MapMoroccoEssaouira2nd Beach (Ored Omar)Essaouira

2nd Beach (Ored Omar)

Marrakech-Safi · Pachalik d'Essaouira باشوية الصويرة

also known as Ord Omar, Second Beach, 2nd Beach, Diabat second beach

Part of Essaouira →

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

wavesnot for beginnerslow crowds

On this page

The spot
Wind
Forecast
Month by month
Water
Level
The scene
Launch
Schools
Tips
Getting there
Photos
FAQ

Riding essentials

Season

Apr–Oct

Months riders and schools name

How windy

15-25 knots

Character: mixed

Room to launch

huge

access rules on record, below

Water

waves

20–22 °C in summerLong sandy Atlantic beach south of Essaouira Bay, less protected than the main bay and with bigger surf

Hazards

Reported by riders

Level

Intermediate to advanced

With a caveat: see Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Crowds

low crowds · busy July August

Schools

named at this spot

From the airport

15 min

Essaouira-Mogador Airport (ESU)

On the clock

10:00

Builds late morning, commonly from about 10:00-noon, and peaks through the afternoon in high season.

The mark is the clock time the record names, laid on a 24-hour day. The fade after it is not an end time, and not a promise of wind.

Nearbystraight-line distance

Backup spotsWhere riders go when the wind doesn't work here.

Essaouira Bay
Oued Ksob / Essaouira Lagoonno page yet
Cap Sim
La Grotte

The spot

2nd Beach is the next kiteable sand south of Essaouira Bay, near Diabat, and almost everything written about it locally spells it Ord Omar. It sits outside the shelter of the bay, so the Atlantic swell is bigger and the wind arrives cleaner, without the turbulence the town throws off. Most visitors ride it as a short downwinder from Essaouira Bay or a drive of less than 10 minutes for the space and the empty sand.

Difficulty and season

Treat it as an intermediate and advanced ocean spot unless you are out with a school: the shorebreak, the current, the summer wind strength and the question of how you get back all bite harder here than on the main teaching beach. The season runs spring through early autumn, July and August strongest and busiest, and winter turns surf-oriented as the swell builds.

Hazards and zoning

Rock formations and tide pools sit near the waterline in places, so walk it before you land there. No kite zoning and no public rescue specific to Ord Omar was found.

The wind

locals call it Alize / Passat trade wind

Direction

cross-onNorth to northeast

Direction to shore

cross-on

Kite sizes

4567891011121314

metres · typical quiver highlighted

The quiver, in words

For a 75-85 kg rider, 9-11 m covers most peak-season days, 7 m for the hard July and August afternoons, 12 m for light spring and autumn mornings. On one strong June trip riders used 5, 7 and 9 m. Indicative sizing drawn from Essaouira-wide guidance, not measured at this beach.

Character

mixed

When it fills in: see above ↑

Average strength

Typical strength

15-25 knots through the main season. July and August afternoons are commonly quoted at 25-35 knots, and gusts past 35 happen. Winter days drop to around 14 knots and stop being dependable.

Cleaner and steadier than the north/town side of Essaouira Bay because the coastline is less affected by town turbulence and less sheltered by Mogador Island; still an exposed ocean spot with gusts possible.

The reliable kite season runs mainly from March/April to October, with peak strength and crowds in July-August. Winter is less reliable for kiting and more surf-oriented as Atlantic swell increases.

Forecast

Live forecast

Windguru Windfinder Windy

Month by month

Jan47
Feb60
Mar72
Apr, riders' month77
May, riders' month82
Jun, riders' month79
Jul, riders' month96
Aug, riders' month96
Sep, riders' month72
Oct, riders' month63
Nov58
Dec44

per cent of the month at force 4 or more

Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct.

12 ktJan17°
14 ktFeb17°
14 ktMar18°
16 ktApr18°
17 ktMay18°
16 ktJun20°
19 ktJul19°
18 ktAug20°
15 ktSep20°
13 ktOct20°
13 ktNov19°
11 ktDec18°

avg knots per month · water °C below · season highlighted

Modelled from weather reanalysis on a 10–25 km grid (2022-2024), not a ground station: reliable for trade and synoptic winds, understates thermal sea breezes and valley winds.

Every figure, month by monthForce 4+ · Knots · Wind from · Air · Water

Month	Force 4+	Knots	Wind from	Air	Water
Jan	47%	11.6 kt	NE	15.7 °C	17.3 °C
Feb	60%	13.7 kt	NNE	16.3 °C	17.1 °C
Mar	72%	14.4 kt	NNE	16.4 °C	17.5 °C
Apr	77%	15.8 kt	NNE	18.2 °C	18.4 °C
May	82%	16.8 kt	NNE	19.1 °C	18.3 °C
Jun	79%	16.3 kt	NNE	20.8 °C	19.8 °C
Jul	96%	18.5 kt	NNE	22.1 °C	19.2 °C
Aug	96%	18 kt	NNE	22.5 °C	19.8 °C
Sep	72%	15 kt	NNE	21.3 °C	19.9 °C
Oct	63%	13 kt	NNE	21.3 °C	20.3 °C
Nov	58%	12.6 kt	NNE	19.3 °C	19.2 °C
Dec	44%	11.4 kt	NE	16.6 °C	17.9 °C

How this is modelledmodelled · 2022-2024

A weather model's cell over this place, not a station on it. Good for comparing places, weaker for one beach.

The typical daily max and the direction are columns of the table above, month by month. Highlighted months are the riding season from the spot record.

ERA5 reanalysis grid point (modelled) · Open-Meteo historical weather API — ECMWF ERA5/ERA5-Land reanalysis, not a ground station · 2022-2024

The water

Type

waves

Standing depth

Reportedly one of the two shallow-water kite spots at Essaouira, though no measured standing-depth zone was found for this beach.

