OUARZAZATE AND KASBAH AIT BEN HADDOU

Overview

Many people simply don’t have the time to spend more than a day on the Morocco Sahara Desert, so we created this one full day trip from Marrakech to Ouarzazate, so you can get just a taste of what the desert has to offer. It’s a round trip of 400 km, travelling through the Tizi-n-Tichka Pass to cross the Atlas mountain range at an altitude of 2269 meters above sea level. The landscape is beyond amazing, and you’ll be in awe when you visit the Berber villages. A camera is essential!

We’ll visit the set where Star Wars was filmed, at the Kasbah Ait Ben Haddou, which is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. The buildings at the Kasbah are regarded as the most beautiful of its kind in Morocco; they’re studded with fortified towers and decorated with geometrical motifs. Interestingly, the village is currently inhabited by just five families and, today, a restoration work program is underway to encourage re-population.

Then, on with our journey as we continue our tour to Ouarzazate, the beginning of the Sahara Desert. We’ll visit the former Glaoui residence in Taourirt Kasbah, located on the edge of town on the way to the Sahara Desert. This Kasbah is widely considered to be the most beautiful Kasbah in Morocco. The public does have access to part of this fortified village which consists of luxury apartments in the form of a maze, with simple clay houses and fortified towers beautifully decorated with geometric motifs. We’ll enjoy a cup of coffee or perhaps a cup of mint tea, then head on back to Marrakesh via the Atlas Mountains.

Your day trip from Marrakesh to Ouarzazate and Kasbah Ait Ben Haddou will be over when your guide delivers you back to your hotel, or the city centre, whichever you prefer. Please note that your day trip includes a 5-hour drive, each way, on winding roads.