The southern oases routes

Telouet and the Tizi n’Tichka

Aït Benhaddou and around

Ouarzazate

The Drâa

The Dadès and Todra

The Ziz and the Tafilalt

West to the Drâa

Figuig

The Moroccan pre-Sahara begins as soon as you cross the Atlas to the south. It is not sand for the most part – more a wasteland of rock and scrub, which the Berbers call hammada – but it is powerfully impressive. There is, too, an irresistible sense of wonder as you catch your first glimpse of the great southern river valleys: the Drâa, Dadès, Todra and Ziz. Lush belts of date-palm oases, scattered with the fabulous mud architecture of kasbahs and fortified ksour villages, these are the old caravan routes that reached back to Marrakesh and Fez and out across the Sahara to Timbuktu, Niger and old Sudan, carrying gold, slaves and salt well into the nineteenth century.

Most travellers’ first taste of the region is the Tizi n’Tichka, the dizzying pass up from Marrakesh, and the iconic kasbashs at Telouet and Aït Benhaddou – an introduction that is hard to beat. Benhaddou is less than an hour’s drive from Ouarzazate, a modern town created by the French to “pacify” the south and one of the area’s few urban centres of any significance, buoyed in recent years by its association with the film industry. From here, you can follow the old trading routes: south through the Drâa to Zagora and the fringes of the desert at M’Hamid; or east through the Dadès to the towering Todra Gorge and, ultimately, the dunes at Erg Chebbi near Merzouga. These are beautiful journeys, the roads rolling through crumbling mud-brick villages and past long ribbons of deep-green palmeries as they stretch out towards the Sahara.

The southern oases were long a mainstay of the pre-colonial economy. Their wealth, and the arrival of tribes from the desert, provided the impetus for two of the great royal dynasties: the Saadians (1554–1669) from the Drâa Valley, and the current ruling family, the Alaouites (1669–present) from the Tafilalt. By the nineteenth century, however, the advance of the Sahara and the uncertain upkeep of the channels that watered the oases had reduced life to bare subsistence, even in the most fertile strips. Under the French, with the creation of modern industry in the north and the exploitation of phosphates and minerals, they became less and less significant, while the old caravan routes were dealt a final death blow by the closure of the Algerian border in 1994.

Although the date harvests in October, centred on Erfoud, still give employment to the ksour communities, the rest of the year sees only the modest production of a handful of crops – henna, barley, citrus fruits and, uniquely, roses, developed by the French around El Kelâa M’Gouna for the production of rose-water and perfume. Severe drought in the 1990s had a devastating effect on crops, including dates, and forced much of the male population to seek work further north, but since 2007 the water levels have greatly improved and the palmeries are returning to their picture-book lushness once more.

zoom left

zoom right

CAMEL TRIP IN THE ERG CHEBBI

Highlights

1 Telouet The abandoned feudal kasbah of the “Lords of the Atlas” is hugely evocative.

2 Aït Benhaddou The cream of the south’s desert architecture, used as a striking location for numerous movies.

3 Palmeries Fed by ancient water courses, the great palmeries of Morocco’s southern oases form an astounding contrast with the desert.

4 Kasbah stays You should try to spend at least a night in one of these iconic buildings, hand-crafted with mud and straw and providing welcome respite from the desert heat.

5 Dadès Gorge Outlandish rock formations and ruined kasbahs at the head of a valley winding deep into the Atlas watershed.

6 Todra Gorge This dramatic cleft in the High Atlas is one of the country’s finest natural spectacles.

7 Erg Chebbi Morocco’s most impressive sand dunes, stretching out to the border with Algeria, are best explored on camel back.

Highlights are marked on the The southern oases routes map.

< Back to The southern oases routes

GETTING AROUND: THE SOUTHERN OASES ROUTES

The south is a vast region, stretching some 675km from Ouarzazate to Figuig, though the area can be broken down nicely into more manageable circuits. The simplest – Marrakesh to Zagora and back, or the return from Marrakesh to Tinghir – can be covered in around five days, though to do them any degree of justice you’ll need a lot longer. With ten days or more, the loop from Ouarzazate to Merzouga (via Tinghir), and thence southwest to Zagora and M’Hamid, becomes a possibility, stringing together the region’s main highlights via good roads and dependable transport connections.

BY BUS

All the main routes in this chapter are covered by regular buses; the road from Ouarzazate to Tinghir and on to Erfoud (for Merzouga) is particularly well served. Travelling by bus in the desert in summer can be physically exhausting, though: most trips tend to begin at dawn to avoid the worst of the heat and, for the rest of the day, it can be difficult to summon up the energy to do anything.

BY CAR

If you can afford to rent a car, even for just two or three days, you’ll be able to take in a lot more, with a lot less frustration, in a reasonably short period of time – there are numerous rental outlets in Ouarzazate, some of which allow you to return their vehicles to Marrakesh, Fez, Agadir or Casablanca.

Services Petrol stations can be found along all the main routes. Local mechanics are generally excellent, and most minor problems can be quickly (and often cheaply) dealt with.

Equipment It’s wise to carry water, in case of overheating, and, above all, be sure you’ve got a good spare tyre – punctures tend to be frequent on southern roads.

Driving on pistes Many of the pistes in the south are navigable in a rental car, but be aware that the insurance is invalid when you drive on them. In reality, 4WDs are a better bet for pistes, even more so in winter and early spring (they’re essential for the Dadès route across the Atlas, for which you should also be able to do basic mechanical repairs).

Scams The practice known as “fake breakdowns” is prevalent throughout the south but particularly refined along the road from Ouarzazate to Zagora. People standing next to stationary cars will flag you down, ostensibly for help getting to a garage; but when you arrive at the next town, they’ll insist on returning the favour by offering you a “special price” on items from their handicraft shop. As difficult as it may sound, don’t stop to “help”.

BY TRUCK

On many of the minor routes, local Berber lorries (camions) or pick-ups (camionettes) run a bus-type service, charging standard fares for their trips, which are usually timed to coincide with the network of souks or markets in villages en route. The trucks cover a number of adventurous desert pistes as well as the very rough road over the Atlas from the Dadès Gorge.

INFORMATION

When to visit Spring is by far the most enjoyable time to travel, particularly if you’re heading for Zagora, reckoned to be the hottest town in the country, or Merzouga – though the Drâa, in particular, is subject to flash floods at this time of year, and passes across the Atlas can be difficult or impossible. Autumn, with the date harvests, is also good. Temperatures can climb well above 50ºC in midsummer, while in winter the days remain hot but it can get very cold at night.

Health Some rivers in the south, including the Asif Ounila flowing past Aït Benhaddou, contain bilharzia, a parasite that can enter your skin, including the soles of your feet; when walking by streams in the oases, take care to avoid contact with water. Travellers are advised to drink only bottled mineral water in southern Morocco.

KSOUR AND KASBAHS

Arguably the defining image of the south, ksour (ksar in the singular) and kasbahs are found throughout the region, peeking out of palmeries and edging the roads that cut through the great river valleys, most notably the Dadès, the so-called Route of a Thousand Kasbahs, and the Drâa.

A ksar (or ighrem in Berber) is essentially a fortified tribal village, while a kasbah (or tighremt) is a fortified home made for the ruling family. Both ksour and kasbahs are imposing structures, built – in the absence of other available materials – out of the mud-clay pisé of the riverbanks. A unique and probably indigenous development of the Berber populations, they are often monumental in design and fabulously decorated, with bold geometric patterns incised into exterior walls and slanted towers. Seasonal rains wash off some of the mud, so the buildings require constant upkeep – once a kasbah has been left unmaintained, it declines very fast, with twenty years enough to produce a ruinous state if the walls are not renewed.

Agadirs, also variants of the ksar structure, used to serve as a combination of tribal fortress and communal granary or storehouse for the villages.

THE DRÂA KASBAHS

Few of the ksour and kasbahs that shadow the Drâa can be more than a hundred years old, though you frequently see the ruins and walls of earlier ksour abandoned just a short distance from their more modern counterparts. Most are populated by Berbers, but there are also Arab villages here, and even a few scattered communities of Jews, still living in their Mellahs. All of the southern valleys, too, have groups of Haratin, descendants of West African slaves brought into Morocco along the caravan routes. Inevitably, these populations have mixed to some extent – and the Jews here are almost certainly converted Berbers – though it is interesting to see just how distinct many of the ksour still appear, both in their architecture and customs. There is, for example, a great difference from one village in the Drâa to the next as regards women’s costumes, above all in the wearing and extent of veils.

THE DADÈS KASBAHS

Though several of the Skoura kasbahs date, at least in part, from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the majority of kasbahs in the Dadès oases are relatively modern. Most of the older fortifications were destroyed in a vicious tribal war in 1893, and many that survived were pulled down in the French pacification of the 1920s and 30s. The kasbah walls in the Dadès, higher and flatter than in the Drâa, often seem unscaleable, but in the course of a siege or war there were always other methods of conquest – a favourite means of attack in the 1890s, according to the writer Walter Harris, who journeyed here in disguise, was to divert the water channels of the oasis round a kasbah and simply wait for its foundations to dissolve.

Telouet and the Tizi n’Tichka

The direct route between Marrakesh and Ouarzazate, the Tizi n’Tichka (N9) is a spectacular piece of engineering, its pulse-racing series of switchbacks providing ever more jaw-dropping views until it eventually crests the central High Atlas at its eponymous pass. It was built to replace the old caravan route to the Drâa and the south, which was controlled during the nineteenth century and much of the twentieth by the legendary Glaoui family, the greatest and most ambitious of all the Berber tribal leaders – their kasbah-headquarters, a vast complex of buildings abandoned only in 1956, still stands at TELOUET, less than an hour from the main road.

Arrow-straight as it runs out from Marrakesh across the Haouz Plain, the Tizi n’Tichka soon contours forest slopes high above the Oued Ghdat valley, twisting past small villages and fields as it heads to Taddert, the last significant village on the north side of the pass – though most traffic now stops a kilometre beyond the centre, where all the roadside cafés and restaurants are located. The road thereafter climbs in an amazing array of hairpin bends to reach pastureland (tichka means “high pasture”) before a final pull up to the Tichka pass itself (2260m), marked by cafés and the obligatory souvenir stall or two; not far down on the south side of the pass is the turning to Telouet and the Ounila Valley. The main road south winds down through Igherm, 10km further on and home to a well-restored agadir (to find someone to unlock it, ask at the roadside hotel, Chez Mimi), gradually flattening out until it reaches the turn-off to Aït Benhaddou, just 19km before Ouarzazate.

Kasbah Telouet

Signed 500m down a track, north of Telouet village (the other side of the village if approaching from the Tizi n’Tichka) • Daily 9am–sunset • 20dh; optional guide 50dh

The bizarre Kasbah Telouet is one of the most extraordinary sights of the Atlas – fast crumbling into the dark red earth, but still offering, in parts, a peculiar glimpse of the style and melodrama of Moroccan political government and power still within living memory. There’s little of aesthetic value – many of the rooms have fallen into complete ruin – but nevertheless, even after over a half-century of decay, there’s still vast drama in this weird and remote site, and in the decorated salon walls, often roofless and open to the wind.

The main halls and reception rooms

The kasbah is an unbelievable labyrinth of locked doors and connecting passages – it is said that no single person ever fully knew their way around the entire complex – though these days you can only access the main halls and reception rooms. The latter, remarkably intact, given the crumbling exterior, at least give a sense of the quantity and style of the decoration, still in progress when the pasha died and the old regime came to a sudden halt. “The outward and visible signs of ultimate physical ambition”, as Gavin Maxwell put it in Lords of the Atlas, they have delicate iron window grilles and fine carved ceilings, though the overall result is once again the late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century combination of sensitive imitation of the past and out-and-out vulgarity.

The roof

There’s a tremendous scale of affectation, too, perfectly demonstrated by the use of green Salé tiles for the roof – usually reserved for mosques and royal palaces. From up here, you can look down upon some of the courts and chambers, the bright zellij and stucco enclosing great gaping holes in the stone and plaster. The really enduring impression, though, is the wonder of how and why it ever came to be built at all.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: TELOUET AND THE TIZI N’TICHKA

By bus The daily bus from Marrakesh (bound for Anemiter, 12km beyond Telouet) departs from Bab Rhemat at 3pm (4hr), returning from Telouet at 7am; the daily bus from Ouarzazate leaves at noon (3hr), returning from Telouet at around sunset.

By grand taxi Grands taxis run from Marrakesh to Anemiter via Telouet (3hr), and from Ouarzazate direct to Telouet (2hr).

By car It takes around 4–5hr to drive the Tizi n’Tichka from Marrakesh to Ouarzazate, with the pass itself roughly halfway along the route. Like all High Atlas passes, the road is seasonal and can be snowbound in winter and early spring, when barriers at either end will block your way. The Kasbah Telouet is an easy but slow-going 20km drive (about 40min) from the main road, along the paved but potholed 6802; alternatively, it’s 45km (around 1hr 15min) along the recently paved road from Tamdaght, just north of Aït Benhaddou, offering drivers a scenic short cut between two of the finest kasbahs in the south.

ACCOMMODATION

It’s unlikely you’ll need to stop on the way south to Ouarzazate, but there are a couple of places on the Tizi n’Tichka that are useful for drivers looking for a place to stay before hitting Marrakesh or heading to the airport – I Rocha, in particular, would make a very pleasant end to any Moroccan adventure.

THE TIZI N’TICHKA

author_pick I Rocha Tisselday, 145km from Marrakesh tel_icon 0667 737002, web_icon irocha.com. Charming guesthouse up in the hills overlooking a quiet stretch of the Tizi n’Tichka, with lovely views from its terrace and a sheltered little pool. The en-suite rooms are on the small side but are light-filled, thoughtfully decorated and come with a/c; good meals are served in the social salon – often accompanied by a roaring log fire – and there’s a funky adjoining bar. BB 550dh

TELOUET

Auberge Telouet 500m north of the village, opposite the turn-off to the Kasbah Telouet tel_icon 0524 890717 or 0662 13 4455, web_icon telouet.com. Accommodation in an ersatz kasbah, with nicely kept rooms and views over Telouet from the panoramic terrace; the good food makes the half-board rates pretty decent value. There are a few cheaper rooms in an older inn across the road, and the owner can also arrange evening meals in a trio of village houses. HB 400dh

Dar Aissa In the centre of the village tel_icon 0670 222247, web_icon daraissatelouet.onlc.eu. Sparsely decorated but good-value rooms in the home of Almodhik Aissa, with mix-and-match beds and a simple rug-strewn salon. Shower rooms with half-board are available for 400dh. 100dh

< Back to The southern oases routes

Aït Benhaddou and around

The first thing you hear from the guides on arrival at AÏT BENHADDOU, 190km from Marrakesh and just 34km from Ouarzazate, is a list of its film credits. Though this is a feature of much of the Moroccan south, the Benhaddou ksar has a definite edge over the competition. Lawrence of Arabia was filmed here, of course; Orson Welles used it as a location for Sodom and Gomorrah; and for Jesus of Nazareth the whole lower part of the village was rebuilt. In recent years, more controlled restoration has been carried out under UNESCO auspices, while film crews have been involved in some “re-modelling”.

With its souvenir shops and constant stream of tour groups, Aït Benhaddou is not really the place to catch a glimpse of fading ksar life, but it is one of the most spectacular sights of the Atlas, piled upon a low hillock above a shallow, reed-strewn river. Its buildings are among the most elaborately decorated and best preserved in the south; they are less fortified than is usually the case along the Drâa or the Dadès, but, towered and crenellated, and with high, sheer walls of dark red pisé, they must have been near impregnable in this remote, hillside site.

A WALK THROUGH THE OUNILA VALLEY

As hard as it is to imagine today, the tranquil Ounila Valley, set amid high, parched hillsides and edged in by remarkably coloured scree slopes, served as the main route over the Atlas until the French constructed the Tizi n’Tichka to the west. Despite finally being paved in 2011, the road (the P1506) sees relatively little traffic and makes for a fine two-day walk from Telouet following the Oued Ounila as it snakes south to Aït Benhaddou.

The scattered communities here make abundant use of the narrow but fertile valley, which slowly unveils a wealth of dark red and crumbling kasbahs and agadirs, cliff dwellings, terraced orchards and olive trees – and everywhere children calling to each other from the fields, the river or the roadside. The first stop, after 12km, is Anemiter (2hr 30min walk from Telouet), one of the best-preserved fortified villages in Morocco and well worth a visit, even if you go no further. Leaving the village, the main track clings to the valley side, alternately climbing and descending, but with a general downhill trend as you make your way south. After 3km, you cross a sturdy bridge, beyond which the road follows the left bank of the river to the hamlet of Assako (2hr 30min from Anemiter), where it climbs to the left round some spectacular gorges before dropping steeply; walkers should aim to get beyond this exposed high ground before camping. The trail passes the little village of Tourhat (around 3hr 30min from Assako) before bringing you to Tamdaght (another 3hr), a scattered collection of buildings with a classic kasbah. Just 6km from Tamdaght (1hr 15min), along a lush river valley, lies Aït Benhaddou.

If you only wanted to walk part of the way, you could take a grand taxi from Telouet to Anemiter (the daily bus that runs between the two doesn’t leave Telouet until 5pm). You’ll need to take your own provisions, but mules can be hired in both Telouet and Anemiter.

ACCOMMODATION

Gîte d’étape de Tighza Tighza, 10km from Anemiter towards Telouet tel_icon 0524 885414, 0666 163488, web_icon telouet-anmiter.gitemaroc.net. A fine gîte, overlooking terraced fields in the village of Tighza and run by the Bouchahoud brothers, both mountain guides – they can arrange camping trips to turquoise Lake Tamda or walks into the mountains and on to Telouet, Tamdaght or Aït Benhaddou. The cheapest rooms are in the older section of the house. BB dorm 70dh, double 120dh

Kasbah Tigmi N’Oufella Anguelz, 12.5km from Telouet towards Aït Benhaddou tel_icon 0661 235953. Just two en-suite rooms in a restored pisé home – one of which takes over the entire top floor. Both are beautifully decorated, with carved trunks, black-and-white photos and semi-exposed Tatouine-style ceilings. Laoucine is a gracious host, who can cook a mean tajine. BB 450dh

The ksar

Entry to the ksar is free, although the gateways are “controlled” by people who may try to convince you otherwise – only pay the 10dh or so demanded if you want to see inside any of the kasbahs

As ever, it’s impossible to determine exactly how old the ksar of Aït Benhaddou is, though there seem to have been buildings here since at least the eleventh century. The importance of the site, which commands the area for miles around, was its position on the trans-Saharan trade route from Marrakesh to Ouarzazate and the south. In the twentieth century, the significance of this route disappeared with the creation of the Tizi n’Tichka, which has led to severe depopulation – there are now only half a dozen families inhabiting the kasbahs, earning a sparse living from the valley’s agriculture and rather more from the tourists who pass through.

Follow the network of lanes uphill and you’ll eventually arrive at the ruins of a vast and imposing agadir, or fortified granary, from where there are great views over the surrounding desert.

