Achakar Beach

Achakar is the first of the long Atlantic beaches that run south-west from Cap Spartel, where the coast turns from the strait to the open ocean, and the change is immediate - the water here is colder, the swell is bigger and the beach is wide and flat with pale sand for kilometres. It is the beach Tangier goes to in summer, with camel and horse rides along the sand, seasonal cafes on the dunes behind and a good deal of Friday and Saturday activity. Out of season it empties completely and is a long windy walk with the lighthouse on the headland behind you. The Caves of Hercules, sea caves cut partly by natural erosion and partly by centuries of millstone quarrying, are at the northern end, with the well-known opening shaped roughly like the map of Africa. The Atlantic current here is strong and drownings occur most summers.

What you actually see

• Open Atlantic sand - a wide flat beach running south-west from the cape.
• The Caves of Hercules - sea caves and millstone quarrying at the northern end.
• Cap Spartel's lighthouse - on the headland where the strait meets the ocean.
• Summer camels and horses - rides along the sand through the season.

When to go

June to September for swimming; any time for the walk. Half a day.

Honest expectations

The current is strong and there have been drownings - swim only where lifeguards are posted in season. Water is cold even in August. Litter after busy weekends is significant. Seasonal cafes close outside summer.

Nearby

Cap Spartel is north; Tangier is east.