At least seven people have died in a gun attack on an Ivory Coast beach resort popular with tourists, according to reports.

A witness said four attackers opened fire with rifles as they entered the L'Etoile du Sud (Southern Star) hotel in Grand-Bassam, which is around 25 miles east of Abidjan.

The attackers were "heavily armed and wearing balaclavas" and they "fired at guests", a witness told AFP news agency, adding that the large hotel had been "full of expats in the current heatwave".

Witness Luc Gnago told Sky News the shooting had ended and that the beach was now "empty" apart from soldiers and "a few people looking after the bodies".

Gnago said he had seen six bodies on the beach - one of which he thought was "an assailant" - and one in the hotel, which he described as "a white man".

Residents told of hearing the gunfire and venturing from their houses, before realising what was happening and returning to hide in their homes.

Meanwhile, a dozen ambulances headed to the scene, joined by military vehicles with heavy machine guns and armed traditional hunters known as Dozo.

An AFP journalist reported seeing around a dozen people, including an injured Western woman, being evacuated in a military truck.

A witness told French broadcaster BFMTV he saw "the body of a European woman" and that "two or three" hooded shooters were involved.

It is not yet clear if the attackers are affiliated with any particular militant group.

Over the past few months, attacks have been launched on luxury hotels in the capitals of Ivory Coast's neighbours Mali and Burkina Faso, leaving dozens of people dead and West African nations re-assessing security in the face of the growing threat from jihadists.

Grand-Bassam is home to around 80,000 people and has UNESCO World Heritage status due to the architecture from its French colonial past.

(Sky News)