Tamdaght

Spread across a platform above a bend in the river, its fringes hemmed in by canyon walls, TAMDAGHT, 6km further up the valley from Aït Benhaddou, has a more authentic Berber feel than its neighbour. The village, which formerly flourished with the caravan route over the Tizi n’Tichka, is dominated by the remnants of a Glaoui kasbah. Few of the day-trippers that pass through Aït Benhaddou make it this far, but the landscape en route is worth the journey in itself, road and river leading through some spectacular scenery, featured by Ridley Scott in Gladiator and Oliver Stone in Alexander. Following the riverbank on foot, you’ve the added bonus of crossing the lush terraced gardens below the kasbah: the walk takes 1hr 15min each way from Aït Benhaddou (from where the path can be reached below Defat Kasbah).

Beyond Tamdaght, the road leads 40km northwest to Telouet and the Tizi n’Tichka pass – a beautiful route, particularly on foot, the increasingly magnificent landscape punctuated at regular intervals by villages.

THE GLAOUI

The extent and speed of Madani (1866–1918) and T’hami el Glaoui’s (1879–1956) rise to power is remarkable. In the mid-nineteenth century, their family were simply local clan leaders, controlling an important Atlas pass between Marrakesh and the south but lacking influence beyond it. Their entrance into national politics began dramatically in 1893. In that year’s terrible winter, Sultan Moulay Hassan, on returning from a disastrous harka (subjugation or burning raid) of the Tafilalt, found himself at the mercy of the brothers. With shrewd political judgement, they rode out to meet the sultan, feting him with every detail of protocol and, miraculously, producing enough food to feed the entire three-thousand-strong force for the duration of their stay.

The extravagance was well rewarded. By the time Moulay Hassan began his return to Marrakesh, he had given caid-ship of all the lands between the High Atlas and the Sahara to the Glaoui and, most important of all, was forced to abandon vast amounts of the royal armoury (including the first cannon to be seen in the Atlas) in Telouet. By 1901, the brothers had eliminated all opposition in the region, and when the French arrived in Morocco in 1912, they were able to dictate the form of government for virtually all the south, putting down the attempted nationalist rebellion of El Hiba, pledging loyalty throughout World War I and having themselves appointed pashas of Marrakesh, with their family becoming caids in all the main Atlas and desert cities. The French were content to concur, arming them, as Gavin Maxwell wrote, “to rule as despots, [and] perpetuating the corruption and oppression that the Europeans had nominally come to purge”.

The Glaoui’s controversial alliance with the Protectorate continued over the next few decades, and in 1953 T’hami again played an influential part in the dethroning of a sultan, conspiring with the French to overthrow Mohammed V. It was his last act of betrayal. Within a few months of Mohammed V’s return to Morocco in 1955, T’hami was dead, his properties seized by the state and ultimately abandoned to the ravages of time.

Kasbah Tamdaght

Village centre • Knock at the main door (facing the road) • 10dh

Quietly crumbling into the valley floor, the relatively little-visited Kasbah Tamdaght – its towers crowned by gigantic storks’ nests – makes an interesting counterpoint to its more illustrious neighbour down the road. One or two wings are on the verge of collapse, but you can visit the only section of the building still inhabited – it was used as a set in the film Gladiator and still retains some of its Hollywood decor.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: AÏT BENHADDOU AND AROUND

By public transport You can catch a bus or grand taxi from Ouarzazate to the turn-off to Benhaddou (20min), where you can pick up another taxi for the remaining leg to the village (10dh/place, or 150dh for the return journey plus waiting time). A private taxi is also negotiable from Ouarzazate. Leaving town at the end of the day can be tricky: local traffic tends to dry up by 4pm, allowing taxis to charge what they think they can get away with.

By car The road to Aït Benhaddou is not in great condition, requiring careful driving if you’re arriving by rental car.

Guides Enthusiastic (but entirely unnecessary) guides hang around the parking area in the “new village”, on the west bank of the river, hoping to escort visitors across the bridge to the ksar.

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

Given how difficult it can sometimes be to find transport out of Aït Benhaddou, you may well end up deciding to spend the night here; if you do, get up at dawn to see the ksar at its best. There’s no shortage of options (though note that the best places are actually outside of Aït Benhaddou itself). Cafés and restaurants are somewhat thinner on the ground, with most people opting to eat at their hotel or guesthouse. The places below are listed in the order you encounter them from the N10.

Riad Maktoub On the main road in the centre of Aït Benhaddou tel_icon 0524 888694 or 0667 356943, web_icon riadmaktoub.com. Attractive pisé-style building with small but cool rooms and a handful of more elaborate suites, enclosing a courtyard pool. International or Moroccan meals are served in the salon (100–120dh set menu), around the pool or on either of the elegant terraces overlooking the kasbah. Hammam (300dh for 30min) and massages (300dh for 1hr) are available. BB 500dh

La Rose du Sable On the main road in the centre of Aït Benhaddou tel_icon 0524 890022 or 0667 760327, web_icon larosedusable.com. Arguably the best value in town, this family-run hotel has eighteen comfy rooms (some sleeping up to six), a decent restaurant (set menu 100dh), lovely terrace and a big pool, one end of which is perfect for toddlers. The cheapest rooms are in the basement, though bargain-hunters may prefer stargazing on the roof. Terrace 100dh, double HB 500dh

Riad Ksar Ighnda 2.5km north of Aït Benhaddou tel_icon 0524 887644 or 0641 114555, web_icon ksar.ighnda.net. Classy hotel, oozing luxury chic and beautifully lit at night. Rooms offer the best of both worlds, where wonderful mattresses and DVD players meet smoothly traditional tadelakt bathrooms. Lounge about the immaculate gardens, take a dip in the sleek pool or unwind with an argan-oil treatment in the spa. The classy restaurant welcomes visitors with a reservation and is top-notch, too. HB 1550dh

author_pick Riad Caravane 3km north of Aït Benhaddou tel_icon 0524 890916 or 0651 469087, web_icon riad-caravane.com. Attractive, newly built riad featuring tadelakt walls and spacious, minimalist rooms. The rooftop terrace provides a beautiful view over the oasis and the food is a superb blend of Moroccan, French and Swiss (set menu 210dh). There’s a variety of room standards; all come with private bathrooms and a/c – great value for money BB 700dh

author_pick Auberge Ayouze Asfalou, 3km north of Aït Benhaddou tel_icon 0524 883757 or 0671 191706, web_icon auberge-ayouze.com. This little mud-brick auberge is full of atmosphere and has fostered quite a loyal following thanks to its friendly French-Moroccan hosts and their likeable staff – with just five (attractive) rooms, you’ll often need to book in advance. Good food, good music and a welcoming pool and bar complete the picture. HB 500dh

Kasbah Ellouze On the southern edge of Tamdaght tel_icon 0524 890459, web_icon kasbahellouze.com. Stylish place run by a couple from Nîmes – modern, but following traditional lines, with a range of cavernous rooms that combine authentic Moroccan design with mod cons such as a/c and heaters in winter. There’s a small heated swimming pool and plenty of roof areas for relaxing; beautifully cooked meals are served on a breezy rear terrace overlooking the village orchard (ellouze means “almond” in Arabic). Closed Ramadan and early Jan. HB 950dh

< Back to The southern oases routes

Ouarzazate

At some stage, you’re likely to spend a night in OUARZAZATE, the main access point and crossroads of the south, and it can be a useful if functional base from which to visit the ksour and kasbahs of Aït Benhaddou or Skoura. Although lacking the architectural charm of other local settlements, the town nevertheless has a buzzy, almost cosmopolitan feel, contrasting sharply with the sleepier places elsewhere in the region.

Like most of the new Saharan towns, Ouarzazate was created as a Foreign Legion garrison and administrative centre by the French in the late 1920s. During the 1980s, it became something of a boom town, as the tourist industry embarked on a wildly optimistic building programme of luxury hotels, based on Ouarzazate’s marketability as a staging point for the “Saharan Adventure”, and the town was given an additional boost from the attentions of film-makers.

Ouarzazate holds a mystic attraction for Moroccans, too – similar to the resonance of Timbuktu for Europeans – and recent years have seen renewed expansion. Vast residential complexes are springing up in response to the growing demand from young people unwilling to live with their parents, as well as an influx from rural areas. An ill-fated golf course development to the north of the city was, unsurprisingly, abandoned, but there are plans to build yet more five-star hotels and a slew of casinos. Whether the region will attract enough visitors in the future to sustain all this development remains to be seen.

zoom left

zoom right

LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION! OUARZAZATE ON THE SILVER SCREEN

Ever since David Lean shot Lawrence of Arabia at nearby Aït Benhaddou in 1962, film directors have been drawn to Ouarzazate, and the area has, over the years, stood in for Jerusalem, Persia, Somalia, Ancient Egypt and even Tibet. Bernardo Bertolucci came here in 1990 to film Paul Bowles’s novel, The Sheltering Sky, while Martin Scorsese based much of The Last Temptation of Christ (1998) and Kundun (1996) in the surrounding hammada – as a tottering Tibetan temple at the Atlas Corporation Studios just outside of town can testify to. Oliver Stone shot Alexander here in 2004, while Ridley Scott can’t seem to get enough of the place, choosing the region for Gladiator (1999), Black Hawk Down (2001), Kingdom of Heaven (2005) and Prometheus (2012). Proving that Ourzazate has still got what it takes, Clint Eastwood used it in American Sniper (2015), and it’s the backdrop to several scenes in the TV series Game of Thrones (2011–).

Kasbah Taourirt

Off Av Mohammed V, at the eastern (Tinghir) end of town • Daily 8am–6pm • 20dh • A 20min walk from the centre of town

Although built by the Glaoui, the Kasbah Taourirt was never an actual residence of its chiefs, though its location, at this strategic junction of the southern trading routes, meant that it was always controlled by a close relative. In the 1930s, when the Glaoui were the undisputed masters of the south, it was perhaps the largest of all Moroccan kasbahs – an enormous family domain housing numerous sons and cousins of the dynasty, along with several hundred of their servants and labourers, builders and craftsmen, including Jewish tailors, jewellers and moneylenders.

After being taken over by the government following independence, the kasbah fell into drastic decline. Work carried out in the 1990s was only partially successful, with parts of the structure washed away by heavy rains. What you can see – the main reception courtyard and a handful of principal rooms – are lavishly decorated but not especially significant or representative of the old order of things. A small section of the original, a kind of village within the kasbah, remains occupied today, though, and makes for interesting wandering.

Musée du Cinema

Av Mohammed V, opposite Kasbah Taourirt at the eastern end of town • Daily 8.30am–12.30pm & 2.30–6.30pm, Fri from 3pm • 30dh • A 20min walk from the centre of town

Housed in a former studio, the Musée du Cinema is a neat introduction to Ouarzazate’s movie-making history and worth a nose around if you’re unable to get out to the bigger studios on the edge of town: you can wander among dusty props and sets used in international films such as Asterix and Obelix: Mission Cleopatra, as well as an interesting collection of cinematic paraphernalia.

Atlas Corporation Studios

Just off Av Mohammed V, on the western outskirts of town • tel_icon 0524 882223 or 0524 882213, web_icon studiosatlas.com • Guided visits in English every 20min 8.30am–5pm • 50dh • Catch the regular yellow bus from Av Mohammed V, or take a petit taxi from the centre of town (10dh)

Established in 1983 for the production of The Jewel in the Nile, the Atlas Corporation Studios put Ouarzazate on the movie map. Blockbusters such as Gladiator were shot here, while Timothy Dalton’s James Bond bounded about a Moroccan “Afghanistan” in The Living Daylights at Atlas. It’s still a popular studio with the TV networks, and film crews are often on site, in an endless cycle of constructing sets and taking them down again.

Several of the bigger pieces have been kept for posterity, and a few minutes’ wandering will take you from a Buddhist temple (Martin Scorsese’s Kundun) to the pyramids (ABC’s Cleopatra), via a biblical Middle Eastern street scene or two. Many are on the brink of collapse, though, and look like a strong gust could finish them off at any moment – which is strangely part of their appeal.

CLA Studios

Just off Av Mohammed V, on the western outskirts of town • Daily 9am–5pm • 40dh • tel_icon 0522 363018, web_icon cla-studios.com • Catch the regular yellow bus from Av Mohammed V, or take a petit taxi from the centre of town (10dh)

The gated CLA Studios, just along the road from the Atlas Corporation Studios, is slicker than its predecessor, but not necessarily more enjoyable. A small museum displays various props from various films, including Body of Lies and Prince of Persia, and there are a couple of large sets some 2km from the studios and visited by car – the settlement you can see in the distance served as Ridley Scott’s “Jerusalem” in Kingdom of Heaven.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: OUARZAZATE

By plane Aéroport Taourirt ( tel_icon 0524 899150) is 2km north of Ouarzazate, and served by flights from Casablanca (4 weekly; 1hr 10min), Zagora (1 weekly; 40min) and Madrid (2 weekly; 2hr 30min); petits taxis make the short run into town (30dh). RAM has an office at 1 Av Mohammed V ( 0524 885102, fax_icon F024 886893).

By bus Private long-distance buses operate from the gare routière at Mahta, 1km from the centre; it’s a 15min walk into town, or take a petit taxi (5dh). If possible, book your ticket at least one day in advance. The CTM office is on Av Mohammed V ( tel_icon 0524 882427). It’s worth taking a taxi to the Supratours office ( 0524 890796 or 0661 082656), which is out on the western edge of town, near the gare routière.

Destinations Agadir (2 CTM & 14 others daily; 7hr 30min); Agdz (3 CTM, 2 Supratours, 3 others daily; 1hr); Boulmane du Dadès (1 CTM, 3 Supratours & 12 others daily; 1hr 45min–2hr 15min); Beni Mellal (4 daily; 8hr); Casablanca (4 CTM, others hourly; 8hr 15min); El Kelâat M’Gouna (1 CTM, 3 Supratours & 14 others daily; 1hr 35min); Er Rachidia (1 CTM, 1 Supratours & 10 others daily; 5hr–5hr 30min); Erfoud (1 Supratours & 2 others daily; 6hr 30min); Fez (transfer in Er Rachidia with Supratours, 5 others daily; 12hr); Foum Zguid (2 daily; 5hr 30min); M’Hamid (1 CTM, 5 others daily; 5hr); Marrakesh (7 CTM, 4 Supratours & others hourly; 4hr–5hr 30min); Meknes (5 daily; 11–12hr, but better to connect in Azrou or Fez); Merzouga (1 Supratours daily; 8hr); Rabat (several daily; 10hr); Rissani (1 Supratours daily; 7hr); Skoura (1 CTM & 2 others daily; 45min); Taliouine (1 CTM & 5 others daily; 3hr); Taroudant (1 CTM & 8 others daily; 5hr); Tata (3 daily; 5hr); Tazenakht (1 CTM & 2 others daily; 1hr 30min); Tinejdad (1 Supratours & 6 others daily; 4hr); Tinghir (1 CTM, 3 Supratours & others hourly; 3hr 30min); Tiznit (1 daily; 9hr 30min); Zagora (3 CTM, 2 Supratours & 7 others daily; 2hr 30min–4hr).

By grand taxi Most grands taxis arrive/collect outside the gare routière in Maha. There are regular runs to Agdz (1hr 30min), Boulmane du Dadès (1hr 30min; for connections to Tinghir 2hr 15min), El Kelâat M’Gouna (1hr 30min), Marrakesh (4hr) and Zagora (2hr 30min). They also go westward toward Tazenakht (2hr), Taliouine (4hr) and Taroudant (5hr). Departures are negotiable for Casablanca (7hr 30min; but better to connect in Marrakesh), Skoura (45min) and Aït Benhaddou (1 hr, but an expensive private trip).

GETTING AROUND AND INFORMATION

By car Dozens of car rental agencies operate in Ouarzazate, most from offices on Av Mohammed V or Pl du 3 Mars. Best of the local firms is Ilana, down the road behind Restaurant Accord Majeur ( tel_icon 0524 884142, web_icon ilana-car.com), which has helpful staff and new cars. International companies are more expensive: Budget, 4 Av Mohammed V, near the RAM office ( 0524 884202); Europcar, Pl du 3 Mars ( 0524 882035); Hertz, 33 Av Mohammed V, diagonally opposite the RAM office ( tel_icon 0524 882084); National, Pl du 3 Mars ( 0524 888000). Garage Isuzu on Av Al Maghreb al Arabi is recommended for any necessary repairs.

Tourist office The region’s principal tourist office, on Av Mohammed V, just across from the post office (Mon–Fri 8.30am–4.30pm; tel_icon 0524 882485, email_icon atouarzazate@yahoo.fr), has a few brochures, but you’re better off asking advice from your (or any other) hotel.

TOURS

Désert et Montagne Maroc Kasbah Douar Talmasla, signed 3km off Route de Zagora tel_icon 0524 854949 or 0524 854946, web_icon desert-montagne.ma. Run by French-qualified mountain guides Jean-Pierre and Zineb Datcharry, and the best option for arranging tailor-made adventure trips into the High Atlas, including trekking and mountaineering, as well as multi-day trips into the Erg Chebbi.

Kart Aventure Av Moulay Rachid tel_icon 0524 886374 or 0667 344623, web_icon kart-aventure.com. Runs buggy and 4WD trips and circuits to the desert, gorges and mountains, from a few hours to a week-long adventure (from 1300dh for a half-day excursion).

Ksour Voyages Pl du 3 Mars tel_icon 0524 882840 or 0524 882997, web_icon ksour-voyages.com. Bespoke tours of repute, which range from overnighting in the desert near Zagora or Merzouga (from 1750dh) to two-week treks in the Jebel Saghro.

Travel Exploration Lot 24, Al Hassania tel_icon 0618 882681, web_icon travel-exploration.com. Winner of the 2014 World Travel awards, Travel Exploration specialize in private tours, offering mid-range to luxury trips into the desert, 4WD and camel excursions, as well as tours all over Morocco to see the imperial cities and more. Pricing can be given via email.

Zbar Travel Pl Mouahidine tel_icon 0668 517280, web_icon zbartravel.com. Recommended agency offering tours to the dunes near M’Hamid, where they have another office. A two-day fully inclusive 4WD trip to the desert with camel rides and sandboarding costs 875dh/person.

ACCOMMODATION

Most of the cheaper and unclassified places in Ouarzazate are grouped in the centre of town; the more upmarket chain hotels are mainly set back on the plateau to the north. A more picturesque alternative would be to stay out at Aït Benhaddou.