Tides

Semi-diurnal Atlantic tide with a range that changes the beach. At the Essaouira gauge a few kilometres north, high water runs about 2.2 m on neaps and up to 3.1 m on springs, with low water down near 0.7 m.The drop uncovers the rock formations and the pools at the waterline, so what you land on at low water is not the beach you launched from at high.

Temperature

20–22 °C summer · 16–17 °C winter

Modelled monthly average: 17–20 °C

Wetsuit

Wetsuit advised year-round: 3/2 mm is commonly recommended for summer or windy sessions; 4/3 mm, or 3/2 mm with boots, is recommended around the coldest period in late winter.

Currents

A light current runs at times. Tide and current both want watching along this stretch of coast. No measured current data found.

Conditions

Long sandy Atlantic beach south of Essaouira Bay, less protected than the main bay and with bigger surf. Shallow patches and some rock formations show at the water edge.

Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

not for beginners here

A step up from Essaouira Bay for independent riders: bigger waves, fewer people, and a downwinder target for intermediates and advanced. One local school runs its lessons at Diabat/Second Beach, so supervised beginners do use part of it, but on your own the main bay or a school-picked zone is the right call.

The scene

What riders come here for

wave ridingdownwinders from Essaouira Baystronger/cleaner wind than the town side of the baylower-crowd sessions

Quieter than Essaouira main beach, used mostly by watersport riders rather than general tourists; July-August are the wider Essaouira high season and busiest kite months.

Launch and rules

three ways on to the water, and what each one asks of you

With a school or a boat

7 schools name this spot

See who they are

On your own

Room to launch: huge

Read the access rules

Somewhere else

5 spots nearby

All 5 spots within 40 km are under Nearby

Rescue

No lifeguard post and no rescue boat is stationed on this beach.

The Essaouira schools cover their own lessons and rentals and run the downwinder pickups, and that is the only organised cover here.

Morocco's public numbers in 2026: 15 for an ambulance, 19 for police in town, 177 for the Royal Gendarmerie on the rural coast, 112 from a mobile.

Fix a pickup before you commit to a downwinder.

Launch

Wide sandy, dune-backed beach south of Essaouira Bay/near Diabat, with more space and fewer beach tourists than the main town beach. Rock formations or tide pools may be present near the water edge, so launch well clear of hard objects and pedestrians.

Hazards riders report 9 reported

Wind

Wind can become strong in summer afternoons, with local guides reporting 25-35 knot July-August peaks

Waves and currents

Bigger swell/shorebreak than the main bay
Bigger, punchier waves and beach break than Essaouira Bay
Light current at times; tide and current awareness needed
Possible shorebreak on larger swell days
Rock formations/tide pools reported near parts of Ord Omar at low tide

Other

No services on the beach itself - arrange a pickup or walk back
No public rescue or services on record directly on the beach
Downwinder logistics: arrange pickup or be ready for a walk/transport back

Rules & access

1 min read

2026: no municipal permit, zoning or seasonal kitesurf restriction is confirmed for Ord Omar. Essaouira Bay has no formal rules either; normal launch and landing precautions apply, and the gusty town side is best avoided. None of that amounts to an Ord Omar ordinance.

Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.

Schools that ride here

Rider tips

Ask the school which beach they mean by Ord Omar, Diabat or 'Secret Spot / 2nd Beach' before you pay for transport. The naming online is a mess.
For the downwinder out of Essaouira Bay, fix the pickup first and check the wind angle will land you at Ord Omar and not further down the coast.
Rig smaller than the morning forecast suggests for July-August afternoons. The thermal peaks after midday.
Check the tide and walk the waterline for rocks and pools before you launch or land.
Stay in the main Essaouira Bay or a supervised school zone if your waterstart, upwind riding or self-rescue is not solid yet.
Bring a 3/2 mm. The water sits at 20-22 in summer and 16-17 in the cold months.

Getting there

Airport

Essaouira-Mogador Airport (ESU) is closest; Marrakech Menara (RAK) is the common larger alternative.

Route

The beach sits south of Essaouira Bay, under ten minutes by car. Distance quotes vary between about 2 km south of the main beach and 8 km south of the medina, but the drive is short either way and a grand taxi or a school shuttle is the normal way there.It also works as a short downwinder out of Essaouira Bay if someone moves the car.Essaouira-Mogador airport is roughly 15 minutes from town; Marrakech is 2-2.5 hours by road.

Transfer

15 min

Cost level

medium-low

Staying

Most accommodation is in Essaouira medina, beachside hotels/apartments, or riads; local kite schools also sell packages with accommodation and transfers. Staying in the medina means carrying or storing gear near the beach.

No-wind days

Surfing, SUP, the UNESCO medina and its markets, fish restaurants, a hammam, horse or camel rides, quad and bicycle tours, cooking or language classes, the dunes, and a day trip to Marrakech.

Photos

FAQ

When is the best time to kite at 2nd Beach (Ord Omar)?

The main season runs April through October, with July and August bringing the strongest wind and biggest crowds; winter is less reliable for kiting.

Is 2nd Beach suitable for beginners?

No, it is best treated as an intermediate to advanced spot because of bigger Atlantic swell, currents and shorebreak; beginners should use Essaouira Bay with a school instead.

What is the wind like?

Wind is cross-on and usually cleaner than the town side of Essaouira Bay, typically 15-25 knots in season, with July-August afternoons often reaching 25-35 knots.

How do riders usually get there?

Most visitors reach it as a short car transfer, under 10 minutes, from Essaouira Bay, or as a downwinder from the bay with school-arranged pickup logistics.

The bigger pictureEverything about Essaouira

Last updated: August 2026