Saidia is a coastal city, located at the Algerian – Moroccan borders, near the city of Oujda in the Oriental region of Morocco. Now famous for its 14km of fine sand bay.
The town was first discovered back in 1883, by the Moroccan Sultan, Hassan I, who built a Kasbah there. In 1913, while Morocco was still under the French Protectorate, some European residents discovered the site, which made it a quite popular seaside destination.
Following Independence, the town continued attracting bathing enthusiasts, and easily became one of Northeastern Morocco’s most frequented bays in Morocco. Now with its 840-berth marina, 4 and 5-star hotels, shopping and leisure complexes, and golf courses,
Saidia became a new-generation seaside resort boasting every facility under the sun.
If you want to visit the city, but have no idea where to go or what to do, don’t worry, just keep reading!
What to do?
Saidia is known as ‘The bleu pearl’ and the reason for that is quite obvious, the town has beautiful blue waters beaches surrounded by fine sand and if you like beaches then you won’t get easily bored here!
- Relax and soak the sun: the town offers relaxing, clean beaches where you can lay down and forget about your stressful routine.
- Enjoy many nautical pleasures: If you like water sports, you can ride Jetskis or fly boards to feel the adrenaline rush. Windsurfing, canoeing and many other similar sports are available.
- Go sea fishing: Saidia’s coastal waters are filled with a huge variety of fish species, offering every fishing enthusiast a great pleasure and some unforgettable catches.
- Visit the depths of the seas: You’ll take a great pleasure diving and discovering the variety of marine life hiding in the crystal-clear waters along the south coast of the Mediterranean.
- Enjoy a camel outdoor adventure: At the beach you can ride camels and stroll down the 14km fine sand.
- Go shopping: The nautical destination offers a great commercial zone known as the Marina of Saidia, where you can shop and buy as many souvenirs as you want.
- Visit the port: whether you just want to hang out and enjoy the sunset view near the boats or you want to take the sea, you’ll enjoy visiting the port and yachting harbor.
- Play golf: Saidia offers 18-hole golf courses for golf fanatics, it is ranked as the finest golfing places in the whole Mediterranean area.
- Hunting and hiking: Not every activity the town offers is about the beach, so you can enjoy discovering the truly beautiful surrounding countryside such as The Moulouya natural reserve, Kariat Arekmae, Mar Chica lagoon or hunt partridges, hares, wild boar or quail depending on the season in the Beni Snasen Mountains.
Where to eat?
Saidia is also known for its variety of seafood, you’ll easily find fishermen hawking the fruits of the sea near the seaside hamlets. You can also enjoy these varieties in different restaurants along the seaside or inside the Marina.
When to go?
With its particularly mild climate, Saidia’s weather is good year round. It can be very cold and rainy during the months of January, February and April and the warmest months are July and August.
Visiting Saidia during the summer is the best way to enjoy the sun and the nautical activities. You can visit starting July until October if you want to take a great advantage of the warm and beautiful weather.
Getting to and around Saidia:
There are many transport options if you want to get to Saidia:
By plane:
There are three airports in the region where Saidia is located.
- Oujda Angad Airport: located at approximately 65 km from Saidia, 60 to 90 minutes by car. Being one of the best airports in the Area, with several airlines offering regular flights.
- Nador Airport: At the same distance to Saidia as Oujda’s airport, this one doesn’t give you much choice since it operates with fewer airlines.
- Melillia Airport: The advantage is (even if the distance is longer) that it has about a dozen flights almost hourly from and to various airports in Spain. This makes it easier for you to reach your destination.
By train:
A lot of people would fly to Marrakech or Casablanca, since a lot of airlines are available to both airports and then take the train. Fairly cheap and very comfortable, trains in Morocco offer the easiest way to travel between Major cities.
Taking the train will get to Oujda from there you can take a cab or any of the much available transportations to Saidia.
By ferry:
There are several ferry companies that offer services to Morocco with and most of them are originating in Spain. These ferries have restaurants, nightclubs, beds and shops on board.
During the summer months (June to September) services are also available from France to Nador.If you are driving, this is an option because it takes almost the same amount of time as the land route, involves less stress and possibly less money.