The Oualidia lagoon has long been famed for its oyster and clam beds, and a cluster of hotels has grown up around an abandoned royal palace where the tapering lagoon meets the sea. The oldest of these, the Hippocampe, consists of rooms in long bungalows set in a radiant flower garden. Neither the architecture nor the interior decoration has much going for them, but the setting is divine. Twice a day the tide rushes through a distant gap in the grassy dunes to cover the vast bay of sand in front of the hotel dining room and terrace, leaving an ever changing series of pools in its wake as it retreats. With due attention to both the strong sun and the tides, this is a great place for children, who can choose between ankle-high and belly deep pools to frolic in, while their parents indulge a passion for seafood in the restaurants. L’Araignée Gourmande is a particular must. Their cheapest all-seafood menu (which included a particularly succulent sea anemone!) just kept coming and coming. The de-luxe menu defies imagination.
