Destination

Ouarzazate

Tours stopping at Ouarzazate — the Taourirt Kasbah, Atlas Studios and the pass road down from Marrakech.

15 tours in Ouarzazate

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Planning a trip to Ouarzazate

Ouarzazate is where the landscape changes. Coming over the Tizi n'Tichka pass from Marrakech the greenery stops, the rock turns red, and the town sits on the plain below as the practical gateway to the south — which is exactly how it has functioned for centuries, and why it is a natural lunch or overnight stop on almost every route between Marrakech and the desert.

The Taourirt Kasbah on the edge of town is the main sight: a Glaoui family stronghold whose warren of earthen rooms and passages you can walk through in under an hour. The other draw is film. Atlas Studios has stood in for most of the ancient world since the 1960s, and productions from Lawrence of Arabia onward have used the surrounding desert.

Ouarzazate is rarely the reason for a trip, and we would not pretend otherwise — it is the hinge that makes the southern routes work. On our longer itineraries it is a stop; on the shorter ones you may pass through it without staying.

Questions about Ouarzazate

Is the film studio worth visiting?

If you like film sets, yes — the standing sets are large and you walk among them. If your time is short, Aït Ben Haddou half an hour away is the more memorable stop, and it has been used as a location far more often than the studio backlots.

Can the Tizi n'Tichka pass be closed?

Occasionally, for a few hours after heavy snow in January or February. It is a well-maintained road and closures are short. If it happens on your travel day we take the Taroudant route instead and adjust the schedule.

Camel caravan crossing the Erg Chebbi dunes at sunset near Merzouga

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