocco. Ideal between 15 and 32 knots, June to September.
Level
Intermediate
Optimal wind
15-32 kts
Season
June to September
Today's tide
→ Slack water
00h06h12h18h24h
Tide shown for reference — its impact on your session is not yet confirmed at this spot.
Comfort & gear
Air
24°C
warm
Water
19°C
warm
Wetsuit
3/2 mm
light fullsuit
Sky
0%
clear
7-day forecast
Tap a slot for a detailed forecast.
What riders experienced here
No validations for this spot yet.
Weather risk
No risk
No rain expected
The spot
Discover Essaouira — Plage Sidi Kaouki
Sidi Kaouki is the wild flip side of Essaouira: an end-of-the-world village some twenty kilometres south of town, and a long sandy beach hammered by the open Atlantic. Nothing like the sheltered Essaouira bay built for learning — this is an exposed beach-break, big wind and waves. The northerly trade wind runs down the coast, hard, and that's exactly where the trap sits: depending on its angle, it tips out to sea.
Sidi Kaouki is a small Atlantic village set at the end of a long sandy beach, some twenty kilometres south of Essaouira — wilder, more exposed and more demanding than the town's bay. The beach stretches for several kilometres, open to the full ocean, facing west / south-west (the orientation is inferred from the coast's geography, with no precise bearing). It's a beach-break over sand: sandbanks shape fine hollow waves of a good size — up to around 2.5 m, after which it saturates — with a sometimes violent shore-break along the beach and a localised reef in front of the Hotel Marabout (the spots known as ‘La Bouteille’ and ‘La Grotte’). The master wind is the north-to-NNE trade wind, very steady and powerful in summer. On a west/south-west-facing beach, that northerly runs down the coast: it's side-shore, tipping to side-offshore as it backs to the NNE — in other words it ends up pushing out to sea. That's the spot's real subject: strong (a documented 40 knots), thermal, and carrying that offshore component which is the danger. Kite sources rate it windier than Essaouira and Moulay, though one surf source notes a headland offers partial shelter depending on the angle — the disagreement is real, and we don't settle it by number. Add to that strong currents and rips, more marked than elsewhere in the region, and a reef that uncovers with the tide. No rescue boat documented: the spot is self-reliant. A superb beach-break for those with the level, to be approached by reading the trade wind's exact angle.
Who & when
Level and best time
Who it's for
For intermediate to advanced riders, not a place to learn on your own. Kite sources call it ‘intermediate – advanced’ and rate beginner access very low because the waves are powerful; one source lists ‘beginner’ but it's an outlier against the consensus. What makes it demanding: a strong trade wind with an offshore component that pushes you out to sea, a violent shore-break, currents and rips stronger than elsewhere in the region, and a localised reef. The Essaouira bay is the learning ground; Sidi Kaouki is a step up.
source : web.kite-and-windsurfing-guide.com ↗Best time
The windy season runs April to October, the northerly trade wind being most reliable, peaking June to September — July and August are the windiest. Strength goes from 15-25 knots in season to over 35 knots at high summer, and up to a documented 40 knots here, with very strong thermals. As for water, the Atlantic stays cool: around Essaouira the sea sits at 17-22 °C (peaking near 20-22 °C in early September, a low of 16-17 °C in March). Reckon on a 3/2 mm, or a 4/3 mm with boots at the coldest of winter. Those water figures are for the region; there's no measurement specific to Sidi Kaouki, but the water is decidedly cool.
source : oceanvibesmorocco.com ↗On site
Arrival guide
Getting there & don't confuse
Sidi Kaouki sits some twenty kilometres south of Essaouira, about a twenty-minute drive: take the Agadir road for around fifteen kilometres, then turn off for some ten kilometres towards the village. Easy to reach by car, taxi or bus (line 2). One key point: don't confuse Sidi Kaouki with the Essaouira bay (to the north, sheltered, sand and chop, beginners) or with Moulay Bouzerktoun (a separate wave spot, north of town). Sidi Kaouki is the exposed southern beach, wilder and more demanding.
source : web.kite-and-windsurfing-guide.com ↗On site: beach, services, crowds
The beach is long (at least 4 km, wide and open), with sandbanks that shape waves and a localised reef in front of the Hotel Marabout. The village stays small: guesthouses and hotels, restaurants, showers and toilets, with gear rental or storage on the spot. You can even camp in the dunes. It's markedly quieter than the Essaouira bay, and there's no documented summer bather-zoning as in Tarifa — but the spot's self-reliant nature means staying cautious.
source : web.kite-and-windsurfing-guide.com ↗Before you go
Safety
Offshore wind, shore-break & rips: hazard #1
The number-one hazard is the trade wind's offshore component. The north-to-NNE wind blows side-shore on this west/south-west-facing beach, but tips to side-offshore as it backs to the NNE: it then pushes out to sea. It's strong — a documented 40 knots — and thermal. When it carries that offshore component, this is no longer a place to learn on your own: keep a margin, never go out alone, and at the slightest doubt stay ashore, all the more so as no rescue boat is documented here. Add a sometimes violent shore-break (hollow waves prone to close-outs, not advised for beginners) and strong currents with rips, more marked than elsewhere in the region. If caught in a current, don't fight it: swim parallel to the beach and keep a constant eye on your drift.
source : web.kite-and-windsurfing-guide.com ↗Reef & tide effect
A localised reef borders the spot, notably in front of the Hotel Marabout, with rocky bottoms known as ‘La Bouteille’ and ‘La Grotte’: areas for intermediate riders and up, not for beginners. The tide clearly reshapes the water, even though no figure is available here: waves close out more at low tide, the reef uncovers with the water level, and the shore-break shifts. So ride with the tide stage in mind, and ask local regulars about safe zones before going in.
source : web.kite-and-windsurfing-guide.com ↗Schools & supervision
No school is confirmed as based at Sidi Kaouki itself in the sources consulted: the documented kite operations (Moga Surf, BleuKite, Explora, Kitesurfmaroc, ION Club, Surftwins) are based in the Essaouira bay or at Moulay and run across the region — so schools from the area may supervise here, but that remains to be confirmed on site. On the surf side, local schools exist in the village. Given the absence of a rescue boat and the demanding nature of the spot, it's better to go with someone who knows it, and to ask locally about rips and safe zones before riding.
source : kite-surf-essaouira.com ↗Community
Soon, by the riders
These spaces will fill up with the community’s feedback.
Session reports (today's trade-wind angle side or side-off, wave size, shore-break, state of the rips)
Which tide stage to avoid close-outs and the uncovered reef right now?