Auberge des Jeunes Inzbiaten, Tarmigt, 3km south of the city centre (the #1 bus stops on the main road, 50m north of the hostel) tel_icon 0526 511564 or 0661 746878. Friendly, clean and efficient HI hostel but not the most convenient of locations, some way out of town. The rooms (doubles and three- to six-bed dorms) have personality, and the four-bed bunks in particular are fairly spacious, though some “doubles” are little more than a mattress on the floor. There’s a small Berber tent on the terrace, where you can lay out your laundry. BB dorm 70dh, double 150dh

Bab Sahara Pl Mouahidine tel_icon 0524 884722, web_icon hotelbabsahara.com. Central place on a quiet square, well located for the market and the restaurants along Av Mohammed V. Rooms are available with showers and some come with a/c. Those that face the square have small balconies. Breakfast and other meals are available in the sunny café (set menu 80dh). BB 220dh

author_pick Dar Bergui Sidi H’ssain Ben Nacer tel_icon 0524 887727 or 0668 675164, web_icon darbergui.com. Hard to find but heavenly when you do. Run by a delightful French couple, Dar Bergui (formerly Villa Kerdaboo) has five airy pisé rooms set around a tremendous pool, and a lovely terrace with stunning Atlas views. There are three double and two family rooms, all en suite with a/c. Non-guests can enjoy the fine French Berber fusion cuisine on offer too (150dh set menu; reservations required). HB 960dh

author_pick Dar Kamar Kasbah Taourirt tel_icon 0524 888733, web_icon darkamar.com. Wonderfully romantic hotel hidden in the heart of the kasbah, with stylishly rustic African adobe rooms, wall-to-wall candles, a deluxe hammam (250dh/30min; book in advance), massage room (300dh/1hr) and a dreamy terrace (which provides beautiful views over the city and Lake Al Mansore Dahabi). The alcohol-licensed restaurant serves set menus for 250dh. Manager Mohammed speaks excellent English and French. Quite pricey, but worth the splurge. HB 1700dh

Dar Rita 39 Rue de la Mosquée, Tassoumate tel_icon 0613 797347 or 0634 482372. A great find, tucked down the back alleys of one of Ouarzazate’s oldest neighbourhoods and run with pride by its charming Portuguese owner, Rita, and her indefatigable brother. Eight brightly painted rooms are spread across two floors and decorated with lanterns, clay pots and carved wooden doors that the owners have picked up during their time in Morocco. Dinner is a social affair (set menu 150dh), and a good forum for honest local sightseeing advice. BB 440dh

Le Petit Riad Av Moulay Abdallah, Hay Al Wahda tel_icon 0524 885950, web_icon lepetitriad.com. A charming and tranquil maison d’hôte run on the eastern outskirts of town, looking out towards the snowcapped Atlas mountains. Six chic rooms (recently redecorated), a small pool and fabulous meals cooked by friendly owner Fatima Agoujil, the first officially trained female guide in the region – you can help her out in the kitchen and learn some authentic recipes (with no charge if staying more than one night) and also gain valuable local information. A multi-course menu is reasonably priced at 150dh. All rooms come with a/c. BB 758dh

Royal 24 Av Mohammed V tel_icon 0524 882258. Clean, well maintained and decent value, fronted by its own pizzeria and with a variety of rooms, priced accordingly; it’s central but can be noisy. 90dh

Le Temple des Arts 173–174 Hay Al Wahda tel_icon 0524 888831 or 0524 888832, web_icon templedesarts-ouarzazate.com. Lavish five-star just north of the city centre, bedecked in marble, scattered with sculptures and dedicated to the city’s movie industry, with most of the grand public areas looking like they’re straight off a movie set themselves. BB 2285dh

CAMPING

Camping-Bivouac La Palmeraie Route de Zagora, 3km south of town tel_icon 0676 666064, web_icon camping-ouarzazate.com. Pitch your tent amid fruit trees in a palmery just outside of town. All the usual facilities (hot showers 10dh), plus a few simple en-suite rooms, Berber tent mud huts and a wonderfully camp pink dining room where produce from the garden is served and music is occasionally laid on. Free wi-fi and laundry services (35dh) are available. Camping 34dh, double 250dh

EATING AND DRINKING

Ouarzazate is one of the few places in the south where you can eat well outside your hotel, with several very good restaurants indeed. The best bets for cheap eats are the café-grills grouped around the central market at Pl Mouahidine, Av Al Mouahidine and along nearby Rue du Marché, where you’ll find the usual brochettes, tajines and kefta, but also traditional dishes like tanjia – and for the more adventurous, braised cow hooves with chickpeas. For breakfast, the sunnier north side of Av Mohammed V is the area to head for, with a row of terrace cafés serving French baguettes, pastries and coffee.

3 Thés Av Moulay Rachid tel_icon 0524 886363, web_icon ouarzazate.com/restaurant-3thes. Generous portions of classic Moroccan dishes – follow one of eight salads (from 20dh) with a tasty tajine (a week’s worth to choose from, from 35dh) – as well as lighter snacks available all day. Popular with locals and expats alike. Daily 8am–10pm.

Accord Majeur Av Moulay Rachid tel_icon 0524 882473. Mingle with the film stars and lap up tarte tatin (50dh), duck confit (155dh) and “mountain” rabbit (85dh) in this chic French-run restaurant with a pretty roadside terrace. A treat if you’re bored of tajines and have a burgeoning wallet. Mon–Sat noon–3pm & 6.30–11pm.

author_pick Basma Food Hay El Hassani. Perhaps the best deal in town, but just far enough back from Av Mohammed V to remain off the radar of most visitors. The brochette and chips is great value at 30dh, but try and drop by here on a Tuesday or a Saturday (fresh-fish days in Ouarzazate), when you can tuck into fish tajine or a fried-fish meal for just 25dh. Mon–Sat 11am–10pm.

Des Habouss Pl Mouahidine tel_icon 0524 882699. Ouarzazate’s top spot for a coffee stop, serving several kinds of delicious Moroccan bread, in addition to crusty baguettes, croissants and pains au chocolat; they also do the full gamut of sticky local patisserie (sold by weight). The lengthy menu of the adjoining grill features pasta, pizza and various steaks (from 69dh). Daily 7am–10pm.

author_pick La Kasbah des Sables 195 Hay Aït Kasif tel_icon 0524 885428 or 0673 520720, web_icon lakasbahdessables.com. Arguably the finest dining in Ouarzazate, in a rambling refurbished kasbah on the eastern fringes of the city. The half-dozen salons leading off the sprawling central courtyard are full of paintings, sculptures and antiques, making a rather grand setting for dishes that include confit of rabbit with peach nectar and fillet of sea bass with fig en papillote (mains from 190dh). No wonder film crews celebrate here after wrapping up. Daily 11am–2pm & 7–11pm.

Pizzeria Veneziano Av Moulay Rachid tel_icon 0524 887676. Unexpectedly smart little pizza joint serving a wide range of European dishes and tajines, in addition to filling, tasty pizzas (from 39dh). They also offer plenty of veggie options. Takeaway available. Daily 10.30am–10pm.

Relais de St Exupéry 13 Av Moulay Abdallah, just off the main Tinghir road tel_icon 0524 887779 or 0662 054565, web_icon relais-ouarzazate.com. Excellent Moroccan and French cuisine cooked by Jean-Pierre, the indomitable Bordelais chef-proprietor. Memorabilia from the Aéropostale days of Little Prince author Antoine de Saint-Exupéry adorns the walls, but the food is the real attraction: try the wonderful pigeon pastilla (part of a mouthwatering 268dh six-course feast), camel with “Mali” sauce or saffron ice cream. Menus start at 125dh. Daily 11.30am–2pm & 6.30am–10pm.

SHOPPING

The central market (daily) on Rue du Marché is great for spices and souvenir trinkets, while the covered market (daily) on Av Ibn Sinaa sells fruit and veg. Souk days are Saturday, in Tabounte, and Sunday, out by the Zone Industrielle.

Association Horizon Av Ammasr tel_icon 0524 886938, web_icon association-horizon.org. Self-help scheme whose less able-bodied workers craft attractive pottery, weaving and metalwork. You can also visit workshops to watch them in action. Mon–Thurs 8.30am–12.30pm & 2.30–6pm, Fri 8.30–11.30am & 3–6pm.

Centre Artisanal Opposite the Kasbah Taourirt. Undergoing expansion at the time of writing to include fifteen shops selling stone carvings, pottery and a couple of local specialities worth looking out for: geometrically patterned, silky woollen carpets and silver necklaces and earrings incorporating tazras (chunky orange copal beads). Daily 9am–6pm.

Supermarché du Dades 73 Av Mohammed V. Small supermarket selling beer and wine in addition to the usual groceries. Daily 8am–10pm.

GETTING AROUND: THE DRÂA

By car The road from Ouarzazate to Zagora is well maintained and, for the most part, broad enough for two vehicles, though it narrows beyond Tamegroute, south of Zagora. Be wary of “fake breakdowns”, a scam prevalent throughout the south but refined along this road.

By public transport If you’re taking the bus south from Ouarzazate, get yourself a seat on the left-hand side for the most spectacular views. You could hire a grand taxi for the day from Ouarzazate, stopping to explore some of the kasbahs en route; be very clear to the driver about your plans and agree on a fee before setting off.

Agdz and the road to Zagora

You descend into the Drâa Valley at AGDZ (pronounced “Ag-dèz”), 70km from Ouarzazate and a minor administrative centre for the region. Agdz means “Place of Rest”, and it’s certainly worth taking a break here: there are several well-preserved kasbahs in the original town (reached by turning north from the main square), including the seventeenth-century former home of Agdz’s caïd, or chieftain. Just to the north of the village begins a beautiful palmery, and if the river here is low enough (take care to avoid the bilharzia-infested water), you can get across to view a few kasbahs on the far side, in the shadow of Jebel Kissane.

Tamnougalt

A first, magnificent sign of the architecture to come, the ksar at TAMNOUGALT, perched on a hill 6km south of Agdz, is one of the oldest in Morocco and perhaps the most dramatic and extravagant of any in the locality. The village was once the capital of the region, and its assembly of families (the jemaa) administered what was virtually an independent republic. Today, it’s a wild cluster of buildings, each fabulously decorated with pockmarked walls and tapering towers, and populated by Mezguita Berbers. The museum and kasbah of the local caïd next door to Chez Jacob (entry 20dh, guides 50dh for 1hr 30min) is worth a look.

BIRDING AT THE EL MANSOUR EDDAHBI BARRAGE

Some 15km of bleak, stony hammada from Ouarzazate, a side road leads 11km down to the El Mansour Eddahbi Barrage, an essential stop on any birdwatcher’s itinerary. Throughout the year (especially March–May & late July to Nov), the area attracts a variety of migrants, waterfowl and waders. There have also been sightings of various desert-dwelling species such as blackbellied sandgrouse, thick-billed lark and raptors including lanner falcon. Over the last few decades, freak rains have occasionally flooded the reservoir, and the Drâa has, for the first time in recent memory, run its course to the sea beyond Tan Tan.

Timiderte

Some 15km south of Tamnougalt, on the opposite side of the river, is the Glaoui kasbah of TIMIDERTE, now operating as a guesthouse but also giving travellers the chance to poke around a refurbished mud-brick palace for the price of a lunchtime tajine.

You’ll have to ford the river again, this time on foot – ideally with some local assistance as the best crossing place isn’t all that obvious – to reach another superb kasbah, the Aït Hammou-Sa’d.

LIFE IN THE PALMERIES

The vast palmeries that carpet the Drâa, Dadès and Ziz valleys are the historical lifeblood of the Moroccan south – indeed, oases down here are traditionally measured by the number of their palms, rather than in terms of area or population – and they still play a vital role for their communities. Families continue to toil over individual plots that have been handed down through the generations, growing apricots, pomegranates, figs and almonds among the palms, and tomatoes, carrots, barley and mint in the shaded earth below.

Irrigation methods have barely changed in centuries, either. The fields are watered by a combination of communal wells and khettara, underground channels that can run for large distances across the hammada. Water is funnelled off to each plot in turn, with every family receiving the same amount of time to replenish its crop.

The greatest threat to this traditional way of life is Bayoud disease, a fungus that attacks the roots of palms, killing them off within a year and leaving a gap in the protective wedge of trees through which the wind (and destructive sand) blows through. First detected in the Drâa in the second half of the nineteenth century, Bayoud disease is reckoned to have infected two-thirds of Moroccan palmeries, wiping out nearly twelve million trees over the last century or so. Recent years, however, have seen the successful introduction of disease-resistant hybrids, which, together with increased rainfall, has led to much-improved health in the majority of the region’s palmeries – in addition to the palmery at Agdz, there are fine examples at Skoura, Tinghir and in the Ziz Valley.

Tinzouline

Beyond Timiderte, and after the junction with the R108 to Rissani and Merzouga, a striking group of ksour, dominated by a beautiful and imposing caïd’s kasbah, stands back from the road at TINZOULINE. The village hosts a large Monday souk, and with some guidance you can follow a piste 7km west of the village to see a group of three-thousand-year-old rock carvings at Foum Chenna.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: AGDZ AND THE ROAD TO ZAGORA

By bus Buses call in at the Grande Place in Agdz, and pull up next to the Banque Populaire; the CTM office ( tel_icon 0524 843893, 0653 640380) is on the northeast corner of the square, directly opposite the mosque. The Supratours office ( 0661 676226) is around 500m from the Grand Place on the road towards Ouarzazate.

Destinations Agadir (2 CTM; 6hr 30min); Casablanca (1 daily, 9hr); M’Hamid (1 CTM & 1 other daily; 3hr); Marrakesh (3 CTM, 2 Supratours & 2 others daily; 6hr); Ouarzazate (4 CTM, 2 Supratours & 3 others daily; 1hr); Rabat (1 daily; 10hr 30min); Tamegroute (1 CTM; 2hr); Taroudant (2 CTM; 5hr); Zagora (3 CTM, 2 Supratours & 1 other daily; 1hr 55min–3hr).

By grand taxi Grands taxis are now also located in the centre of the Grand Place and will frequently run to Tamnougalt (15min), Timiderte (20min), Tinzouline (45min), Ouarzazate (1hr30min), Zagora (1hr 30min) and M’Hamid (2hr 30min).

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

If you stop in Agdz, travelling on public transport in either direction, you’ll probably have to stay overnight to get a place on the Zagora/Ouarzazate bus; having your own vehicle brings Tamnougalt and Timiderte into play. As befits the ksar-studded Drâa, many of the best choices around here are converted historical kasbahs.

AGDZ

Café Restaurant Sables d’Or Northern side of the Grande Place tel_icon 0666 415641. Nice little place on the edge of the square, airy inside and with a few tables set back on the outside pavement. Simple menu of turkey kebabs (35dh) and chicken (30dh), slowly roasting on a spit by the entrance. Daily 7am–10.30pm.

Casbah Caïd Ali 2km along the road north of the Grande Place tel_icon 0524 843640 or 0661 076394, web_icon casbah-caidali.net. In a great location, nestled in the palmery north of town and in the shadow of meringue-topped Jebel Kissane, this hundred-year-old kasbah has been restored by descendants of the local caïd. Rooms are simple but traditional, and there’s a sizeable spring-fed pool. You’d be hard-pushed to find a more authentic kasbah experience for less. Guided tours of the kasbah cost 30dh and lunch and dinner courses are 40–60dh. BB rooms 230dh, camper vans 80dh, tents 50dh

author_pick Dar Qamar 1.8km along the road north of the Grande Place tel_icon 0524 843784 or 0660 671542, web_icon locsudmaroc.com. One of the nicest hotels in the region, run by a charming French couple. Carefully restored rooms (some with four-posters; all with a/c) feature tataoui ceilings and tadelakt baths and are clustered around a pretty garden with a decent-sized pool, which is heated during winter. Relax in the hammam, the library, the jacuzzi or in the cosy firelit salon, and tuck into delicious Moroccan/Mediterranean dishes (three courses 185dh) served under stars on the terrace. BB 800dh

TAMNOUGALT

author_pick Bab el Oued 1km off the N9 tel_icon 0660 188484 or 0619 402832, web_icon babelouedmaroc.com. Set at the foot of Tamnougalt ksar and not far from the gurgling Drâa, this friendly French-Moroccan-run eco-lodge – the only green-key certified establishment in Agdz – is a veritable oasis, with several stylish mud-brick “huts” dotted around a serene and colourful garden with an inviting pool. Bike rental for exploring the palmeries is 215dh a day with a guide and lunch. Delicious home-made jams and organic produce straight from the garden are used in the restaurant (set menu 165dh). BB 825dh

Chez Yacob 2km off the N9 tel_icon 0524 843394 or 0666 104305, web_icon lavalleedudraa.com. Perennially popular place offering eight simple but gorgeously cool rooms in a refurbished kasbah and a large roof terrace where you can bed down for the night. Mohammed, the manager, speaks good English and will give you the lowdown on the area. HB terrace 120dh, double 600dh

TIMIDERTE

Kasbah Timidarte 800m from the N9 tel_icon 0668 680047, web_icon kasbahtimidarte.com. Restored by local craftsmen, Kasbah Timidarte is the first fruits of a community association intent on breathing new life into the ksar. Accommodation is simple, even sparse in parts, but the rooms look good in a minimalist sort of way, and the friendly staff can help you meet locals keen to share their experiences of life in Timiderte. BB 240dh

DESERT TRIPS FROM ZAGORA

Nearly every tourist in town is here for the Sahara, and yet Zagora is still some way from the desert proper, so make sure you know exactly where your trip is headed. The closest dunes are at Nakhla, northeast of town, and Tinfou, about 25km south along the N9, which are easy to get to but not particularly impressive. Closer to M’Hamid lie the Erg Lihoudi and the Erg Ezahar, though the latter – also known as the Screaming Dunes due to the incredible sound they make (the noise is actually caused by vibrating sand grains) – are usually only offered on trips out of M’Hamid. Finally, around 60km southwest of M’Hamid (and a good 3hr from Zagora), is the unforgettable Erg Chigaga, the real deal, offering relative isolation and a sea of golden sand ebbing out into the distance – though getting here involves a much longer (and expensive) journey.

Virtually all the hotels and campsites in Zagora have tie-ins with camel-riding outfits, and there are numerous agencies just itching to get you onto the back of a dromedary. Rates, as ever, are negotiable, so it pays to shop around, but you can expect to pay in the region of 400dh for a trip to Nakhla and closer to 2000dh for the Erg Chigaga, including 4WD transfers, camel rides, guide and all meals, less if you can get to M’Hamid under your own steam and pick up the 4WD from there. Recommended agencies include Caravane du Sud, on the roundabout just over the Oued Drâa in Amazrou ( tel_icon 0524 847569 or 0661 138677, web_icon caravanedusud.com), Désert et Émotion, a Moroccan-French setup opposite the Supratours office on Bd Mohammed V ( 0524 846206, desert-emotion.com) and Amazing Journeys Morocco ( 0661 354093 or 0665 952465, amazing-morocco.com), owned by Lahsen Alkouch, who also runs a superb desert camp ( tel_icon 0661 354093 or 0665 952465, web_icon morocco-desert-camp.com) in a beautiful area of the Erg Chigaga dunes.

