Dar Ness

Forty steps from Essaouira's ramparts, Dar Ness occupies a restored riad on Rue Khalid Ben Walid, its courtyard open to the sky and lined with tadelakt plaster in the medina's traditional blue-and-white palette. Rooms wrap the interior on two floors, away from street noise and Atlantic wind.

Breakfast is taken on the rooftop, facing the fishing port's gulls and the ramparts beyond. The Skala de la Ville and fish grills of the port sit within a five-minute walk, making the riad a quiet base for travellers who want the medina without the coastal wind hitting their windows directly.