Sidi Ifni

Sidi Ifni was a Spanish enclave and was built out as a small colonial town from the 1930s, which is why an isolated Atlantic clifftop in southern Morocco has a coherent quarter of art deco - the old Spanish consulate, the church, the town hall, the lighthouse, the cinema, houses with curved corners and porthole windows, painted white with blue trim and arranged around Place Hassan II, which was the plaza de España and still has its Spanish-era layout. It was transferred to Morocco in 1969. The town declined afterwards and much of the fabric is worn; some buildings are being repaired and others are shuttered. Below the cliff is a long beach with heavy Atlantic surf, and the remains of an aerial cableway that once loaded ships offshore because there was no harbour. Fog rolls in from the ocean often and the light is particular.

History

The Aït Baâmrane have long lived in the area, trading with Europeans and with northern Morocco as intermediaries in the trans-Saharan trade. Sidi Ifni is claimed as the site of Santa Cruz de la Mar Pequeña, a small coastal fort built by Spain in the 15th century, though historians have never fixed its exact place on the coast, and in 2000 a large fishing port was completed here (Wikipedia, Sidi Ifni).

The main sights

• A coherent deco quarter - consulate, church, town hall and houses from the 1930s.
• A Spanish plaza - Place Hassan II with its colonial-era layout intact.
• The cableway remains - structures from a system that loaded ships offshore.
• A worn townscape - much of the fabric faded, some repaired, some shut.

When to go

September to May; summer is busy with domestic visitors. A day.

What to expect

Many buildings are shuttered or decaying and interiors are not accessible. Atlantic fog is frequent and can sit over the town for days. The beach has strong currents and limited lifeguarding. Accommodation is basic.

Nearby

Mirleft and Legzira are north; Guelmim is inland to the south-east.

Key facts