Musée des Arts et Traditions de la Vallée du Drâa

Located down a covered alleyway in the Ksar Tissergate, abutting the palmery 5km north of Zagora • Daily 8.30am–7pm • 20dh • tel_icon 0661 348388 • Petits taxis run to Tissergate from Zagora (around 7dh)

The excellent Museé des Arts et Traditions de la Vallée du Drâa is a dusty old museum in the nicest of senses. Housed in a mud-brick kasbah, its three well-worn floors offer a charming insight into life in the Drâa, from a motley ensemble of agricultural implements to collections of colourful marriage costumes and the forty of so medicinal herbs used by a fakir, or Islamic holy man. The proud gardien is on hand to answer questions (in French), though all the displays are (refreshingly) labelled in English.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: ZAGORA

By plane Aéroport Zagora ( tel_icon 0524 899150) is 9km southwest of Zagora, on the left-hand side of the N12 when travelling towards Foum Ziguid. It currently offers one weekly flight to Ouarzazate (40min) and two weekly flights to Casablanca (1hr 20min). Check RAM’s website for more details ( web_icon royalairmaroc.com).

By bus CTM buses depart from the company’s office ( tel_icon 0524 847327) on Bd Mohammed V; Supratours ( 0524 848931) are based 200m further north along Mohammed V, near the Banque Populaire. Private buses leave from the gare routière on the northern outskirts of town.

Destinations Agadir (1 CTM & 2 others daily; 11hr); Agdz (3 CTM & 3 others daily; 1hr 55min–3hr); Casablanca (2 CTM & 6 others daily; 12hr); Foum Zguid (2 daily; 3–4hr); Inezgane (2 daily); M’Hamid (1 CTM daily & others hourly; 1hr 40min–2hr); Marrakesh (2 CTM & 6 others daily; 7hr 30min–9hr 30min); Ouarzazate (3 CTM, 2 Supratours & 9 others daily; 2hr 30min–4hr); Rabat (4 daily); Salé (2 daily); Tagounite (1 daily); Taliouine (1 CTM & 1 other daily; 5hr 10min–6hr); Tamegroute (1 CTM daily & others hourly; 25min); Taroudant (2 CTM & 1 other daily; 7hr 40min); Tazenakht (2 CTM & 2 others daily; 3–4hr).

By grand taxi Grands taxis run regularly to Tamegroute (20min), Tinfou (30min), Tagounite (1hr), Agdz (1hr 30min), M’Hamid (1hr 30min), Ouarzazate (3hr) and occasionally to Marrakesh (7hr) from the rank on Bd Mohammed V.

By truck Lorries make the daily haul to Rissani (10hr) and, in the other direction, along the rough road to Foum Zguid (5hr), with more leaving on Mondays (souk day in Foum Zguid, and also a good day for onward travel).

GETTING AROUND AND INFORMATION

By taxi Petits taxis run throughout Zagora and are easily flagged down along the main streets. They will only do runs inside of town and to places just outside like Amazrou, Tissergate and the airport; to get further afield, you’ll need a grand taxi.

Tourist information Zagora’s Provincial Tourist Office is in a rather grand-looking building on the roundabout at the far western end of Av Atlas Zaouit el Baraka (Mon–Fri 9am–4.30pm; tel_icon 0524 848686), and is a friendly source of information.

ACCOMMODATION

There’s a wide range of hotels – in both Zagora and Amazrou, an excellent, fast-growing alternative base – and some nicely located campsites, especially for those with transport. Travellers on tight budgets should also note that many mid-scale hotels will let you bed down on roof terraces or in nomad tents; most hotels are also happy for non-residents to use their pools, bars and restaurants.

Azalai Desert Lodge Near Ksar Tissergate, 7km north of Zagora tel_icon 0661 164394, web_icon azalaidesertlodge.com. A newly opened African lodge offering eight stylish and contemporary rooms. The huge bay windows lining the back of the lodge face out to palm groves, which are dotted with hammocks and private dining areas within the oasis. A swimming pool, free bike rental, library, hammam and spa (200dh) make this lodge a true retreat. The owners also have a luxury desert camp in the dunes. HB 1450dh

author_pick Chez Ali Av Atlas Zaouit el Baraka tel_icon 0524 846258, web_icon chezali.net. A haven of greenery on the edge of town, offering clean, secure and relaxing accommodation in 24 comfortable rooms (most en suite, some with a/c), the plushest being in the middle of the back garden. The owner, Ali, has sadly passed away, but his family continue to provide genuinely hospitable service and have, over two decades, created a lovely space filled with flowers, fruit trees and peacocks. A swimming pool enclosed by the garden is a new addition (40dh/day for non-guests). Altogether the nicest, best-value option in Zagora itself (and with a recommended restaurant to boot), but far from a secret, so book ahead. BB 190dh

Ma Villa au Sahara (Villa Zagora) Route de Nakhla, Amazrou, 100m north of the roundabout tel_icon 0524 846093, web_icon mavillaausahara.com. A lovely little place south of the Drâa, with understated pisé-pastel rooms, some with balconies; the luxuriant garden is drenched in bougainvillea and cut through by lantern-lit walkways. The chunky fireplace will keep you warm in the colder months, and there’s a petit pool for hotter days. Comfortable rooftop Berber tents overlooking the garden offer a cheaper option. HB Berber tent 360dh, double 1083dh

La Petite Kasbah Route de M’Hamid, Amazrou tel_icon 0524 848043 or 0671 516197, web_icon hotelzagora.com. A lovely auberge awaiting its green-key eco label, bordering the fringe of the Amezrou palmery. Owner Brahim is a welcoming host and places an emphasis on catering well for small groups. Traditional pisé rooms come with tadelakt bathrooms, a/c and eco-showers. A swimming pool and rooftop terrace with views of the palmeries completes the picture. BB 350dh

Prends ton Temps Signed off Bd Mohammed V 1km north of the junction with Av Allal Ben Abdallah tel_icon 0524 846543 or 0661 466945, web_icon prendstontemps.com. “Take Your Time” pretty much sums up this laidback and slightly eccentric joint: a courtyard ringed by funkily decorated little cabins (some en suite and a/c), a couple of salons and room to pitch a tent (30dh). The irrepressible owner Belaid comes from a nomadic tribe and is an accomplished player of the Arabian lute, so expect long evenings of music and folk stories. Breakfast is 30dh and set menus are 70dh. Cabin with shared toilet 100dh, en-suite cabin 200dh

author_pick Riad Dar Sofian Route de Nakhla, Amazrou, 700m north of the roundabout tel_icon 0524 847319, web_icon riaddarsofian.com. Arguably the most stylish guesthouse in Zagora, set on the fringes of the palmery. Constructed in traditional pisé, the interior is much more contemporary, with a sleek lounge, lightly decorated rooms with embroidered linen and rain showers, and a striking set-piece fountain that cuts through the floors. The charming manager can help arrange tours, though most guests are happy to lounge by the lovely swimming pool, edged with towering palms. Superb food and an alcohol licence, with set menus at 160dh. BB 800dh

Riad Lamane Route de M’Hamid, Amazrou tel_icon 0524 848388, web_icon riadlamane.com. Swish hotel hidden behind high walls in the heart of the palmery. Rooms are beautifully appointed, with decor looking towards sub-Saharan Africa, tadelakt en-suite bathrooms and private balconies; deceptively grand villas frame the garden, or you can bed down in cosy Berber tents. A library, pool and well- stocked bar add to the charm. Bicycles can be rented to explore the palmeries (120dh/day) and guided walks of the Jewish Quarter and an old ksar can be arranged. HB 1200dh

La Rose des Sables Av Allal Ben Abdallah tel_icon 0524 847274, email_icon hotel_larose@hotmail.fr. This deceptively large budget hotel has a range of clean and comfortable rooms – some with shared bathrooms, others with balconies – and a very friendly owner. The ground-floor restaurant is simple but has some of the best food in town. Rooms with a/c are available. 90dh

CAMPING

Camping Oasis Palmier Route de Nakhla, Amazrou, 400m north of the roundabout tel_icon 0524 846724 or 0613 985231, email_icon pixameharee@hotmail.com. Set at the foot of Jebel Zagora, on the far side of the river, this simple campsite has a pleasant mix of well-shaded pitches and Berber tents, with clean toilet blocks (showers 10dh), a relaxing café and friendly management. Two newly built en-suite rooms and a family apartment offer an alternative to camping. Wi-fi connects at the reception and laundry is available at 40dh. 45dh

EATING AND DRINKING

Most people eat in their hotels, particularly if they’re based in the Amazrou palmery, with many places offering competitive half- or full-board deals, though the cafés clustered around the intersection of Bd Mohammed V and Av Allal Ben Abdallah are a good bet for cheaper eats.

Chez Ali Av Atlas Zaouit el Baraka tel_icon 0524 846258, web_icon chezali.net. For a delightful evening meal, it’s hard to beat the restaurant here: dining is communal, at candlelit tables in the lush grounds, and most of the food – chakchouka salad, makfoul tajine – comes straight from his walled vegetable garden. Three-course menus start at 100dh. Daily 7–10pm.

Dromadaire Gourmand Bd Mohammed V, 2km north of the junction with Av Allal Ben Abdallah tel_icon 0661 348394, web_icon dromadaire-gourmand.com. It’s quite a way along the Agdz road from the centre of Zagora, but the “Gourmet Camel” is one of the better places to eat in town, with a pleasant traditional salon and pavement tables. The menu is classic Moroccan, including a “Marriage” tajine (80dh); you can ask in advance for mechoui (groups only) and, of course, camel. Daily 8.30am–11pm.

Hôtel La Rose des Sables Av Allal Ben Abdallah tel_icon 0524 847274, email_icon hotel_larose@hotmail.fr. Good-value Moroccan staples attract locals and tourists alike to this popular hotel restaurant. Choose from eleven tajines (from 45dh) or push the boat out for a comparatively keenly priced pastilla or mechoui (both 125dh); there’s a filling 70dh menu, too. Daily noon–10pm.

SHOPPING

Caverne du Troc Route de M’Hamid, Amazrou tel_icon 0524 847991 or 0661 348442. A treasure-trove of carpets and the usual trinket boxes and crafts, offering a great shopping experience. Carpets are divided into sections according to age and serious buyers may even be taken up to the antique section of the shop, which offers some truly authentic treats. Daily 7am–10pm.

Maison Berbère Av Hassan II tel_icon 0524 847233. The Zagora branch of the Alaoui family chain, which has a reputation for its rugs, is one of the best-quality outlets in the south, fairly hassle-free and likely to draw you in for an hour or so’s mint tea-assisted browsing. Daily 8am–8pm.

A DATE TO REMEMBER

The dates of the Zagora oasis are reputedly some of the finest in the country, a claim you can put to the test at the twice-weekly souk (Wed & Sun), where stallholders sell several dozen of Morocco’s 220 or so different date varieties – look out for mejhoul, bouskri, jihel and, particularly, the sweet boufeggous, which will last for up to four years if stored properly. If you’re not in town for the market, never fear: you can’t get too far along the Drâa’s roads before being accosted by kids brandishing boxes of the sugary snacks, often encouraging you to make a purchase by leaping out in front of your car.

Zaouia Naciri

Faux guides will try to show you the way to the zaouia, but it’s easy enough to find unaided: look for the tall white minaret through the archway at the back of the main square (the library is through the other archway, on the square’s northeast corner) • Daily 9am–noon & 3–6pm; tomb closed to non-Muslims • Donations expected • No photography allowed in the library

Tamegroute owes its importance to its ancient and highly prestigious Zaouia Naciri, which was a seat of learning from the eleventh century and, from the seventeenth century, the base of the Naciri Brotherhood. Founded by Abou Abdallah Mohammed Ben Naceur (an inveterate traveller and revered scholar), the zaouia exercised great influence over the Drâa tribes until recent decades. Its sheikhs (or holy leaders) were known as the “peacemakers of the desert”, and it was they who settled disputes among the ksour and between the caravan traders converging on Zagora from the Sudan. They were missionaries, too, and as late as the 1750s sent envoys to convert the wilder, animist-minded Berber tribes of the Atlas and Rif.

As in centuries past, the zaouia is today a refuge for the sick and mentally ill, whom you’ll see sitting around the courtyard; they come in the hope of miraculous cures and/or to be supported by the charity of the brotherhood and other benevolent visitors. The complex consists of a marabout (the tomb of Naceur), a medersa (still used by up to eighty students, preparing for university) and, in a nearby building, a small but very interesting library that was once the richest in Morocco, containing forty thousand volumes on history, languages, mathematics, astronomy and, above all, Islam. Most of these have now been stolen or dispersed to Koranic schools round the country, but Tamegroute preserves a number of very early editions of the Koran printed on gazelle hide – the English-speaking curator can point out one dating from 1063 – and some rare ancient books, including a thirteenth-century algebra primer featuring Western Arabic numerals, which, although subsequently dropped in the Arab world, formed the basis of the West’s numbers, through the influence of the universities of Moorish Spain.

Tinfou

You’ll get your first glimpse of the Sahara at TINFOU, 7km on from Tamegroute – though, in reality, it is little more than that. Abruptly rising from the blackened hammada, the dunes (“dune” would be a more accurate description) are a national monument; it is thought that they cover the ruins of the kasbah of Tiguida, which was once used as a bank for the trans-Saharan nomad traders, and rumour has it that there is still gold hidden beneath the sand.

M’Hamid and the dunes

A small administrative centre built around a café-lined square, M’HAMID (also known as M’Hamid el Ghizlane) was once an important marketplace for nomadic and trans-Saharan trade, but of this role only a rather mundane Monday souk remains. Although M’Hamid is still more low-key than Zagora, you might be forgiven for thinking the village’s main raison d’être these days is getting tourists onto camels – there are any number of operators, official and unofficial, who offer camel trips into the desert proper.

Erg Lehoudi

The most easily accessible of the dunes around M’Hamid are those at Erg Lehoudi (“Dunes of the Jews”), 8km north of town, which can be reached, with guidance, in a normal car via a piste just outside the village. They see more than their share of day-trippers (and their rubbish) and hustlers, and despite reaching a height of over 100m, somehow feel rather mundane.

Erg Chigaga

The most dramatic dunes in the entire Zagora region lie some 60km southwest of M’Hamid, where the 300m-high crescents of the Erg Chigaga ripple away into the horizon. The expense and time involved in getting here – a return trip by camel takes around five days; by costly 4WD, you can get there in less than two hours – is well worth it, and with quieter dunes and more spaced-out camps, the desert experience is much more akin to how you might imagine it.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: SOUTH TO M’HAMID AND THE ERG CHIGAGA

By bus The timing of the daily CTM bus from Zagora to Tamegroute and M’Hamid is inconvenient (it leaves Zagora at 7pm, arriving in Tamegroute 15min later and in M’Hamid after a further 1hr 25min), though local minibuses leave every hour or so. The daily CTM service to Casablanca (13hr 30min) leaves M’Hamid’s main square at 6am, stopping en route at Zagora (1hr 20min), Agdz (3hr 30min), Ouarzazate (4hr 45min) and Marrakesh (9hr 45min); private services run twice daily on the same route.

By grand taxi Taxis leave throughout the day from Zagora to Tamegroute (20min) and M’Hamid (1hr 30min), depending on demand; alternatively, chartering one for an early morning trip to Tamegroute and the sand dunes near Tinfou costs around 250dh.

By car The 94km road from Zagora to M’Hamid is in the process of being widened to two lanes: at the time of writing, only one lane is surfaced. Note that the old road south of Zagora to Anagam, on the south bank of the Drâa (the 6965, still marked on some maps), is now out of use.

TOURS

A lot of travellers organize their desert trips from Zagora, but there’s no shortage of opportunities in M’Hamid to arrange a (usually cheaper) camel safari – including at most of the hotels. Prices are pretty standard, at around 350dh/person/day (600dh for Erg Chigaga), which should include a guide, camel, all meals and a tent; if you want a longer trip, the day-rate quoted may rise dramatically.

Amazing Journeys Morocco Tagounite centre tel_icon 0661 354093 or 0665 952456, web_icon amazing-morocco.com. Owned by professional guide Lahsen Alkouch, who also runs a superb desert camp in a beautiful area of the Erg Chigaga dunes. Able to organize camel and 4WD excursions, treks into the mountains and customized trips.

Iguidi Tours M’Hamid, near the car park just beyond the end of the tarmac tel_icon 0672 385395, web_icon iguiditours.com. Run by a local Saharwi nomad family, offering trekking as well as overnights in the Erg Lehoudi and multi-day trips into the Erg Chigaga.

Sahara Services Opposite the Hotel Kasbah Sahara, M’Hamid tel_icon 0661 776766, web_icon saharaservices.info. Overnight camel trips to a variety of desert camps, from mobile tents to luxury setups, plus Arabic and cooking courses. They can arrange trips around M’Hamid’s Nomad Festival in mid-March.

Zbar Travel Village square, M’Hamid tel_icon 0668 517280, web_icon zbartravel.com. Camel and 4WD excursions, including trips to Erg Ezahar (Screaming Dunes), the nearest big dunes to M’Hamid; Zbar’s trips usually include sandboarding.

ACCOMMODATION

TAMEGROUTE

Jnane-Dar Diafa Opposite the Zaouia Naciri tel_icon 0524 840622 or 0661 348149, web_icon jnanedar.ch. Homely place run by a good-humoured Moroccan-Swiss couple, with accommodation spread between the kasbah-style main house (nine rooms, some with shared bathrooms) and the well-tended garden (Berber tents). Traditional meals are around 50dh. One of the best-value options in the region. BB tent 160dh, double 330dh

TINFOU

Kasbah Hotel SaharaSky Tinfou tel_icon 0661 142866 or 0524 848562, web_icon hotel-sahara.com. Just 500m from Tinfou’s large dune, this specialist hotel, run by German astronomer Fritz Gerd Koring, is the first private observatory in North Africa, the rooftop astro-observatory attracting astrophotographers and astronomers from all over the world. Guests can gaze at the dark Sahara sky through one of eight high-tech GPS telescopes – one with enough power to view galaxies ten billion light years away – and read up about their discoveries in the astronomy library; non-guests can enjoy dinner with guided stargazing (250dh/person; book in advance). The rooms themselves are very comfortable, with fantastic sunset views, and the traditional Berber food is good. A spa complete with a jacuzzi and sauna are a recent addition. Closed during Ramadan. HB 490dh

M’HAMID

Dar Azawad Near Oulad Driss, 4km north of M’Hamid tel_icon 0524 848730, web_icon darazawad.com. The most upmarket digs in town: opt for one of the “Saharan” rooms or a slightly bigger and more attractively furnished “Sultan” room – both are in the shady garden and share the same careful craftsmanship, particularly in their Tataouine-style ceilings. Guests can enjoy a heated pool and a swanky hammam and spa, and tuck into dinners created with produce from the hotel’s vegetable garden. Their range of desert bivouacs includes the most luxurious option in M’Hamid, a private camp with king-size beds in a tent with its own bathroom (3500dh/person). BB 990dh

author_pick Dar Sidi Bounou Bounou, 4km north of M’Hamid tel_icon 0524 846330 or 0671 439221, web_icon darsidibounou.com. Run by a delightful Canadian-British artist and her Moroccan musician partner, Sidi Bounou is a real find, with just four comfortable rooms in the main house, as well as magical Berber tents and nwala huts in the garden. Guests are treated as part of the family, meaning excellent food, local gossip and impromptu music sessions most nights. HB tent or hut 660dh, double 880dh

Hamada du Drâa 500m south of M’Hamid, on the opposite side of the riverbed tel_icon 0524 848086 or 0662 132154, web_icon hamada-sahara.com. Pitching a tent on the orange earth at Hamada is by far the cheapest option in M’Hamid, though they also have box-shaped mud-brick “nomad tents”, and a/c standard rooms inside the main building. The pool and restaurant are open to everyone, as well as a new hammam. Camping 60dh, double 400dh

West of the Drâa

There’s little to detain you in the towns lying west of the Drâa, though they can be useful stopovers on the way to the Anti-Atlas or the coast. From Zagora, a rough road (recently upgraded from a piste but still in poor condition) heads west to tiny FOUM ZGUID, where it joins up with the R111 to Tazenakht and the N12 to Tissint and Tata. The journey is rather monotonous, though the onward roads are quite scenic in parts, the latter charting a wide river valley through some startlingly barren backdrops. The town itself is slowly becoming a base for (much-touted) tours to Lac Iriki, a saltpan 65km south of Foum Zguid.

