The Oyster Lagoon

The oysters in Oualidia grow in the same lagoon where the king keeps a summer palace.

Oualidia is a small town on the Atlantic coast between El Jadida and Safi, built around a crescent-shaped lagoon protected from the open ocean by a sandbar. The lagoon is shallow, warm, and tidal — conditions that turn out to be ideal for Pacific oysters, which were introduced to Morocco in the 1950s by a French oyster farmer who recognised the similarity to the basins of Arcachon.

The oyster farms — wooden tables submerged in the lagoon, visible at low tide — produce oysters that are sold in Casablanca, Marrakech, and the restaurants that line Oualidia's waterfront. You can eat them at a table overlooking the beds where they grew. A dozen costs a fraction of what the same oysters would cost in Paris.

The royal palace sits above the lagoon on the northern cliff. It is not open to the public. Its presence ensures that the town remains quiet and the development around the lagoon stays modest.

Oualidia is a weekend destination for Moroccan families from Casablanca and Marrakech. In summer the beach fills. In winter the lagoon is empty except for the birds — herons, egrets, flamingos in transit. Surfers use the breaks outside the sandbar. Kayakers paddle the lagoon at dawn.

The town is named after the Saadian sultan El Oualid, who built a kasbah here in 1634. The kasbah is in ruins. The oysters are thriving.