1. Marrakech - Haouz plains - Chichaoua - argan oil cooperative - Essaouira (Mogador) - Marrakech
2- 30, hotel pickup. Everyone boards a modern air-conditioned vehicle seating no more than 17, and the road turns west across the Haouz plains toward the coast.
Two stops break the 2.5-hour drive. The first is coffee at Chichaoua village, roughly halfway. The second comes as the land turns to argan forest, at a women's cooperative where the whole process is done by hand in front of you, the nut cracked open and the kernels pressed. Nothing is charged for looking, and whatever you buy carries local prices.
Approx. 12:00, Essaouira. Arrival in the town historically called Mogador, with drop-off near the medina entrance, and from there the time is yours.
The next four hours or so are unstructured. Old gates let you into the UNESCO medina. The Skala de la Ville runs along the sea wall with its 18th-century bronze cannons still in place, and this is the rampart that played Astapor in Game of Thrones. In the artisan souks you find galleries, leather goods, silver jewellery and Thuya woodcraft. Down at the fishing port the blue boats and the working fishermen are the draw, and the outdoor grills will cook whatever you pick from the morning's catch; alternatively, rooftop restaurants in the medina serve seafood tagines with the Atlantic in view, at around 80-150 MAD. South of the medina a long sandy beach stretches away, busy with kitesurfers and windsurfers using the trade winds, and the cafes on Place Moulay Hassan pour mint tea while Gnawa music plays in the street.
Approx. 16:00, departure. The minibus pulls away close to the medina entrance and takes 2.5 hours home through the argan forest, breaking for comfort stops. Drop-off in Marrakech is between 19:00 and 20:00, at your hotel or the nearest accessible point.