North of Foum Zguid, the carpet-weaving town of TAZENAKHT stands at the junction of the Agadir and Ouarzazate roads, at the centre of a wonderfully remote route. If you’re going to buy a rug, this is probably the best place to do so – there are numerous shops and a good cooperative, the Espace Zoukini, on Avenue Hassan II ( tel_icon 0524 841028), whose attractive weaves are made by women from nearby villages.

THE MARATHON DES SABLES

A gruelling slog across 250km of barren hammada and scorching desert, the Marathon des Sables is generally acknowledged as the toughest foot race in the world. Runners are required to carry all their own equipment, including GPS (in 1994, Italian runner Mauro Prosperi spent nine days lost in the desert after getting caught in a sandstorm – he survived by drinking bats’ blood and was eventually found in Algeria, 300km off track) and the dozen litres of water they’ll consume during each of the six days it takes to complete the course.

Founded by a Frenchman, Patrick Bauer, in 1986, the race takes place in March or April, and today attracts around nine hundred runners each year, 250 or so from the UK, from a surprisingly broad range of demographics; in 2012, the French runner Joseph Le Louarn completed his sixth Marathon des Sables at the ripe old age of eighty. The constantly changing route has recently included places such as Foum Zguid and Merzouga. For further information, see web_icon darbaroud.com; UK runners interested in competing should contact Running Sahara ( runningsahara.com).

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: WEST OF THE DRÂA

FOUM ZGUID

By bus Buses run from the centre of Foum Zguid to Tazenakht (3 daily; 1hr 30min), Tata (2 daily; 2hr 30min) and Zagora (2 daily; 3–4hr), among other destinations.

By truck Pick-ups serve Zagora (5hr), with more on Mondays (souk day in Foum Zguid) and Wednesdays and Sundays (souk days in Zagora).

TAZENAKHT

By bus Tazenakht is quite a transport hub, with buses heading off in all directions.

Destinations Agadir (1 CTM & 3 others daily; 6hr); Foum Zguid (3 daily; 1hr 30min); Marrakesh (3 daily; 6hr 30min); Ouarzazate (1 CTM & 10 others daily; 1hr 35min); Taliouine (1 CTM & 5 others daily: 25min–1hr).

By grand taxi There are regular grands taxis to Ouarzazate (1hr) and (less so) Taliouine (1hr).

Services Tazenakht has a Banque Populaire with an ATM, and a couple of petrol stations.

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

You’re unlikely to need to spend the night in Tazenakht – and some people find the late evening atmosphere in town can be a little edgy – though stopping off in Foum Zguid can be useful if you’re taking a trip out to Lac Iriki. For cheap meals in Tazenakht, the cafés opposite the bus station turn out grilled kebabs and lentil stews.

Auberge Iriki Hay Alhalawane, Foum Zguid tel_icon 0528 806568, web_icon auberge-iriki.com. Candy-striped building at the far end of Foum Zguid (on the way out to Tata), with simple but clean and bright rooms and views over Jebel Bani. A pool was being added at the time of writing. HB 400dh

< Back to The southern oases routes

The Dadès and Todra

Stretching northeast from Ouarzazate, the Dadès Valley is at times harsh and desolate, but there’s a bleak beauty on the plain between the parallel ranges of the High Atlas and the Jebel Saghro. Along much of its length, the river is barely visible above ground, making the sudden appearance of its vast oases all the more astonishing. Littered with half-hidden mud-brick houses – the Dadès is also known as the Route of a Thousand Kasbahs, for obvious reasons – the palmeries lie along the N10 from Ouarzazate to Erfoud, offering an excellent and easy opportunity for a close look at a working oasis and, in Skoura, a startling range of imposing kasbahs.

Impressive though these are, however, it is the two gorges that cut from the valley into the High Atlas that steal the show: the Dadès Gorge itself, carving up a fertile strip of land behind Boulmane du Dadès, and, to the east, the Todra Gorge, a narrowing cleft in high rock walls north of Tinghir. Beyond both, roads run into the heart of the Atlas, a wonderful (and, from Tinghir, fairly easy) trip that emerges near Beni Mellal in the Middle Atlas.

To the south of the Dadès, the volcanic rock and limestone pinnacles of the Jebel Saghro offers exciting options, either on foot or on its network of rough piste roads in a 4WD.

Skoura oasis

The Skoura oasis begins quite suddenly, around 30km east of Ouarzazate, along a tributary of the Drâa, the Oued Ameridil. It’s an extraordinary sight even from the road, which for the most part follows its southern edge – a very extensive, very dense palmery, with an incredibly confusing network of tracks winding across fords and through palms to scattered groups of ksour and kasbahs.

Kasbah Ameridil

2km west of Skoura village • Daily 9am–sunset • 10dh; 50dh with guided tour • tel_icon 0616 101604 • To get there, follow the footpath behind Kasbah Aït Ben Moro, across the (usually dry) Oued Ameridil; the kasbah can also be reached along a short but bumpy “road” (actually the riverbed; may be flooded in winter) signed right (west) off the road to Ouarzazate, 2km from Skoura village – the kasbah is around 700m along this side road

The grandest and most extravagantly decorated kasbah in the oasis, Kasbah Ameridil may well look familiar: it’s eminently photogenic and features in travel brochures and coffee-table books – and on the front of the current fifty-dirham note.

Ameridil was built in the seventeenth century for the caïd of Skoura, and various implements from the original building line one wall of the courtyard, including some ingenious little locks whose keys doubled as toothbrushes. You can poke around a variety of rooms that once served as kitchens – one still retains the ovens used to cook tafarnoute (bread baked over stones on the ground) and tanourte (bread baked on the the side of the oven) – a Koranic school and a mosque, and bedrooms used by the chief and his four wives.

Dar Aït Sous, Dar Lahsoune and Kasbah Aït Abou

Follow signs (green triangles painted on trees) to Dar Lorkham up the main piste at the eastern end of Skoura village, crossing the (dry) riverbed en route; you can also reach Aït Abou by turning left off the road to Toundant

There are several impressive kasbahs in the palmery to the north of Skoura village. After about 4km, you’ll come to a pair of kasbahs, Dar Aït Sous and Dar Lahsoune; the former, small but once very grand, is in a ruinous state, used only for animals; the latter, once a Glaoui residence, is state-owned, and private. A further 2km drive takes you to the magnificent Kasbah Aït Abou, the tallest in the palmery and second in Skoura only to Kasbah Ameridil. It lies on well-farmed land and is still inhabited; you can pop in for a drink (it’s now a restaurant but the food isn’t recommended) and soak up the views from its terrace.

Marabout Sidi M’Barek

Beyond Kasbah Aït Abou, on the edge of the palmery, you can follow a trail to the imposing Marabout Sidi M’Barek, one of seven in the Skoura oasis. A high wall, broken only by a door, encloses the marabout, which doubles as a grain store – a powerful twofold protection on both spiritual and military levels.

THE R307: TRANS ATLAS TO DEMNATE

The spectacular R307 is an attractive alternative to the Tizi n’ Tichka, serving as an adventurous short cut through the heart of the Atlas for drivers bound for Fez. Paved but severely deteriorated in parts, it is passable in a normal car but more comfortable in a 4WD – mudslicks and rockslides are not uncommon, and in several stretches the runoff from rivers has eaten away at large chunks of the tarmac.

About 15km east of Ouarzazate and 26km west of Skoura, the road heads north from the N10 towards the mountains, making a dramatic ascent through extremely barren country to reach the Tizi n’Fedrhate (2191m). The road loses this height in the descent to the Vallée de Tessaout and the village of Toufrine, after which there is a long climb, with some tremendous views all round, before the road heads down to Demnate, some 135km (around 3hr 30min) after leaving the N10 behind.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: SKOURA OASIS

By bus Buses stop in tiny Skoura village, which lies off the main road, at the eastern end of the oasis, with services from Ouarzazate (1 CTM & 4 others daily; 45min), Boulmane du Dadès (1 CTM & 6 others daily; 1hr 15min), El Kelâa M’Gouna (hourly; 35min) and Tinghir (1 CTM & 11 others daily; 2hr 35min); Restaurant La Kasbah, at the junction where the main street peels off the N10, doubles as the CTM office.

Services There’s a post office and a branch of the Al Barid bank on Skoura’s single main street.

Guides Navigating the tiny palmery roads can be confusing, so hiring a guide (around 50dh/hr) is definitely worth considering, particularly for the kasbahs north of Skoura, which can otherwise be hard to find; most hotels provide their own guides and run their own excursions.

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

The choice of accommodation around Skoura runs the full gamut, from basic auberges to luxurious hideaways; many places rent bikes for exploring the palmery (from 80dh/half-day). Most people dine at their hotels, though the no-frills restaurants ranged around the main junction in Skoura village are handy for a bite to eat if you’re passing through, serving cheap omelettes, salads, tajines and brochettes.

Chez Slimani Signed off the N10 700m west of the village; follow the orange-painted rocks along a piste for 1.5km tel_icon 0661 746882. Hidden in the palmery beyond Kasbah Ameridil, this is the best budget option: a handful of basic rooms and (clean) shared washrooms surrounding a dusty courtyard, with a sunny roof terrace overlooking the palmery and a pleasant garden. You’ll have livestock for neighbours, but what Slimani lacks in comforts it more than makes up for with atmosphere. HB 240dh

Dar Ahlam tel_icon 0524 852239, web_icon darahlam.com. Set amid an oasis that was once the local ruler’s private falconry ground, this beautiful Relais & Châteuax property is so exclusive that there aren’t any signs to it: arrange to be met in the centre of Skoura village to be shown the way. Once there, you’ll find it’s as well appointed as you’d expect for the (extortionate) price, which includes as many Moroccan clay scrubs and Thai massages as your body can handle. Rates are fully inclusive (BB and HB available in low season only). 11500dh

Dar Lorkam 7km up the main piste at the eastern end of Skoura village; follow the green triangles painted on trees tel_icon 0524 852240 or 0663 819629, web_icon dar-lorkam.com. Tucked away deep in the palmery, Dar Lorkam has six lovely double rooms around a courtyard with a child-friendly swimming pool at its centre. The restaurant serves a fusion of French and Moroccan cuisines. Closed Jan & July. HB 800dh

author_pick Les Jardins de Skoura Signed off the N10 700m west of Skoura village; follow the orange arrows along a piste for 4km tel_icon 0524 852324 or 0661 730461, web_icon lesjardinsdeskoura.com. A real oasis within the oasis. The lovely bedrooms at this beautifully renovated farmhouse show great attention to detail, the staff are friendly yet attentive, and the tranquil gardens that give the guesthouse its name are the perfect place to unwind, ending in an inviting little pool. Compulsory dinner on the first night (200dh), but the food is superb. Guided walks in the palmery, on Les Jardins’ own donkeys if you choose. BB 1000dh

Kasbah Aït Ben Moro On the N10, 1.5km west of Skoura village tel_icon 0524 852116, web_icon aitbenmoro.com. An eighteenth-century kasbah beautifully renovated by its Spanish expat owner (the family he bought it from have since set up their own low-key operation next door) and comprising a dozen or so doubles (plus several triples), furnished and decorated in traditional style. The swimming pool, set in a stone terrace at the back, affords good views over the palmery, and the food is top-notch, too. HB 600dh

Kasbah Les Nomades 600m up the main piste at the eastern end of Skoura village tel_icon 0661 896329, web_icon skoura-nomades.com. Rather grand for the price, this family affair has colourful a/c rooms in turrets that overlook the palmery; en-suite showers available. BB 150dh

El Kelâa M’Gouna

Travelling through the Dadès in spring, you’ll find the fields around EL KELÂA M’GOUNA, 45km east of Skoura, laced with the bloom of thousands of small pink roses, cultivated into hedgerows dividing the plots. The roses – Rosa damascena, probably brought here from Persia by the Phoenicians – are harvested by local women, who start very early in the morning before the heat dries the bloom. Trucks ferry the petals to Kelâa’s two factories, where they’re distilled into the rose oil that forms the basis of all the moisturizers, hand creams and other rose-related products that you’ll see in the region’s shops. The size of the factories reflects the task at hand: there are an estimated 4200km of rose hedges around Kelâa, with each metre yielding around a kilogram of petals, and ten tonnes of petals are needed to produce just two or three litres of rose oil.

In late May (sometimes early June), a rose festival is held in the village to celebrate the new year’s crops – a good time to visit, with villagers coming down from the mountains for the market, music and dancing.

Cooperative Artisanale des Poignards Azlag

On the N10 on the eastern edge of town • Daily 8am–8pm • tel_icon 0524 837745 or 0671 520910, web_icon cooperative-azlag.com

Kelâa’s tradition of dagger-making is still going strong at the Cooperative Artisanale des Poignards Azlag, a one-stop knife shop that provides work for seventy artisans and their families. There’s usually someone working away at the exposition by the entrance, hammering intricate designs into curved (synonymous with the Berber town of Azlag) and straight (Taureg) blades in pretty much the same way that Berber crafstman have for the last seven hundred years. You can pick up a small dagger for 250dh, though a huge customs-risking one will set you back 1500dh.

Vallée des Roses

North of El Kelâa M’Gouna begins one of the most scenic but least explored regions of the central High Atlas. Tourist literature likes to refer to it as the “Vallée des Roses”, but in fact the famous roses are grown not so much in a single valley as a tangle of different ones. A spectacular 35km road runs here from El Kelâa, weaving up the Hdida Valley and traversing the Imi n’Louh plateau (where Berber nomads still pass the winter in little caves) to cross the Jebel Ta’Louit. From the pass (2084m), you can survey the full glory of the M’Goun massif to the north; turn back here unless you have a 4WD, in which case you can drop steeply via some hair-raising switchbacks to Bou Thaghrar (pronounced “Boot-Ag-ra”), a trio of villages on the valley floor that hold some impressive ruined kasbahs.

TREKKING IN THE VALLÉE DES ROSES

Beyond Bou Thaghrar, at the northern end of the Vallée des Roses, the pistes degenerate or disappear altogether, making this prime trekking territory, which for the most part remains blissfully beyond the reach of most 4WDs. Depending on the amount of time you have, a typical route in the region could range from a day hike through the satellite villages of Bou Thaghrar to a ten-day trek north through the magnificent Gorges du M’Goun, a real adventure involving hours of wading waist-deep through meltwater. With three days to spare, the varied (and mostly dry) walk to Ameskar, via Alemdoun and Amejgag – the conventional approach route for mountaineers bound for M’Goun – would be an ideal sampler, passing through a series of pretty villages and some superb gorges.

PRACTICALITIES

April and May, while the roses are being harvested, are the best months to walk here, but the routes are practicable in all but the height of summer. Guides (around 300dh/day) are essential, not just to show the way but also to help relate to local Berber people, few of whom see many trekkers; contact Kasbah Itran, whose trips around the region are highly recommended, or El Kelâa’s Bureau des Guides, 500m west of town ( tel_icon 0661 796101).

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: EL KELÂA M’GOUNA

By public transport Buses and grands taxis pull into a strip at the centre of El Kelâa, with buses running from and to Ouarzazate (hourly; 1hr 35min), Skoura (hourly; 35min), Boulmane du Dadès (hourly; 35min) and Tinghir (hourly; 1hr 30min–1hr 55min) among others. Regular minibuses run from El Kelâa to Bou Thaghrar for the Vallée des Roses (30min).

Services Banque Populaire and Crédit Agricole, in the centre of town, both have ATMs. The small supermarket next to the Banque Populaire has a good stock (daily 8am–8pm).

ACCOMMODATION

Kasbah Assafar 1km off the road that runs to Bou Thaghrar, 5km north of El Kelâa tel_icon 0524 836577 or 0662 132192, web_icon kasbahassafar.com. Skilfully restored pisé kasbah in the village of Aït Khyar, with a terrace that makes the most of its lofty position (1400m altitude) – there are eight rooms (two en suite) but make sure you ask for one with valley views. Cooking (80dh, set menu) centres around honest Berber food (cooking classes are available). Abdel is a very experienced mountain guide who can provide maps and organize walking and mountain biking in the Vallée des Roses and the Jebel Saghro. BB shared bathroom 400dh, en-suite room 500dh

author_pick Kasbah Itran 3.5km north of El Kelâa on road to Bou Thaghrar tel_icon 0524 837103 or 0662 622203, web_icon kasbahitran.com. Run by the hospitable Taghda brothers (all seven of them), the enchanting Kasbah Itran is set high on an escarpment overlooking the mouth of the M’Goun river valley, with its spectacular ruined kasbah, ksour and irrigated gardens. The stylishly decorated rooms make the most of the views, which extend across the Dadès to the distant Jebel Saghro and snow-covered Jebel M’Goun. Breakfasts are served on a magnificent terrace, dinner indoors in a candlelit Moroccan salon (set menu 70dh). They also run excellent walking trips in the Vallée des Roses and into the M’Goun massif. HB 500dh

Boulmane du Dadès

The perfunctory town of BOULMANE DU DADÈS, 50km east of El Kelâa M’Gouna, holds little of interest – it’s not much more than a straggle of shops and cafés and a large market square where farmers trade their livestock on busy Sunday mornings. That said, there’s a likeable commercial buzz about the place, and as the main gateway to the Dadès Gorge, which starts just a few kilometres to the northwest of town, and the Jebel Saghro, it can serve as a useful base. Boulmane also offers some exceptional wildlife-watching possibilities, particularly in the bird-rich Vallée des Oiseaux.

WILDLIFE-WATCHING NEAR BOULMANE

There’s a surprising variety of habitats within easy reach of Boulmane. The expanse of hammada, or desert fringe, to the south of town is an austere environment, whose dry, sunny conditions are ideal for reptiles and are frequented by Montpelier snake, Atlas agama and fringe-toed lizard. The grassy plains beyond this provide food for small herds of Edmi gazelle and Addax antelope and shelter for a variety of bird species such as red-rumped wheatear, lanner falcon and the elusive Houbara bustard.

