Ain Diab Corniche

The corniche runs west from the Hassan II mosque along the Atlantic and is where Casablanca goes in the evening - a rebuilt promenade with a wide walkway, palms and lighting, backed by a strip of restaurants, cafes, nightclubs and the beach clubs that are the local institution: private establishments with seawater pools, loungers and food, charging for the day, which exist because the ocean here is cold, rough and not always clean, so people swim in pools beside it rather than in it. Several date to the 1930s and 1940s and a few keep their original modernist architecture. The public beach continues west towards Sidi Abderrahmane, a small shrine on a tidal rock reached at low water. Water quality along this coast has failed testing at times, which is worth checking before swimming in the sea rather than a pool.

What you actually see

• A rebuilt promenade - wide walkway, palms and lighting along the Atlantic.
• Beach clubs with pools - private establishments where people swim beside the sea, not in it.
• 1930s modernism - a few of the older clubs keeping their original architecture.
• Sidi Abderrahmane - a shrine on a tidal rock further west, reached at low water.

When to go

May to October; evenings for the promenade. Half a day.

Honest expectations

Sea water quality has failed testing at times - check before swimming. Beach clubs charge a substantial day rate. The strip is loud at night. Weekend traffic along the corniche is heavy.

Nearby

The Hassan II mosque is east; Morocco Mall is west along the coast.