Most visitors reach Essaouira via Marrakech, and the same question always comes up: how do you cover those roughly 190 kilometres — about a 2.5 to 3-hour drive — without picking the wrong option or overpaying? Four realistic solutions exist: the direct bus (Supratours or CTM), the grand taxi, the private driver, and the rental car. None is bad in itself; each fits a profile.
Transparency first: getme does not sell this intercity trip. Our service is airport transfers — €13 in Marrakech, €15 in Essaouira. This article is therefore purely informational: we compare the commonly quoted prices, we say what each option is really worth, and we mention our own service only where it is logically useful — nowhere else.
The essentials in 30 seconds
About 190 km, a 2.5 to 3-hour drive. The direct Supratours or CTM bus — tickets commonly between 80 and 140 dirhams, bookable online — is the best value for most travellers. Shared grand taxi: commonly 100-150 dh per seat. Private driver: commonly 700-1200 dh per vehicle. getme only covers airport transfers (€13 Marrakech, €15 Essaouira).
The Marrakech → Essaouira road in brief
A single main road links the two cities, through plains and argan groves, for about 190 kilometres. Allow 2.5 to 3 hours depending on traffic, stops and vehicle. There is no train on this axis: the rail network stops at Marrakech. The choice therefore comes down to the shared road (bus, grand taxi) or the private one (driver, rental). Here are the four options, one by one.
Option 1: the direct bus (Supratours or CTM)
Supratours and CTM run daily direct services between Marrakech and Essaouira. According to the fares the companies publish, a ticket commonly sits between 80 and 140 dirhams depending on company, comfort class and season. Tickets can be booked online — strongly advised in high season and at weekends, as buses leave full. Departures are from each company’s bus station, and hold luggage is checked in.
⭐ Direct Supratours / CTM bus
≈ 80-140 dh per person→ The best value for the vast majority of travellers. Book online, show up early, and the trip is settled for the price of a lunch.
Option 2: the grand taxi
The grand taxi is Morocco’s intercity institution: a shared saloon or people-carrier that leaves when full. A seat in a shared taxi to Essaouira commonly negotiates at around 100 to 150 dirhams per person, according to what travellers and local guidebooks report. You can also privatise the whole car — the price is then negotiated before boarding and comes out noticeably higher, since you are paying for every seat.
Two honest caveats: comfort is variable (loaded vehicles, shared seats), and there is no timetable — the taxi leaves when it is full, which can mean ten minutes or an hour of waiting. It is an authentically Moroccan experience, but not an option with guaranteed schedules.
Grand taxi (shared or privatised)
≈ 100-150 dh per seat (shared)→ A flexible fallback for the light, patient traveller. At an equivalent seat price, the bus offers more comfort and a guaranteed schedule.
Option 3: the private driver or tourist shuttle
Many local operators and platforms offer the trip in a private chauffeured vehicle. Commonly advertised prices span a wide range — in the region of 700 to 1200 dirhams per vehicle depending on operator, vehicle and season. Spread across a family of four or five, the premium over the bus shrinks, and you gain door-to-door service: pick-up at your Marrakech riad, drop-off at your Essaouira accommodation, photo stops along the way if you ask.
To be clear a second time: getme does not sell this service. If you choose this option, book with an operator that shows a firm price upfront, confirms in writing, and specifies the vehicle. A “price to discuss on the spot” over a 190 km trip is rarely in your favour.
Private driver / tourist shuttle
≈ 700-1200 dh per vehicle (commonly advertised)→ The right call for a loaded family or a tight schedule. For a light-travelling couple, it is comfort paid at a premium.
Option 4: the rental car
Renting a car only makes sense if Essaouira is one stop on a wider itinerary — Atlantic coast, hinterland, valleys. The road is simple and well maintained. The sore point is on arrival: Essaouira’s medina is pedestrian and parking around it is limited, especially in summer. If your only goal is the Marrakech-Essaouira round trip, the rental stacks up drawbacks: rental cost plus fuel, the driving itself, and a car sitting idle for your whole stay.
