Laayoune
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Laayoune

Laayoune

Western Sahara's largest city, with Spanish-era lower-town architecture and a lagoon near the Atlantic coast.

Laayoune (El Aaiún) is the largest city in Western Sahara, with over 200,000 inhabitants and the de facto administrative capital of the Moroccan-controlled territory. It is an unusual place — a city that has seen rapid growth since Morocco took control of the region after the Green March of 1975, and where Moroccan soldiers, UN employees, Sahrawi locals, and Moroccan immigrants looking for work have all come together.

The southern "lower" town was built by the Spanish and is now run-down but makes for an interesting walk. The old Spanish cathedral still bears a rusting sign reading "property of the Spanish government." The Souk Djmaa (chicken market) area has cheap hotels and distinctive architecture — eggshell-domed roofs designed to keep houses cool. The "upper" town, developed since 1975, has striking modern monuments. The Great Mosque stands in the Place du Mechouar, and the Colline des Oiseaux is a landscaped garden where exotic birds are housed in cages with blinds to protect them from sandstorms. The two halves of the city are separated by the dry Saguia el-Hamra wadi.

Laayoune is in a politically sensitive area — the status of Western Sahara remains disputed. Check your embassy’s advice before visiting, and be discreet with photography, particularly around military installations.

Guide

Eating Out

Laayoune's food scene is functional rather than memorable. Expect the standard Moroccan repertoire — tagines, couscous on Fridays, grilled meats — alongside Sahrawi specialities like camel meat (rarely on menus, more often in homes), and sweet glasses of mint tea served everywhere. The lower town's small cafés and grills around Place Mechouar and along Avenue Hassan II are the obvious places to eat; the better hotels on the river have the more reliable kitchens.

Guide

Getting Around

el Ayoune is on the south bank of the Saguiet el-Hamra. The town is new, so all the streets are straight, which is nice for a change. Center of town is not big, it is a few blocks around where Av. Hassan II and Av. Mohammed V meet. Parallel on Hassan II is the Av. de la Mecque which leads to the local bus station and the offices of the RAM. Four good hotels are on the banks of the river, just north from the center.

Guide

Getting There

Unless you are flying, getting to al Ayoune involves a lot of desert. Both Dakhla and Goulmime are 5 hours of sand away. There are regular buses and grand taxis going to Agadir, along the coast, over Goulmime and Tiznit. Only one going to ed-Dakhla. To Smara there is one bus, so you might try and find a grand taxi (3 hours). Driving yourself isn't hard, but always long.

If you aren't here on you're own wheels, you could consider flying. There are regular flights from Casa and Agadir. From here you can also go to Las Palmas on the Canary Islands.

Guide

Things to Do

Laayoune's "lower town", built by the Spanish in the 1940s and 1950s, is where the older atmospheric architecture sits — the white-domed houses, the disused Spanish cathedral, the colonnaded Souk Djmaa. The "upper town" north of the river is dominated by Hassan II-era monuments built to anchor Morocco's claim to Western Sahara, including the vast Place du Mechouar. South of the city, the long dunes of the Saguia el-Hamra dry river valley make for a striking walk at sunset.