If you have looked at sandboarding in Essaouira, you have probably noticed that most of what is sold comes with a drive attached — an hour or more south, out to the bigger dune fields. That is a real option and sometimes it is the right one. But it is worth knowing that it is not the only one, because a lot of people book half a day in a van without realising they had a choice.

The dunes start behind Diabat

Diabat is the village on the other side of the Oued Ksob, about three and a half kilometres south-west of the medina. Behind its beach there is a belt of dunes — the same belt our quads cross — and it is where our two-hour session runs. From our base you are walking onto sand within minutes of arriving.

These are not the tallest dunes on this coast and we are not going to pretend otherwise. What they are is firm underfoot at the bottom and soft on the faces, which is the combination that actually matters: soft enough that falling costs you nothing but a shirt full of sand, firm enough that the board runs properly. For a first session that is worth more than height.

When the longer trip is worth it

Go further when you want longer faces and more of them. Our half day includes the transport out to the bigger dune field, and the full day adds the beach with a slower pace and time to stop. If you have sandboarded or snowboarded before, or if you are here for a few days and want one properly big outing rather than a taster, that is the one to book.

Stay close when you have a half-day gap rather than a whole one, when you are travelling with people whose enthusiasm might not survive two hours in a vehicle, or when you simply want to find out whether you like it before committing a day to it.

What actually happens on the dune

There is no lift and no shortcut. You walk up, you ride down, you walk up again. That is the honest shape of it, and it is most of why two hours is enough for a first session — the riding is easy, the climbing is the workout. Your guide picks the faces, waxes the board and rides the first line so you can see it before you take it.

Nobody needs experience. If you have snowboarded you will be riding inside a run or two. If you have never stood on a board, you will spend the first few goes sitting down, which is a perfectly good way to come down a dune and considerably faster than it looks. Most people are standing by the third or fourth run.

The one thing people get wrong

Footwear. Closed shoes are required and trainers are ideal. Sandals do not work — sand gets in, and you need something on your feet for the climb back up. It is the single thing we turn people away over, so please do not arrive in flip-flops.

  • Closed shoes — required, no sandals
  • Sunglasses and sunscreen
  • Water
  • Clothes you do not mind filling with sand

Wind, and why it is usually good news

Essaouira is a windy town — that is its entire reputation, and it is why the kitesurfers come. For sandboarding, wind is usually fine and often improves the faces by keeping them clean. If conditions are genuinely unworkable we message you and move the time or the day rather than let you turn up to it.

If you are still deciding, message us with your dates and how long you have, and we will tell you honestly which of the three is the right fit — including if the answer is that you should do the quad instead. The dunes are the same dunes either way.

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