Rental car
Rental + fuel (variable)→ For multi-stop road-trippers only. For a settled stay in Essaouira, it is the wrong answer to the question.
| Option | Indicative price | Booking | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supratours / CTM bus | ≈ 80-140 dh / person | Online | Most travellers |
| Shared grand taxi | ≈ 100-150 dh per seat | No (on the spot) | Light, flexible traveller |
| Private driver | ≈ 700-1200 dh per vehicle | Online / phone | Families, tight schedules |
| Rental car | Rental + fuel | Online | Multi-stop itineraries |
Which option for which profile?
Couple or solo, travelling light
The bus, no hesitation. At commonly 80-140 dh per seat, booked online, it covers exactly the same road as a driver at 700 dh and up. Take a morning departure and you are enjoying Essaouira by midday.
Family with luggage
The private driver becomes rational: divided among four or five passengers, the vehicle price closes in on the bus, and you skip the bus-station logistics with a pushchair and suitcases. The bus remains perfectly doable if your accommodation is near a medina gate and the children are older.
Tight budget
Bus, booked early — entry fares commonly sit around 80 dh. The shared grand taxi plays in the same price range but with no guaranteed schedule: keep it as plan B if the buses are full.
Constrained flight times
If you must chain a flight and the trip on the same day, the bus timetable may not line up. Two solutions: a private driver at the hour you choose, or — often overlooked — checking whether a direct flight to Essaouira-Mogador exists, which skips the road entirely.
The forgotten link: the two airports
This is the only place our own service enters the equation, so let us say it plainly. If you land at Marrakech-Menara the day before your Essaouira departure, you first need to reach your accommodation: getme runs that transfer at €13 per vehicle, a fixed price paid online, a driver holding your name. And if you fly directly into Essaouira-Mogador, the same service exists at €15. Between the two cities, however, it is the bus, the taxi or the driver — not us.
Get Me!
Landing in Marrakech before Essaouira?
Private Marrakech airport → accommodation transfer: €13 per vehicle (up to 6 passengers), a fixed price paid online, a driver who tracks your flight. The next morning, the bus to Essaouira does the rest.
Book my airport transferFrequently asked questions
How much is the bus from Marrakech to Essaouira?
According to the fares the companies publish, a Supratours or CTM ticket commonly sits between 80 and 140 dirhams depending on company, comfort class and season. Both companies run daily direct services and allow online booking — advisable in high season, as buses often leave full.
How long is the Marrakech-Essaouira trip?
The road covers about 190 kilometres, for roughly a 2.5 to 3-hour trip depending on traffic, vehicle and stops. There is no train line on this axis: the rail network stops at Marrakech, and the rest is done by road.
Can you do Marrakech-Essaouira as a day trip?
Yes: with a morning bus out and a late-afternoon return, you get several hours on site — enough for the medina, the port and a fish lunch. But Essaouira is best savoured slowly: if your schedule allows, one night there changes the experience.
Does getme offer the Marrakech-Essaouira trip?
No, and we prefer to say it plainly: getme only sells airport transfers — €13 per vehicle in Marrakech, €15 in Essaouira. For the intercity trip, our honest recommendation is the direct Supratours or CTM bus for most travellers, or a private driver for loaded families.
Should I book the bus in advance?
Yes, especially in high season, at weekends and during school holidays: the Marrakech-Essaouira services are in high demand and regularly leave full. Booking online on the companies’ websites takes a few minutes and guarantees your seat and your departure time.
Our take, no hedging
For the vast majority of travellers, the direct Supratours or CTM bus is the right answer: a low, published price, a guaranteed schedule, hold luggage, online booking. That is our recommendation even though we earn nothing from it — precisely because we earn nothing from it. The private driver is justified for a loaded family or a tight schedule; the grand taxi rescues the flexible traveller; the rental only defends itself within a multi-stop itinerary.
Our one self-interested piece of advice, owned as such: take care of both ends of the journey. A fixed-price airport transfer in Marrakech (€13) or Essaouira (€15) removes the only real negotiation left on your route. The rest — the argan road, the Mogador wind — is very happily earned by bus.