Essaouira Guided Tour: Experience Nightlife, Local Living, and Street Food

Immerse yourself in the vibrant culture of Essaouira with a guided tour that combines nightlife, local living, and street food. Sample traditional sweets, walk along the fortifications, dine on freshly-caught fish, and learn about local remedies.

Duration: 4 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Essaouira Fishing Port - Experience Essaouira’s Old Medina with a 2-3 hour walk and talk, blending “live like a local,” “street food,” and “historical food” tours into one. The city is renowned for its rich history and vibrant culture.
  • Sample traditional sweets at local pastry shops
  • Stroll along the fortifications with a local guide
  • Wander…
What's Included
  • Sample local foods at no extra cost
  • Bilingual local guide (English & French)
  • Enjoy complimentary tea and coffee
  • Free entry to local workshops
What's Not Included
  • Drinks (Coca, Sparkling water, etc)
Additional Information

Experience Essaouira’s Old medina during a 3-4 Hours walk & talk, Combining a ‘live like a local’ , ‘Street food’ and ‘Historical food’ tours all in one. The city’s known for it’s famous & rich history and vibrant culture.
We’ll share as much informations as we can during this walk through the city and get you introduced to the locals lifestyle.
-…

Location
Sqala du Port d'Essaouira
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.2
(37 Ratings)
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Rachelfg7599ke
Nov 15, 2025
Fantastic walking food tour - I recently enjoyed a remarkable walking food tour in the Medina of Essaouira with Said as my guide, and it was an experience to remember! Said expertly guided me through winding streets, introducing me to authentic food vendors that truly capture the spirit of the region. The visit to the vibrant fish markets was a treat for the senses, offering fresh and tantalizing options. What made this tour stand out was Said’s ability to weave historical insights into our journey, enhancing my appreciation of the Medina's rich heritage. Beyond just food, Said was invaluable in assisting me with both food and non-food related shopping, making sure I found exactly what I was looking for. Said's friendly demeanor, deep knowledge, and helpfulness made navigating the city an enjoyable and seamless experience. His passion for Essaouira shines through, and he went above and beyond to ensure I had a memorable tour. I wholeheartedly recommend Said’s tour for anyone seeking a unique and enriching way to explore the Medina!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Elissa
Oct 19, 2025
A great experience - This was definitely one of the best tours I've ever experienced, HIGHLY recommend. Much more than just a food tour, very authentic & entertaining. Said was extremely personable, great communication skills & took really good care of us. This is the tour if you really want to see the real Essaouira.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Michelrm368cz
Sep 6, 2025
Dinner at Earthie Food restaurant, Place Saint-Louis in Périgueux. - Home cooking. 1. Assortment of fries: delicious. 2. Shrimp curry Thai coconut: a treat! 3. Caribbean Flan: excellent. Friendly staff, very reasonable prices. It's the second time we've had dinner there, and it's always a pleasure.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
H2177rzstephaniek
Apr 22, 2025
Great city tour with delicious street food. - Our tour guide, Zaid, was great. He showed our family around the city for three hours and we tried lots of delicious things to eat. Great experience. Very emphatic.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
858delaunayl
Oct 30, 2024
Disappointed to have been presented with a fait accompli on a Saturday night at 8pm - Change in type of catering not reported: Dining bar French cuisine no longer exists and has been replaced by a pizzeria but this is not reported when we book through tripadvisor
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jess_y
Oct 12, 2025
I never heard from the... - I never heard from the guide until two hours before the activity when he messaged to cancel. I would not recommend this activity.
Review provided by Viator
Julie_m
Jun 23, 2025
Don’t waste your time. - I don’t like to write negative reviews but I’m making an exception. We began the tour with the guide asking us if we wanted to shop and buy carpets, wood furnishings or silver. We had been in an organized tour before and weren’t interested in that. I think there was 1 sweet treat offered. The guide was more concerned with taking us to shops to buy things. He pointed out one area that had been a site in Game of Thrones. The tour was so bad we decided to leave after an hour. No parts of the tour was a nightlife or street food tour. This was an absolute waste of time and money.
Review provided by Viator
Christine_n
May 7, 2025
