ON A BUDGET : Little-Known Moroccan City Rich in Intriguing Surprises

I’ve often touted the North African kingdom of Morocco as an exotic, often amazingly inexpensive destination. In the news this summer because of the death of its longtime king, Hassan II, Morocco is a poor but relatively tolerant Muslim society with a long tradition of hospitality. The country is Arabic-speaking, but French is widely used, a result of its past under French rule. English is also spoken in quite a few hotels and restaurants.

Though most of Morocco’s foreign tourists are attracted to inland Marrakech in the south and the coastal resort town of Agadir (overbuilt and rather charmless), you can get much of the best of both worlds in a small city up the Atlantic coast from Agadir.

Built centuries ago by the Portuguese, Essaouira (pronounced ess-ah-WEE-ra) is a friendly, laid-back place that has managed to maintain prices that are low even for this notably inexpensive country. The city had a brief popularity with European and American counterculture types (including the likes of Jimi Hendrix and Anais Nin) back in the groovy old days, but in recent years its popularity has been limited mostly to a few in-the-know Europeans.

Essaouira is a compact, gorgeous gem, a symphony in blue, white and stonework, with a historic Portuguese fort, a pleasant crescent beach with wicked (and modestly famous) windsurfing, and atmospheric, old, cobbled market streets (local specialties include lovely mottled thuya woodcarving, sold elsewhere at five times the price).

In short, it’s a relaxing, uncrowded shore leave after the hustle-bustle of Marrakech--not to mention a good 20 degrees cooler in summer--and you can get there in three hours via Supratours bus for the equivalent of about $4 each way (or rent a small Peugeot in Marrakech for $36 a day).

Essaouira can easily be done in a day if you’re looking to fit it into a more involved itinerary. But if you have the time, it makes a great several days or even a week.

You can nab an adorable double with bath for $27 at the 60-room Hotel Sahara, telephone 011-212-447-5292. Simpler but immaculate doubles without bath are $12 at the Hotel Majestic, tel. 011-212- 447-4909. For a somewhat more elaborate experience, the centrally located Hotel Riad Al Madina, tel. 011-212-447-5907, fax 011-212- 447-5727, is a converted old townhouse with a beautiful courtyard through a set of huge blue doors; doubles with breakfast are $67.

The local dining is wonderful, too, from zesty platefuls of grilled seafood right off the boat at one of the harbor-front stands to low-key but good-quality restaurants like Essalam in the main square, where the couscous is among the best and the substantial fixed-price menus start at around $4.

Royal Air Maroc, tel. (212) 750-6071, operates the only direct service between North America and Morocco (about a 6 1/2-hour flight from the U.S. East Coast), flying three days a week from New York to Casablanca for about $700 round trip midweek in September and October, with a 10-day minimum stay. Connecting one-hour flights to Essaouira are $83 on round-trip excursion fare.

For more information: Moroccan National Tourist Office, 20 E. 46th St., Suite 1201, New York, NY 10017; tel. (212) 557-2520, fax (212) 949-8148, Internet https://www.tourism-in-morocco.com.