The most rewarding birding trip in the region, though, is to the aptly named Vallée des Oiseaux, which heads off the R6907 from Boulmane to Iknioun in the Jebel Saghro. The Tagdilt track – marked by a line of green shading on the Michelin map and well known to birdwatchers – is home to Temmink’s horned lark, eagle owl and several species of sandgrouse. Ahmed Bedra, along with several other guides, offer trips here from Boulmane.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: BOULMANE DU DADÈS

By bus Buses drop and pick up from outside the covered market; note that the CTM ticket office is based in Hôtel Tamazirte. Minibuses head off throughout the day to the Dadès Gorge and Msemrir (2hr), departing from a stop just in front of the covered market.

Destinations Agadir (1 daily; 8hr); Casablanca (2 daily; 10hr); El Kelâa M’Gouna (hourly; 35min); Er Rachidia (1 CTM & 1 other daily; 3hr 30min); Erfoud (2 daily; 5hr); Fez (2 daily; 12hr); Goulmim (1 daily; 11hr); Goulmima (1 daily; 2hr); Marrakesh (1 CTM, 1 Supratours & 5 others daily; 7hr); Meknes (2 daily; 11hr); Merzouga (1 Supratours; 6hr); Ouarzazate (hourly; 1hr 45min–2hr 15min); Skoura (hourly; 1hr 15min); Tantan (1 daily; 16hr); Taroudant (1 daily; 7hr); Tinejdad (1 daily; 1hr 30min); Tinghir (hourly; 45min); Tiznit (1 daily; 9hr); Zagora (1 daily; 6hr);

By grand taxi Taxis make regular runs from the rank outside the covered market to El Kelâa (30min), Ouarzazate (1hr 20min), Tinghir (40min), Tinejdad (1hr 30min), with several daily services to Msemrir (1hr 30min). Taxis to the Dadès Gorge (20min) can also be negotiated. Hamidi Abdelkhalk ( tel_icon 0672 153792) speaks good English and French.

INFORMATION AND TOURS

Services There’s a Banque Populaire on the main street, but the post office is a little harder to find, hidden down a bumpy track at the top end of town. Petrol stations bookend Boulmane.

Guides Ahmed Bedra, ( tel_icon 0673207114, email_icon azzaazzaali@hotmail.com) is an expert guide who is local to the Dadès region. He can organize walks in the Vallée des Roses, 4WD excursions and treks (1–3 days) in the Jebel Saghro. Alternatively, El Houssaine Ed-Dahby ( 0610 631368, tourguide1986@hotmail.com) is a young and enthusiastic official guide who can take you on hikes through the Dadès Gorge, birdwatching in the Vallée des Oiseaux or on multi-day trekking trips in the nearby Jebel Saghro, or from the Dadès Gorge to Jebel Saghro (prices can be negotiated by email); you can normally find him at the Hôtel Tamazirte. Also, Hamou Aït Lhou, at the Bureau des Guides near the western end of town ( tel_icon 0667 593292, email_icon hamou57@voila.fr), runs similar trips.

ACCOMMODATION

Bougafer Near the market square, just off the main road tel_icon 0612 212278 or 0668 167757, email_icon mustapha_da@yahoo.com. Best of a mediocre bunch of cheapies, though still with a general sense of structural neglect. Small rooms with decent beds (private and shared bathroom options) are set off a bare-bones salon, but it’s clean enough – and breakfast (18dh) on the little terrace overlooking central Boulmane is a good start to any day. There’s also a popular café on the ground floor serving tajines at 65–80dh, couscous at 70–90dh and brochettes at 70–90dh. HB 350dh

Kasbah La Jeanne Clearly signed off the N10 north of town, on the eastern side of the river tel_icon 0524 830072, email_icon moha.mansoub@gmail.com. A beautiful family-run eco-kasbah, built from scratch over five years by environment enthusiast Moha Mansoub. With walls 70cm thick, the kasbah demonstrates how effective pisé builds are during winter. Rooms are spacious and homely, with handmade juniper doors and tadelakt bathrooms. Moha is an authorized guide and can organize treks and excursions into the Vallée des Roses and Jebel Saghro. BB 450dh

author_pick La Perle du Dadès 500m down a piste off the N10 (crossing the Oued Dadès en route), 6.5km west of Boulmane; if the river’s too deep, follow blue markers for 6km along a piste signed off the main road at the top of Boulmane itself tel_icon 0524 850548, web_icon perledudades.com. A little out of town, but hugely popular with families, as it’s big on room size and even bigger on things to do, including ping pong, billiards, table football and watching films on their mini cinema. There’s a variety of rooms at a variety of prices (including some troglodyte cave rooms for 1050dh), all decorated with mementoes from the French owners’ time in West Africa. 550dh

Riad Soleil Bleu At the end of a piste 500m beyond the Xaluca Dadès tel_icon 0524 830163 or 0650 499876, email_icon le_soleilbleu@yahoo.fr. Appealing place, with sweeping views of the valley, psychedelic decor and two kinds of room: “standard” on the ground floor and more luxurious ones upstairs. There’s space for camping (showers 15dh), and budget travellers are welcome to sleep on the terrace. Also serves delicious, inventive meals. Camping 40dh, terrace 60dh, double 700dh

Xaluca Dadès Signed off the N10, near the Shell station tel_icon 0524 830060 or 0661 269525, web_icon xaluca.com. Popular tour-group hotel with the personal touch of a much smaller operation, thanks to nicely designed rooms and great staff. There’s a gym, tennis court and a funky bar, and a varied (and tasty) buffet spread each night (210dh). Non-residents are welcome to lounge around the beautiful pool drinking beer and enjoying the fine views. HB 917dh

EATING AND DRINKING

Atlas Dadès Bd Mohammed V tel_icon 0524 831537 or 0627 780006. Agreeable café covering the seasonal bases with two terraces, a small garden and a fire-heated salon for winter, where you can enjoy a coffee or an orange juice, or tuck into grilled sausages (45dh), brochettes (40–50dh), a sandwich (20–60dh) or a vegetable tajine (60dh). Free wi-fi is available. Daily 6am–11pm.

Oussikis On the eastern side of the market square tel_icon 0524 831829. An established spot for people watching over lunch, with a well-kept kitchen and an 80dh menu of traditional Moroccan dishes that change regularly. Simple but smart-looking rooms with shared toilets are available for 120dh. Daily 5am–10pm.

Tamazirte Bd Mohammed V tel_icon 0668 886564. Friendly staff and a sunny roof terrace make this one of the better places in Boulmane to grab a bite to eat. Tajines are good value at 40dh, but Tamazirte is best known for its great brochettes (45dh single course). Five simple rooms (some en suite) are also available (150dh). Daily 7am–9.30pm.

Dadès Gorge

The Dadès Gorge, with its high cliffs of limestone and weirdly shaped erosions, begins almost immediately north of Boulmane du Dadès. A mixture of modern houses and older ksour edge the road, with fields fronting gentle slopes at first but giving way to increasingly precipitous drop-offs as the road nears Msemrir. Most travellers get as far as Aït Oufi, 25km or so into the gorge, before turning back. It’s a fine day-trip, but it would be a shame not to explore the area further – pushing on, the gorge closes to its narrowest point just 9km further along, while a couple of days’ walking in and around the gorge from one of its many hotels will reward you with superb scenery, with plenty of kasbahs and pisé architecture to admire.

Boulmane to Aït Oudinar

About 8km along the road into the gorge, you pass the old, rust-red Glaoui kasbah of Aït Youl, shortly after which the road climbs over a little pass, flanked by the Hotel-Restaurant Meguirne, a fine place to stop for lunch; its owner takes a proprietary interest in a hidden side-valley nearby, organizing enjoyable half-day hikes.

The most impressive rock formations in this area lie another few kilometres along the road at Tamlalt, just after the Hôtel Tamlalte, where an extraordinary cliff known as the “Monkey’s Fingers” rises from the far side of the valley. The rock, a weathered conglomerate of pebbles thought to have settled where a huge river entered a primordial sea, is a startling sight, looming over the villagers who toil in the fields below; a gorge, in places only a few feet wide, can be followed right through the rocks (ask locally).

Beyond Tamlalt, the valley floor is less fertile and the hills gentler. The road continues through the hamlet of Aït Ali to Aït Oudinar (around 23km from Boulmane), where a bridge spans the river and the gorge narrows quite dramatically.

Aït Oudinar to Msemrir

After passing Les Vieux Chateaux, the road climbs by a coil of hairpin bends before squeezing through the tight, narrow mouth of the gorge to reach Taghia n’Dadès. From here, you can scramble east up the hill to a cave with stalactites, or walk north to a small but impressive gorge (the “Petit Gorge”), with views down over the Dadès Valley.

For a distance beyond Taghia, the east side of the gorge is dominated by the Isk n’Isladene cliffs. Emerging from their shadow, the road follows a canyon to Tidrit where it snakes up and crosses the face of one of the huge canyon loops before the final run to Msemrir; the rock face all along this route is run through with incredible swirling patterns. Two kilometres before Msemrir, the Oussikis valley can be visited by an even rougher piste that runs off to the left, accessing a scenic walk along the Barrage d’Oussikis (2hr return).

Msemrir

Little more than a scattering of dusty government buildings and cafés, Msemrir, 60km from Boulmane, has a desultory, frontier feel to it. The lively Saturday souk provides the only real incentive to stop, but you may want to use the village as a staging post in a longer journey across the mountains – north of Msemrir, pistes run east to join the Todra Gorge at Tamtatoucht and north across the High Atlas.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: DADÈS GORGE

By public transport Grands taxis, minibuses and Berber pick-ups leave regularly from outside the covered market in Boulmane du Dadès for Aït Ali (45min) and Msemrir (1hr 30min by grand taxi, 2hr by minibus).

By car The road up the Dadès Gorge is surfaced all the way to Msemrir and is accessible – spring floods permitting – throughout the year.

TO THE TODRA GORGE

By car With a 4WD, you could tackle the piste that runs from Msemrir to Tamtatoucht, north of the Todra Gorge (see map). The route (passable May–Sept) runs northeast off the Msemrir–Agoudal piste (which starts at Tilmi, 15km north of Msemrir) to the Tizi n’Uguent Zegsaoun (2639m), before dropping down through a long valley and across wobbly limestone strata to emerge just north of Tamtatoucht. Note, however, that it’s a long, uphill haul from the Dadès, and the seventy-odd kilometres of piste, often in a shocking state, can take a full day to travel. It’s much easier (and quicker) to backtrack down the Dadès and access the Todra Gorge/Tamtatoucht via Tinghir.

On a tour El Houssaine Ed-Dahby, in Boulmane, is one of several guides who runs two-day treks along the piste connecting the Dadès and Todra gorges; he can also organize 4WDs and prices can be arranged by email.

ACROSS THE ATLAS

By truck Pick-up trucks run daily up the piste from Msemrir to Agoudal, where you can connect with trucks to Imilchil.

By car With a 4WD, you can drive to Agoudal yourself (passable May–Sept), picking up the piste at Tilmi: allow 4hr to Agoudal – it’s 60km or so of very rough driving, cresting the Tizi n’Ouano (2750m) along the way – and a further 2hr 30min along the paved road to Imilchil. Most people, however, cross the Atlas on the recently paved road from Tamtatoucht.

TOURS

Most of the hotels in the gorge offer guided walks, either within the gorge itself, to the Petit Gorge or to other hidden canyons (200–300dh/day); alternatively, several guides in Boulmane run trips in and around the gorge.

ACCOMMODATION

The first 10km of the route is speckled with auberges and restaurants, though the gorge’s largest concentration of hotels lies 27km from Boulmane, hemmed in by slabs of cliff. In winter, temperatures in the gorge plummet at night, so check what sort of heating your hotel has if visiting at this time of year. The accommodation below is listed in the order you encounter it coming from Boulmane.

Riad des Vieilles Charrues 24km from Boulmane tel_icon 0524 830652 or 0670 634176, web_icon riadvieillescharrues.com. Skilfully restored riad in the village of Aït Oudinar, run by the welcoming Naïm family, offering ten spacious rooms (three with a/c), good home cooking (110dh set menu) and central heating to help keep you warm in winter. Relax on the suntrap of a terrace or head off into the hills on guided walks. HB 600dh

author_pick Auberge Chez Pierre 25km from Boulmane tel_icon 0524 830267 or 0667 760169, web_icon chezpierre.org. The eponymous Pierre might no longer be in charge, but the new owners of this hospitable auberge have kept the family feel. Twelve tastefully decorated rooms (four luxury suites) occupy a traditional-style pisé building, with its own pool (the only one in the valley) and well-kept gardens, but the main event here is the tremendous food: duck, quail and goat-cheese dishes feature regularly on a locally sourced menu (235dh set menu) that combines the best of Moroccan and French cooking. Organized activities include walks to the Gorge of Sidi Boubker. Heated by radiators during winter. BB 605dh

Auberge Tissadrine 27km from Boulmane tel_icon 0524 831745 or 0670 233418, email_icon aguondize@yahoo.fr. Light and airy hotel run by two brothers, whose rooms have been nicely refurbished in authentic style; some come with balconies. Take dinner (90dh set menu) in the attractive salon or out on the riverside terrace. All rooms are en suite and there’s heating from open fires and electric heaters during the winter. Varied guided walks explore a nearby canyon. Owner Yousseff speaks English and French. HB 400dh

Source de Dadès 33km from Boulmane tel_icon 0524 831258. A traditional building that catches the sun in winter, with only four rooms, all impeccably clean; charm is derived from its striking location, just before the gorge narrows, and hospitable service. The friendly owners organize numerous walks in the area, including gorge-top hikes and trips to nearby caves. HB 400dh

Berbère de la Montagne 34km from Boulmane tel_icon 0524 830228, web_icon berbere-montagne.ift.fr. One of the best-value mid-price places in the area – with six tastefully furnished, immaculately clean rooms (some en suite) that have the feel of a Mediterranean villa about them, and carefully prepared Berber meals served on a lovely streamside terrace. The hotel also has a campsite (with electricity) and makes a good base for short walks in and around the gorge. Camping 80dh, HB double 350dh

Agdal Msemrir, 60km from Boulmane tel_icon 0671 532052. This simple hotel-cum-café on Msemrir’s main drag is only of interest if you’re looking for somewhere to stop on a longer journey across the Atlas. It’s the best choice in town, though, thanks to its gregarious owner, who oversees eight en-suite rooms set around a small Berber salon. BB 60dh

EATING AND DRINKING

Hotel Restaurant Meguirne 14km from Boulmane tel_icon 0668 763804 or 0671 161953, web_icon aubergemiguirne.com. The views make this a fine place to stop for lunch (as tour groups do); the food, such as brochette and chips (50dh) is prepared by Ali, the unfailingly cheerful owner. In summer, the breakfast terrace is the first in the valley to catch the sun. Nine en-suite rooms are available (360dh HB). Daily 7am–11pm.

Hôtel Café Timzzillite 29km from Boulmane tel_icon 0524 830533 or 0677 264347. Worth a coffee stop at least, with stupendous views from a blustery terrace down over the Dadès’ much-photographed section of switchback turns – though they also do vegetable kebabs (50dh) and an unusual spaghetti-based menu for just 50dh. Simple en-suite rooms are available (500dh HB). Daily 9am–7pm.

DADÈS GORGE

The Jebel Saghro

The brooding mountain range looming to the south of the N9 is the Jebel Saghro, a starkly beautiful jumble of volcanic peaks and weirdly eroded tabletop mesas. Dramatically barren (“jebel saghro” means “dry mountain” in Berber), it is quite unlike the High Atlas or Anti-Atlas, and is increasingly attracting trekkers keen to explore its gorges, ruined kasbahs and occasional villages. The austere landscape is punctuated by the black tents of the semi-nomadic Aït Atta tribe – fiercely independent through the centuries, and never subdued by any sultan, the Aït Atta were the last bulwark of resistance against the French, making their final stand on the slopes of Jebel Bou Gafer.

The traverse

The classic Saghro trek cuts through the heart of the range, from Tagdilt to N’Kob, on the other side of the mountains (three days). Following the piste south out of Tagdilt, you can pick up a path that wends past the Isk n’Alla (2569m) and then up towards the Tizi n’Ouarg, an area of high meadows and a good spot to camp. A side trip up Jebel Kouaouch (2592m) is rewarded with fine views back towards snowcapped M’Goun and south towards N’Kob; or you can push on, past some extraordinary rock formations: the spires of Tassigdelt Tamajgalt and the Tête de Chameau, near Igli, a striking conglomerate that, in the right light, doesn’t look too unlike a camel’s head. From Igli, you can then either follow a path south over the Tizi n’Taggourt or divert east to take in Bab n’Ali, the Saghro’s most notable feature and a spectacular sight at dawn or dusk. The routes converge near the village of Ighazoun n’Imlas, from where a piste heads south down a remarkably green valley before climbing out to wander a barren waste to N’Kob.

An alternative route from Iknioun (five days) heads east, under the shadow of Amalou n’Mansour – at 2712m, the highest summit in the Saghro – to Maddou, from where you can make a side trip north to Jebel Bou Gafer; you’ll probably need to camp here overnight to make the most of a visit to the battlefield. Backtracking to Maddou, the route continues via Tizilit and Imi n’Site to emerge near some rock carvings at the R108, 8km east of N’Kob.

THE BATTLE FOR BOU GAFER

For three centuries or more, the Aït Atta tribe were the great warriors of the south, dominating the Jebel Saghro and its eastern extension, the Jebel Ougnat. As guerrilla fighters, they resisted the French occupation from the outset, finally retreating in early 1933 to the rocky stronghold of the Jebel Bou Gafer, a chaos of gorges and pinnacles. Despite the Aït Atta being vastly outnumbered by superior French forces, what followed was, according to David Hart in The Aït ‘Atta of Southern Morocco, “the hardest single battle which the French had ever had to fight in the course of their ‘pacification’ of Morocco”.

The French first attacked the stronghold on February 21, after which they launched almost daily attacks on the ground and from the air – the French are believed to have used four air squadrons at the battle, in addition to some 83,000 troops (the Aït Atta, in comparison, numbered around a thousand fighting men). Many died on both sides, but the Aït Atta, under the command of Hassou Ba Salem, did not surrender for over a month, by which time they were reduced to half their strength and had run short of ammunition.

Ba Salem’s conditions on surrender included a promise that the Aït Atta could maintain their tribal structures and customs, and that they would not be “ruled” by the infamous T’hami el Glaoui, the pasha of Marrakesh, whom they regarded as a traitor to their homeland. The French were content to accept, the battle meaning that their “pacification” was virtually complete, and giving them access to the valuable silver and copper mines at Moudou.

Ba Salem died in 1960 and was buried at Taghia, his birthplace, 5km from Tinghir. Ali, his son, succeeded him as leader of the tribe, and took part in the 1975 Green March into the Western Sahara; he died in 1992 and is also buried at Taghia. As for the battlefield itself, local guides will show you the sites, including ruins of the stronghold. It is still littered with spent bullets, which are covered in spring by colourful clumps of thyme, rockroses and broom.

The circuit

The much longer anticlockwise loop from El Kelâa M’Gouna and back (ten days) follows part of the traverse but also takes in the more diverse scenery of the Saghro’s northern and southern foothills. From El Kelâa (you could also hike a similar circuit to and from Boulmane), the path crosses a plain to the villages of Aït Youl (also reachable in a taxi) and, much further on, Afoughal, at the foot of Jebel Afoughal (2196m). The route continues south over the Tizi n’Tagmoute before heading east along dry river valleys and through chiselled gorges, with views to Tine Ouaiyour (2129m), in the centre of the range.