As someone who rarely leaves negative reviews… - As someone who rarely leaves negative reviews, I only do so when an experience is truly disappointing — and unfortunately, this tour falls into that category. Scheduled for 2pm on May 7, our guide arrived 30 minutes late, which was explained to us in advance and we were willing to overlook. However, the tour that followed was disorganized, uninspired, and frankly not worth the $130 price tag. The guide appeared disengaged throughout, often speaking on his phone while we aimlessly walked through the town with little to no commentary. Despite being billed as a “night life” and “street food tour,” the only food offered was four shared oysters and a small loaf of bread — hardly a tasting experience, and a far cry from the variety and cultural immersion we anticipated. There were no pastries, no sweets, and no meaningful explanation of the local cuisine or customs. My wife summed it up best when she said, “I don’t know if I’m uninterested because he’s uninterested — I just want this to end.” The tour, expected to last three hours, wrapped up by 4:10pm after a delayed start, making the entire experience feel rushed and superficial. Essaouira is a beautiful town full of life and flavor, but this tour did it no justice. I would strongly recommend others seek an alternative ways to explore the city. As far as nightlife, we are left on our own to discover that.
Review provided by Viator
M5266xfrichards
Oct 6, 2024
Avoid this Guide at All Costs - We have been on many walking food tours with Viator and they have always been very good. It is a nice way to begin touring a city with a guide who gives you a mix of culture, history and, most importantly, a taste of a wide variety of the typical foods in locations frequented mainly by the locals. Typically, the guide has a definite plan, with reservations made in advance. Our 5pm tour was an Absolute Disaster! Mehdi Kassori had no plan and had no real interest in talking to us. We walked to the fresh fish market and he pointed to the fresh fish and asked if we wanted anything? There was nothing cooked. Later, after reading other reviews, I think we were supposed to pick out some fish and take it to a restaurant and have it cooked. He never suggested that. We passed a fruit vendor and asked what it was. The guide said it was a fig, but it was really a type of prickly pear. The only history we got was about the main gate. When I asked him about the significance of the 3 balls atop the minaret, he said he didn't know. I later learned there are several interpretations. As we went back inside the walls of the medina, he was constantly walking ahead of us and on the phone. As we walked along the main market street and passed all of the food stalls, he constantly asked us what we wanted to eat???? Typically the guide suggests various foods and explains them, etc. We finally stopped at a small food shop that had food behind a glass window. Again, without any explanation, he asked us what we wanted to eat. We finally had some soup and street food, but again, he was mostly on the phone and when we would ask a question, he would interrupt and answer his phone. Since 2 of our group had never been to Morocco or had Moroccan food, I finally asked him if we were going to have a tagline or cous cous which typically take advanced preparation. By now it was around 7:30. He said ok and we proceeded to walk down some narrow alleys to a local's restaurant, which is fine. They were closing. We went to 2-3 others which were also closing. Obviously he had no plan and had not made any advanced reservations. He said unfortunately, all the restaurants were closing (which was clearly not true) and his solution was to go the market and buy the ingredients for a taglne, take it to a local cook and make it which would only take a hour! At that point we told him we had had enough and we left him with the chicken and vegetables. Mehdi should not be allowed to give another food tour until he submits a plan to Viator. I'm sure that any other guide would have done a typically good job, so don't skip this tour, I'm sure it will be good. Just make sure you don't get Mehdi!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Richard_s
Sep 28, 2024
This particular guide was terrible! - We have been on many Viator food tours, 3 on this trip alone. One in Portugal and 2 in morocco. We have always had a great experience, a blend of history and a good sampling of local foods, often some we wouldn’t typically sample. They have always been well planned and the guide was always totally involved with the group. This guide had NO plan and spent most of his time in the phone or talking to his friends along the way. He kept asking us what we wanted to eat instead of having a plan as to what he wanted us to experience. This guide should never lead a group again and I will send a letter directly to Viator. I’m sure other guides would do a typically good job.
Review provided by Viator
From $52
up to 5 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).