Beaches and Oysters - Oualidia
Updated: Aug 18
Today we visited the beautiful beach town of Oualidia. Oualidia is the oyster capital of Morocco and has a significant impact on the economy in the area. The town borders the Pacific Ocean and is protected with a natural lagoon that makes for great swimming. Once we arrived in town we headed to the beach which had quite a few people. Interestingly, many of the people were tourists from Europe, the U.S., or other locations, and there was even a mobile home park next to the beach. We learned that many people come to Oualidia as “snow birds” and stay in mobile homes for months at a time. I ended up swimming in the lagoon, but no one else wanted to brave the cold water which was quite frigid.
After enjoying the water and soaking up some rays on the beach, we visited a seafood stand to try out the local delicacies. The seafood stands have incredibly fresh food and a large variety from oysters, urchin, fish, crabs, clams, and more. We tried a raw oyster and raw urchin (first time for me) before purchasing some fresh fish to grill. Next to the seafood stands is a large BBQ/grill area where you can pay a small price to have someone cook the fresh seafood for you. It was so delicious!
Another interesting thing about Oualidia is that it has several caves and cliffs along the ocean. We had the chance to visit one of the caves which opened up on the side of a cliff high above the ocean. It was a really fun experience, but also a little scary lol. We ended our visit in Oualidia by taking a boat ride to view and visit one of the oyster farms in the lagoon. The oyster farm we visited was a female run business, and they were gracious enough to give us a tour of the entire facility. It was very interesting to see how oysters are processed and make it from the sea to your plate.
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