At Ighazoun n’Imlas, the path picks up the northern section of the “traverse” route, following it to the Tizi n’Ouarg before turning back west to crest both the Tizi n’Tmighcht and the Tizi n’Irhioui, steep mountain passes with breathtaking views as far as the High Atlas. From here on, it’s a downwards hike back to Aït Youl and, ultimately, El Kelâa again.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: JEBEL SAGHRO

When planning a trek in the Saghro, bear in mind the harshness of the terrain and the considerable distances involved. With the exception of the Vallée des Oiseaux, off the Boulmane–Iknioun road, which is a feasible destination for day-trips, this is not an area for short treks, nor does it have much infrastructure; accommodation is normally a mix of camping, gîtes and chez l’habitant (village homes).

By pick-up, taxi or car There’s a daily pick-up truck from Boulmane du Dadès to Tagdilt, off the R6907, and taxis run most days from Tinghir and Boulmane to Iknioun, further along the road. The N’Kob souk is on a Sunday, so you may also be able to pick up a ride south on the Saturday. You can also access Iknioun on a piste from Tinghir, a very beautiful road but one that’s only passable in a 4WD.

When to visit The Jebel Saghro is a popular trekking destination between October and April, when the High Atlas is too cold and snow-covered for walking; in the summer, it’s too hot and exposed and water, always scarce, is impossible to find.

Guides Hiring a guide is highly recommended both for trekking and for exploring the area in your own (4WD) vehicle – road signs are rare and navigating your way around isn’t easy, while flash floods often lead to diversions or worse. There are bureau des guides and/or independent guides in Boulmane du Dadès, Tinghir, El Kelâa M’Gouna and, to the south, N’Kob; you can also sometimes hire guides and muleteers in the villages at the northern base of the mountains.

Tours Treks can be arranged through AMIS or adventure tour companies abroad, including Explore ( web_icon explore.co.uk), Walks Worldwide ( walksworldwide.com) and Sherpa Expeditions ( sherpa-walking-holidays.co.uk).

Tinghir

Despite serving largely as a base for the trip up into the Todra Gorge, TINGHIR is a more interesting place than other administrative centres along the N10: overlooked by an abandoned but ornamental Glaoui kasbah and flanked by extensive palmeries that feel a world apart, with their groups of ksour built at intervals into the rocky hills above. Tinghir’s own ksar has been extensively restored in parts (one of its mosques has even been rebuilt in pink concrete), but the Aït el Haj Ali district, in the south, retains an appealing air of authenticity. The Monday souk, just west of town, is one of the largest in the south and a good place to pick up pottery from the palmery village of El Hart.

The lushness of Tinghir’s palmeries seems all the more special after the journey from Boulmane, a bleak 53km drive across desolate plains with only the hazy Jebel Saghro for company, the barren outlines of its mountains looming to the south like something from the steppes of Central Asia.

Tinghir and Todra palmeries

You can access the Tinghir palmery through the town’s ksar, or by heading east (right) off the N10 just beyond the Todra Gorge turning; for the Todra palmery, catch a taxi to the entrance to the Todra Gorge and head south into the palmery on foot from there

Lining both sides of the Oued Todra to the north of town, the Tinghir and Todra palmeries are major attractions in themselves, dotted with picturesque villages whose ksour and kasbahs are incised with extraordinarily complex patterns. Walk or ride on the west side of the valley for the best panoramas of the Todra palmery, a blanket of palms shielding olives, figs, almonds and alfalfa; the Hôtel Kenzi Saghro enjoys fine views of the Tinghir palmery from its terrace bar.

The small village of Afanour makes a pleasant destination for an afternoon ramble around the Tinghir palmery, with its restored pisé mosque, though a longer walk could take in Souk el Khemis (Thursday souk) and El Hart, 15km southeast of Tinghir and comprising El Hart n’Igourramen, with a marabout that is the focus of a June/July moussem, and the larger El Hart n’Iaamine, famous for its earthen pottery; the potters can be difficult to find without a guide, as they work out of their (unmarked) homes. The tombs of the Aït Atta chief, Hassou Ba Salem, and his son, Ali Ba Salem can be seen at nearby Taghia.

Ikelane Mosque

Signed off the N10, just north of the turning to the Todra Gorge; follow the white arrows for 300m • Daily 8am–noon & 3pm–sunset • 20dh • If no one’s around, call tel_icon 0659 907518

Despite its ancient appearance, the nineteenth-century Ikelane Mosque was a fully functioning focus of the community until a decade or so ago, until which time it served as both mosque and medersa for the people of Afanour – the ksar itself was only finally abandoned in 2002.

The whole complex was lovingly restored in 2007, and you can wander around the mud-brick ablutions room (complete with well) and peek into the prayer hall, with its characterfully cockeyed supporting pillars. The reward for climbing up on to the roof – once the Koranic school’s “classroom” – is far-reaching views across the palmery.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: TINGHIR

By bus All buses arrive at and depart from the main road, Av Mohammed V (the N10), next to the Pl Principale. The CTM office is inside the Pl Principale and the Supratours office ( tel_icon 0524 832978 or 0670 181238) is located along Av Hassan II.

Destinations Agadir (3 daily; 14hr); Boulmane du Dadès (1 CTM daily & others hourly; 45min); Casablanca (3 daily; 11hr); Er Rachidia (1 Supratours & 4 others daily; 4 hr); Erfoud (1 daily; 3hr 30min); Fez (3 daily; 15hr); Marrakesh (1 CTM, 2 Supratours & 7 others daily; 7hr 30min); Meknes (4 daily; 9hr); Merzouga (1 Supratours daily; 5hr); Ouarzazate (2 Supratours & 9 others daily; 2hr 30min); Rabat (3 daily; 12hr); Rissani (1 daily; 4hr); Tangier (1 daily; 16hr); Tinejdad (1 CTM, 1 Supratours & 10 others daily; 1hr); Zagora (2 daily; 6hr).

By grand taxi Taxis run regularly from Pl Principale to Boulmane du Dadès (40min), Kelaa M’Gouna (1hr 30min), Ouarzazate (2hr), Tinejdad (45min) and Er Rachidia (2hr), and occasionally to Erfoud (best to connect in Tinejdad) and Rissani (2hr 15min). It is possible to negotiate taxis to the Todra Gorge and Imilchil.

By truck Berber lorries also leave from Pl Principale, bound for villages in the Todra Gorge and beyond; after the Monday souk, numerous lorries set out for villages in the High Atlas, passing Imilchil on their way to Aghbala.

INFORMATION AND TOURS

Services There’s a Banque Populaire opposite Pl Principale, and a Crédit du Maroc and BMCE further south along the N10. The post office is on the northeastern corner of the municipal gardens.

Bike rental You can rent bikes (250dh/day) to explore the palmeries from Hôtel L’Avenir and Kasbah Lamrani.

Tours Hôtel Tomboctou runs a variety of local trips, from a 4hr trek in the Todra Gorge (220dh) to a full-day palmery excursion that visits the potteries at El Hart n’Iaamine (250dh); contact the highly recommended Suprateam Travel agency, which operates out of the hotel, for multi-day packages in the High Atlas or the desert (daily 8am–noon & 2–6pm; tel_icon 0524 888901, web_icon supratravel.com). You can also arrange trips for the gorge (or beyond) at Camping Ourti, near the Shell station on the N10 towards Boulmane, around 1km from the centre.

ACCOMMODATION

L’Avenir In the pedestrian zone near the central market tel_icon 0672 521389, web_icon lavenir-tinghir.com; map. A very decent little budget hotel above a cluster of shops, with good-value rooms and a great roof terrace – its very central location means possible noise; try to get rooms in the rear, facing quieter streets. An excellent source of information on climbing in the gorge; bike rental is available too (150dh/day). Terrace 30dh, double HB 400dh

Kasbah Lamrani On the N10, 1km west of the centre tel_icon 0524 835017, web_icon kasbahlamrani.com; map opposite. A large, upscale hotel in ersatz kasbah style, though the 22 well-equipped rooms have been smartly done and there are plenty of facilities, including a big pool, huge terraces, a bar and two decent restaurants. HB 840dh

L’Oasis Opposite the grand taxi bus stop in the central square, near the Banque Populaire tel_icon 0524 833670, web_icon hotelrestaurantoisisrose.com; map. A well-managed budget option facing the square, with basic but comfortable rooms and a roof terrace with panoramic views over the palmeries and mountains. Wi-fi connects in the restaurant downstairs. 150dh

Du Todra Av Hassan II tel_icon 0524 834249; map. Open since 1935, this place has seen better days and is in need of some TLC. Rooms are somewhat basic but its comfortable communal area, interesting decor and central location make it a passable and affordable overnight stop. A new terrace restaurant and bar was under construction at the time of writing. En suite 260dh, shared bathroom 95dh

author_pick Tomboctou Av Bir Anzarane tel_icon 0524 834604, web_icon hoteltomboctou.com; map. A kasbah built for Sheikh Bassou in 1944, tastefully converted by Moroccophile Spaniard Roger Mimó, Tomboctou is one of the country’s memorable small hotels. There’s a range of tasteful and cosy rooms (all cool in summer and heated in winter) and friendly staff on hand to help with exploring the local area. There’s also a pool in the courtyard, a good restaurant (set menus for 125dh) and a small bar. HB 730dh

EATING AND DRINKING

Tinghir isn’t a place for fancy dining, though you can get tasty meals at the Hôtel Tomboctou. There are plenty of cheap cafés and grills around the centre, where you can fill up at any time of day; stock up at the market on trekking and picnic food for trips up the gorge.

Kenzi Saghro On the hill north of the centre tel_icon 0524 834181, web_icon bougafer-saghro.com/saghro.htm; map. It’s worth venturing up to the Kenzi Saghro to enjoy a drink at the bar, or more accurately the bar’s panoramic terrasse, which enjoys suberb views across the Tinghir palmery. Daily 10am–10pm.

La Place Sur Terrasse On the N10, at the eastern end of the municipal gardens; map. A good blend of tourists and locals, all tucking into above-average tajines (50dh), brochettes (50dh) and the like, either at pavement tables or on the eponymous terrace. Daily 7am–9pm.

SHOPPING

Maison Berbère Next to the mosque, near Pl Principale tel_icon 0524 834359; map. Well-stocked branch of the excellent crafts chain, heaving with high-quality rugs, carpets and silver. Daily 8am–8pm.

The Todra Gorge

Few people visit the south without taking in the Todra Gorge, and with good reason. At its deepest and narrowest point, only 15km from Tinghir, this trench through the High Atlas presents an arresting spectacle, its gigantic rock walls changing colour to magical effect as the day unfolds. Faux guides hang around the gorge, but the hassle is generally low-key, and at weekends and holidays there’s a cheerfully laidback vibe – locals more than outnumber tourists, and families come to picnic by the river.

En route to the gorge proper, the road climbs along the west flank of the Todra palmery, a last, fertile shaft of land, narrowing at points to a ribbon of palms between the cliffs. The really enclosed section of the gorge itself extends for just a few hundred metres and should certainly be walked, even if you’re not going any further, for the drama of the scenery. However, if you do press on a little further, after a kilometre or so you’ll reach the beautiful family-run guesthouse and truly welcoming Berber hospitality of Dar Ayour.

WALKING IN THE TODRA GORGE

Most of the guides hanging around the gorge try to lead visitors on walks, but the following route (1hr 30min–2hr) can be hiked without assistance. Once through the cliffs that mark the narrowest section of the gorge, look for a side valley leading quite steeply left (south) from the roadside to a pronounced saddle between two peaks – you’ll be able to make out the path climbing on the left flank of the hillside. An easy ascent takes you to the pass (around 45min), from where you could head for the peaks for splendid views over the gorge, or follow the path dropping downhill to your left, keeping to a line of silvery-grey rocks that fringe a dry riverbed. After around thirty minutes, the path then climbs briefly to a second pass, from where it descends to Tizgui, a well-preserved ksar on the edge of the Todra palmery.

Tamtatoucht and beyond

The road up the Todra Gorge grows gradually less spectacular as you progress uphill, but with your own vehicle it’s worth pressing on to TAMTATOUCHT, 18km beyond the gorge, for a taste of the high mountains. A sizeable sprawl with a growing number of attractive hotels and cafés, the village is situated beneath a ring of beautiful peaks, and with local guidance you can head off for rewarding day-walks in the area.

Just beyond Tamtatoucht, a rough piste heads west to the Dadès Gorge, scaling huge slabs of unstable limestone (this is 4WD-only territory) on its way. Staying on the main route will bring you to Aït Hani, 15km further on and set in a high and barren landscape. From here, surfaced roads lead east to Rich (for Midelt) and north across the High Atlas to Imilchil and Aghbala – a superb journey, offering a real experience of Berber mountain life and some of the most exciting scenery in Morocco, in a succession of passes, mountains, rivers and gorges.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: THE TODRA GORGE

By bus Minibuses run regularly from Tinghir to Tamtatoucht (45min), beyond the gorge itself, and on to Aït Hani, 35km north of Tinghir.

By petit taxi Taxis ferry back and forth between Tinghir and the group of hotels just before the narrowing of the gorge, as well as further on to Tamtatoucht.

ACROSS THE ATLAS

By car The road north from Aït Hani (see map) was paved in 2011, shortening the journey to Agoudal dramatically and opening up the route to normal tourist cars. At Agoudal, you can join the surfaced road to Imilchil and Aghbala, which eventually seesaws down to Kasba Tadla and the N8 (the Beni Mellal–Fez road).

By grand taxi Grands taxis run from Tinghir to Imilchil (2hr 30min), where you can connect with other taxis heading further north.

By truck Not so long ago, travelling on a succession of Berber lorries was the only real way of negotiating this stretch of the Atlas, and without your own transport they can still provide a useful (and memorable) service. The lorries are timed to coincide with local village souks: promising days to start out are Wednesday (for Aït Hani’s Thursday souk) and Friday (for Imilchil’s Saturday souk), but there’s usually at least one lorry heading north each day. Setting out from Todra, the managers of the hotels at the mouth of the gorge usually have an idea of when the next one will pass through – and will help arrange your first ride.

INFORMATION

Money There are no banks between Tinghir and Kasba Tadla, so you’ll need to carry enough money for the journey. Don’t underestimate the expense of buying food in the mountains (up to twice the normal rate), nor the prices charged for rides in Berber lorries.

Police There are police stations at Aït Hani and Imilchil if you need serious help or advice on the state of the area’s pistes.

ACCOMMODATION

Given the traffic and crowds of tourists and hustlers who mill around them through the day, the cluster of small hotels at the foot of the cliffs are far from peaceful, and in winter can be very cold as the sun only reaches them at noon. However, things calm down considerably in the evening after the day-trippers have left, and their rooftops make ideal vantage points from which to admire the escarpments. The accommodation below is listed in the order you encounter it from Tinghir.

EN ROUTE TO THE GORGE

Camping Source des Poissons Sacrés 9km from Tinghir tel_icon 0629 889729, web_icon tinghir-bucolique.com; map. Flanking a particularly luxuriant stretch of the palmery, this is the best choice of a string of well-established campsites, with simple rooms and the option of rooftop sleeping or shady tent camping. It also boasts a spring flowing into a pool where a shoal of supposed sacred fish swim. Terrace 30dh, Berber tent 35dh, camping 60dh, double 140dh

author_pick Dar Ayour 15km from Tinghir tel_icon 0524 895271 or 0672 521251, web_icon darayour.com; map. A little gem, this brightly furnished guesthouse in the village of Tizgui has a range of individually designed rooms (it’s worth looking at a couple first, as they are very different), some with lovely little balconies. The cushion-strewn lounge is a great place to relax, as is the newly built swimming pool and garden that runs down to the Oued Todra. Breakfast and dinner (Moroccan/French set menus 100dh) are served on a gorgeous terrace. The gorge is just a 10min walk away. HB 600dh

La Vallée 15.5km from Tinghir tel_icon 0524 895126 or 0667 050810; map. Pick of the budget places just before the entrance to the gorge, offering simple en-suite rooms (and a few cheaper ones with shared facilities) that are generally cleaner than the competition. Popular with climbers, thanks to its logbook with useful route descriptions (climbing gear also available to rent). HB 300dh

IN THE GORGE

author_pick Le Festival 5km from the mouth of the gorge, 22km from Tinghir tel_icon 0661 267251 or 0673 454307, web_icon auberge-lefestival.com; map. This intimate solar-powered eco-auberge, the only accommodation between the mouth of the gorge and Tamtatoucht, has a truly rustic feel and provides an excellent base for climbers and trekkers. Apart from the simple, comfortable rooms on the first floor of the hotel, there are “tower” rooms (BB 500dh) in a castle-like building and five inventive en-suite “cave rooms” (HB 700dh) built into the rock below. Resident chef Mahjoub presents excellent meals from an open kitchen using produce from the garden (110dh set menu). A refreshingly different and atmospheric place to spend the night. 230dh

TAMTATOUCHT

Les Amis At the entrance to the village tel_icon 0670 234374 or 0677 556859, web_icon amistamtt.com. The nicest of the group of hotels that has sprung up at the entrance to town, with an ever-burgeoning number of clean and spacious rooms, hearty food and impromptu music sessions. Guests are welcome to sleep on the terrace during summer (150dh), which provides a stunning view of the wind-eroded landscape. Ali, one of the seven charming brothers who run the place, has over twenty years’ experience climbing in these parts and runs excellent climbs and treks. He has full climbing kit to rent – but note that he does not recommend this area for beginners. Tents 50dh, HB double 300dh

Auberge Baddou Near the entrance to the village tel_icon 0672 521389, 0606 477439, web_icon aubergebaddou.com. Just up the road from Les Amis, this friendly, brightly painted place has low-slung beds, hot showers and a sunny terrace with kidney-shaped pool. The owner is one of the most experienced guides in the region. Camping 35dh, HB double 250dh

CLIMBING IN THE TODRA GORGE

Climbers have been scaling the Todra Gorge’s craggy cliffs since 1977, when a group of Frenchmen opened the West Pillar way, and there are now over three hundred routes spread across thirty different sectors. The routes are fairly technical, with most ranging from French Grades 5 to 8 and varying in length from 25m to 300m, so tend to suit experienced climbers more – though the fairly newly developed Kilimanjaro section offers several routes for beginners.

A number of hotels and guides in town rent equipment and run climbing trips: try Hôtel L’Avenir or look out for Hassan Mouhajir, a vastly experienced climber who can normally be contacted through the Hôtel La Vallée near the start of the gorge. If you’re climbing on your own, it’s worth consulting the logbooks at various hotels in the gorge first, which will alert you to any problems on the rock – over the past few years, kids have been known to tamper with several access bolts, and even fixtures for top ropes.

FROM TOP KASHAH TELOUET; TODRA GORGE

East to the Tafilalt

After the comparatively populous area around the gorges, the run east to Er Rachidia, Erfoud and the great palmeries of the Tafilalt is a desolate one. The N10 to Er Rachidia (for Midelt and the road to Fez) is a fast but dull highway through barren country that’s broken only by the oasis of Goulmima. The more attractive R702 to Erfoud (for Merzouga) is, in parts, eerily impressive, with sections of the road occasionally submerged in sand.

The R702 branches off the N10 3km east of Tinejdad, from where it follows a course of lush oases – populated by the Aït Atta tribe, traditional warriors of the south who once controlled land and exacted tribute as far afield as the Drâa. After leaving the oasis at Mellab, which has a fine ksar, it is more or less continuous desert hammada until the beginning of the vast palmery of El Jorf, the Tafilalt’s largest ksar, on the approach to Erfoud. Over much of the journey from Mellab to Erfoud, the land is pockmarked by parallel lines of strange, volcanic-shaped humps – actually man-made entries to the old underground irrigation channels or khettara.

Tinejdad

TINEJDAD itself is one long street, but the town is distinguished by having two of the best museums in the region just a few kilometres to the west along the N10. There are further impressive kasbahs and ksour in the Ferkla oasis, which spreads to the north and west of Tinejdad: ask directions to Ksar Asrir, the one-time capital of the oasis, in the palmery north of the main road; or head to El Khorbat, an immaculate nineteenth-century ksar further towards Tinghir that is also home to the Musée des Oasis.

Musée Sources Lalla Mimouna

9km west of Tinejdad • Daily 8am–6pm • 50dh • tel_icon 0535 786798, web_icon sourcesmimouna.com

The extraordinary Musée Sources Lalla Mimouna achieves that rare combination of inspirational setting and absorbing content. Its owner, Zaid, has spent the last thirty years collecting artefacts including eighteenth- and nineteenth-century agricultural tools, pottery from Fez and Tamegroute, Berber jewellery and textiles, all displayed here in a beautiful complex of pisé buildings set around exposed underground springs. Don’t miss the wooden Koran tablets in the last room, or Zaid’s demonstration of a tanassa, an ancient Berber water clock that ensured every plot within the palmery received its equal share.

BERBER CEMETERIES

The long fields of pointed stones that you’ll see thrust into the ground, both here and elsewhere along the oasis routes are Berber cemeteries. Otherwise unidentified, they are usually walled off from the desert at the edge of the ksour: a wholly practical measure to prevent jackals from unearthing bodies – and in so doing, frustrating the dead’s entry to paradise.

Musée des Oasis

800m off the N10, 2km west of Tinejdad • Daily 9am–9pm; pick up the key from the restaurant at the Gîte El Khorbat • Guided tour 20dh • web_icon museedesoasis.com

Spread over three beautifully restored buildings in the heart of El Khorbat, the informative Musée des Oasis houses a collection of artefacts and photos showcasing rural life, from local festivals to the economy of the Salt Road. It’s all been thoughtfully put together by Spanish writer and architectural conservationist Roger Mimó, though the displays on the tribal system and the pisé construction underlying the region’s many kasbahs and ksour are particularly pertinent for travelling in the south.

Goulmima

Located roughly halfway along the N10 from Tinejdad to Er Rachidia, GOULMIMA is a long, straggling palmery, made up of some twenty or so scattered ksour. Its modern part, beside the highway, is signalled by the usual “triumphal” entrance and exit arches of the south but has little more within. If you’re interested in exploring the older half of town, ask directions along the complex network of tracks to the ksar of Gheris de Charis – Saïd Hansali, contactable through Les Palmiers, is an excellent English-speaking guide who can show you around the labyrinthine ksar and its adjacent palmery.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: EAST TO THE TAFILALT

By public transport Most buses heading east from Tinghir stop in the centre of Tinejdad (hourly; 1hr); buses bound for Er Rachidia also run via Goulmima (4 daily; 1hr 30min). Grands taxis pull into the eastern end of Tinejdad.

Services There are banks in both Tinejdad and Goulmima; the former also has a post office, the latter a tiny internet café at the Gheris hotel on Bd Hassan II (daily 8.30am–9pm).

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

TINEJDAD

author_pick Gîte El Khorbat 800m off the N10, 2km west of Tinejdad tel_icon 0535 880355, web_icon elkhorbat.com. A handful of rooms stylishly converted, with en-suite bathrooms and Berber textiles. You can also eat here at a swish little restaurant, with tasty local (including camel tajine) and Mediterranean dishes, as well as vegetarian options. The owner, Spanish writer and hotelier Roger Mimó, restored the adjacent kasbah that houses an impressive museum that depicts the region’s Berber, Jewish, and agricultural history (see Musée Sources Lalla Mimouna). BB 550dh

Reda On the Tinghir road on the western outskirts of town tel_icon 0535 880284. Clean café with a wicker-shaded roadside terrace, offering half a dozen inexpensive rooms upstairs; breakfast is also cheap at 20dh. 120dh

GOULMIMA

Gheris 101 Bd Hassan II tel_icon 0535 783167. Small, dusty hotel with standard rooms on the first floor and a ground-floor café whose pavement seating is much the best place in town to tuck into breakfast (25dh). 150dh

Maison d’Hôte Les Palmiers Turn right at the roundabout at the northern end of town and follow the signs tel_icon 0535 784004, web_icon palmiersgoulmima.com. Five homely rooms in the suburban house of a welcoming French-Moroccan couple, which opens out onto a large walled garden where you can camp. The owner organizes a variety of unique 4WD excursions and treks, including camping in the Gorges du Gheris and fossil-finding day-trips. Camping 100dh, double 210dh

< Back to The southern oases routes

The Ziz and the Tafilalt

The great date-palm oases of the Oued Ziz and the Tafilalt come as near as anywhere in Morocco to fulfilling Western fantasies about the Sahara. They do so by occupying the last desert stretches of the Ziz Valley: a route shot through with lush and amazingly cinematic scenes, from the river’s fertile beginnings at the Source Bleue, the springwater pool that is the oasis meeting point of Meski, to a climax amid the rolling sand dunes of Merzouga. Along the way, once again, are an impressive succession of ksour, and an extraordinarily rich palmery – historically the most important territory this side of the Atlas.

Strictly speaking, the Tafilalt (or Tafilalet) comprises the oases south of Erfoud, its principal town and gateway. Nowadays, however, the provincial capital is the French-built garrison town and administrative centre of Er Rachidia, a convenient pit stop heading north, through the great canyon of the Ziz Gorges, to Midelt and Fez.

THE TALE OF THE TAFILALT

The Tafilalt was for centuries the main Moroccan terminus of the caravan routes – the famous Salt Road across the Sahara to West Africa, by way of Timbuktu. Merchants travelling south carried weapons, cloth and spices, part of which they traded en route at Taghaza (in modern-day Mali) for local salt, the most sought-after commodity in West Africa. They would continue south, and then make the return trip from the old Kingdom of Ghana, to the west of Timbuktu, loaded with gold (one ounce of gold was exchanged for one pound of salt at the beginning of the nineteenth century) and, until European colonists brought an end to the trade, slaves.

These were long journeys: Taghaza was twenty days by camel from the Tafilalt, Timbuktu sixty, and merchants might be away for more than a year if they made a circuit via southern Libya (where slaves were still sold up until the Italian occupation in 1911). They also, of course, brought an unusual degree of contact with other cultures, which ensured the Tafilalt a reputation as one of the most unstable parts of the Moroccan empire, frequently riven by religious dissent and separatism.

Dissent began when the Filalis, as the Tafilalt’s predominantly Berber population is known, adopted the Kharijite heresy, a movement that used a Berber version of the Koran (orthodox Islam forbids any translation of God’s direct Arabic revelation to Mohammed). Separatist tendencies date back much further though, to the eighth century, when the region prospered as the independent kingdom of Sijilmassa.

In the fifteenth century, the region again emerged as a centre of trouble, fostering the marabout uprising that toppled the Wattasid dynasty, but it is with the establishment of the Alaouite (or, after their birthplace, Filali) dynasty that the Tafilalt is most closely associated. Mounted from a zaouia in Rissani by Moulay Rachid, and secured by his successor Moulay Ismail, this is the dynasty that still holds power in Morocco, through Mohammed VI. The Tafilalt also proved a major centre of resistance to the French, who were limited to their garrison at Erfoud and an outpost of the Foreign Legion at Ouled Zohra until 1931.

THE TAFILALT TODAY

Deprived of its contacts to the south, the Tafilalt today is something of a backwater, with a population estimated at around eighty thousand and declining, as the effects of drought and Bayoud disease have taken hold on the palms. Most of the population are smallholding farmers, with thirty or so palms for each family, from which they could hope to produce around a thousand kilos of dates in a reasonable year – with the market price of hybrid dates around 15dh a kilo, there are certainly no fortunes to be made.

Er Rachidia and around

ER RACHIDIA was established by the French as a regional capital – when it was known as Ksar es Souk, after their Foreign Legion fort. Today, it represents more than anywhere else the new face of the Moroccan south: a shift away from the old desert markets and trading routes to a modern, urban centre. The town’s role as a military outpost, originally against tribal dissidence, particularly from the Aït Atta, was maintained after independence by the threat of territorial claims from Algeria, and there is still a significant garrison here – not that you’d ever really know that from the relaxed air that pervades its orderly grid of tidy streets.

Meski and the Source Bleue

Signed off the N13 17km south of Er Rachidia • 5dh • Coming by bus, ask to get out by the turn-off, from where it’s a 400m walk down to the pool (note, though, that going on to Erfoud or back to Er Rachidia can be tricky, since most of the buses pass by full and don’t stop); a petit taxi from Er Rachidia costs 7dh

The small palm grove of Meski is watered by a natural springwater pool: the famous Source Bleue, extended by the French Foreign Legion and long a postcard image and favourite campsite for travellers. It’s set on the riverbank, below a huge ruined ksar on the opposite bank and with several of the springs channelled into a naturally heated swimming pool. The fish-frequented pool is perfectly safe to swim in, though as it’s a popular hangout for local boys, women bathers may feel self-conscious; be warned, though, that the river is likely infected with bilharzia.

Outside midsummer, you might also consider walking part of the way downstream in the valley bottom, southeast of Meski. The superb four-hour trek along the Oued Ziz will bring you to Oulad Aïssa, a ksar with fabulous views over the upper Tafilalt.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: ER RACHIDIA AND AROUND

By bus The bus station is on Pl Principale, just south of Av Moulay Ali Cherif, the main street (highway) that runs all the way through town.

Destinations Casablanca (1 CTM & 2 others daily; 10hr); Erfoud (1 CTM, 2 Supratours & 12 others daily; 1hr–1hr 30min); Fez (1 CTM, 1 Supratours & 10 others daily; 7hr 15min–8hr); Figuig (2 daily, via Bouarfa; 7hr); Marrakesh (1 CTM & 1 Supratours daily; 10hr); Meknes (1 CTM & 5 others daily; 5hr 30min); Midelt (3 CTM, 1 Supratours & 7 others daily; 2hr); Ouarzazate (1 CTM, 1 Supratours & 5 others daily; 4hr 50min–5hr 30min); Rich (8 daily; 1hr 15min); Rissani (1 CTM & 5 others daily; 2hr); Tinejdad (2 daily; 1hr 30min); Tinghir (1 CTM & 8 others daily; 2–3hr).

By grand taxi There’s a large rank southeast of the bus station, from where grands taxis make fairly frequent runs to Rissani (1hr 30min), Erfoud (1hr; you can get dropped off at the Meski turning, for the same price), Merzouga (2hr), Tinejdad (1hr 30min), Tinghir (2hr) and Midelt (2hr). Taxis will go to Fez and beyond, but best to negotiate price with a group.

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

Despite its size, Er Rachidia has a limited choice of decent hotels within the city centre and if you want to camp, the Source Bleue at Meski is the nearest possibility. A couple of the hotels listed below host decent restaurants, and there are also many good grills and cafés clustered around the centre. The covered market is a reliable source of fresh fruit and vegetables.

Auberge Tinit 3km west of the city centre on the N10 to Tinejdad tel_icon 0535 791759, web_icon auberge-tinit.info. Squat kasbah-style complex with spotless en-suite rooms, an on-site restaurant (menus from 90dh) and a nice central swimming pool. BB 500dh

M’Daghra 92 Rue M’Daghra tel_icon 0535 574047. Much the best deal in this category, with larger-than-average en-suite rooms (avoid the ones at the front of the building, which can get noisy) and a café. 182dh

Le Riad 4km west of the city centre on the N10 to Tinejdad tel_icon 0535 791006 or 0535 791007, web_icon hotelleriad.com. The most upscale option in town (or at least near it), with comfortable enough rooms – each with a small sitting area and fitted with all mod cons – facing into a courtyard with a huge swimming pool and bar. It’s pricey for what you get, though: service can be half-hearted, and you’re best off driving into town to eat. BB 800dh

author_pick Vallée Ziz Rue El Houria, off Av Moulay Ali Cherif tel_icon 0535 573076, web_icon hotelvalleeziz.com. A spotless and brand-new three-star hotel with a light and modern (if business-like) feel. All 21 rooms come with en-suite bathrooms, a/c and satellite TVs; reliably good value and a perfect overnight stopoff. BB 600dh

Zerda Boucherie & Restaurant (Formerly Restaurant Merzouga) Av Moulay Ali Cherif tel_icon 0535 570306. Dinky restaurant in a pleasant setting diagonally opposite the covered market, attracting savvy travellers with its delicious brochettes (40dh with chips) and bargain omelettes (15dh). Daily 6am–12pm.

CAMPING

Source Bleue Meski, 17km south of Er Rachidia tel_icon 0671 560144, email_icon momobleue@hotmail.com. Shaded by bamboo, palms and tamarisks, the famous Source Bleue campsite is well maintained by the local commune of M’Daghra, with a pool, a decent shower block, a couple of friendly little café-restaurants and the inevitable souvenir shops. 30dh

The Ziz Valley

Trailing the final section of the Oued Ziz, the road south of Er Rachidia (the N13) is one of the most pleasing of all the southern routes – a dry red belt of desert just beyond Meski, it suddenly drops into the great Ziz Valley, a massive palmery and a prelude of the Tafilalt, leading into Erfoud. Away from the road, ksour are almost continuous, glimpsed through the trees and high walls enclosing gardens and plots of cultivated land.

If you want to stop and take a closer look, the ksar at AOUFOUSS, 40km from Er Rachidia and the site of a Thursday souk, is perhaps the most accessible, offering a lovely glimpse of life within the palmeries. Drivers can follow a scenic “Circuit Touristique” through the area around the village, while a stunning viewpoint off the N13 overlooks the green river of palm trees running through the valley, dotted with crumbling kasbahs. Alternatively, Maadid, off to the left of the N13 as you approach Erfoud, is also interesting – a really massive ksar, which is considered to be the start of the Tafilalt proper.

TOURS: THE ZIZ VALLEY

Guides Abdel Karim tel_icon 0662 294386 or 0667 768907, web_icon tataziztrekking.com. Known locally as Tata, Abdel leads treks into the surrounding kasbah-filled valley and palm groves, and can arrange desert trips into Erg Chebbi alongside 4WD excursions into nomadic areas. He is president of a tourism association in Aoufouss, and also has a background as a farmer with a degree in animal husbandry.

ACCOMMODATION

The following places are all in or around Aoufouss: some are on the main road through the valley (the N13), and some are on (or reached via) the byroad through the village itself, clearly signed from a turning on the N13. Directions below assume you’re driving southbound along the N13, towards Erfoud.

Gîte dans la Palmerie N13, 8km before the turn-off to Aoufouss tel_icon 0661 769804, web_icon danslapalmeraie.com. Simple rooms with patchwork quilts, plus a four-person apartment with its own large terrace (750dh). Laze in hammocks or relax in the shady garden. You can sleep on the terrace if you can take your eyes off the palmery views for long enough. Terrace 90dh, double 300dh

author_pick Gîte Dar Ul From the N13 take the right turn for Aoufouss, then the second right turn (signposted) in the village over a small bridge – then keep looking for signs tel_icon 0668 158553 or 0634 564242, web_icon gitedarul.com. This clean, well-managed gîte offers simple but charming rooms in a peaceful location. Owner Hassan’s friendly hospitality makes for a comfortable stay. The family farms organically and serves up delightfully fresh meals in the restaurant. A little tricky to find, but if you call ahead Hassan will come and meet you at the turning into Aoufouss. HB 500dh

author_pick Maison d’Hôtes Sahara Aoufouss byroad, 5km from the turning off the N13 tel_icon 0666 185639, web_icon maisondhotessahara.com. Perched up against the side of the valley, this Berber family-run guesthouse provides welcoming hospitality alongside amazing views over the palm groves. A small carpet weaving cooperative works from inside the hotel and walks to the kasbahs can be arranged, as well as harvesting fruit and vegetables in the oasis with locals. All rooms are en suite with a/c. HB 600dh

Maison d’Hôte Zouala N13, 30km south of Er Rachidia and 15km before Aoufouss tel_icon 0535 578182 or 0672 144633, web_icon zouala.com. Pleasant little guesthouse in a Berber farmhouse with traditional en-suite rooms and hot showers – and delicious evening meals served in a vast salon. Trickier to find than the Gîte dans la Palmerie, but worth seeking out for the warm welcome and tranquil location. HB 600dh

CAMPING

Camping Tissirt Aoufouss byroad, on the right-hand side shortly before it rejoins the N13 tel_icon 0662 141378, email_icon tissirtziz@yahoo.fr. Tucked into the heart of the palm grove and immersed by fig, olive, almond and palm trees, this campsite is well run and has all the usual amenities. Two simple rooms offer an alternative to camping. Camping 30dh, double room HB 250dh

Erfoud

ERFOUD, like Er Rachidia, is largely a French-built administrative centre, and its desultory frontier-town atmosphere fulfils little of the promise of the Tafilalt. Arriving from Er Rachidia, however, you get a first, powerful sense of proximity to the desert, with frequent sandblasts ripping through the streets, and total darkness in the event of a (not uncommon) electrical blackout. Erfoud once functioned as a launchpad for trips to the dunes at Merzouga, but has been left high and dry with the surfacing of the Rissani–Merzouga road. Now, unless they’re here for the date festival, it tends to be bypassed by travellers who arrive early enough in the day to pick up onward transport.

THE FESTIVAL OF DATES

As with all such events, Erfoud’s lively Festival of Dates, held over three days in early October, is a mixture of symbolism, sacred rites and entertainment – traditionally, dates bring good luck, whether tied to a baby’s arm (to ensure a sweet nature), thrown at a bride (to encourage fertility) or offered to strangers (to signify friendship).

On the first morning of the festival, prayers are said at the zaouia of Moulay Ali Shereef at Rissani, followed in the evening by a fashion show of traditional costumes: a pride of embroidered silk, silver and gold headdresses, sequins and elaborate jewellery. Then there are processions, camel races and, on the last night, traditional music and spiritual songs.

Fossils D’Erfoud

500m out of town on the road towards Er Rachidia • Daily 8am–6.30pm • Free • tel_icon 0535 576020 or 0668 477767, web_icon fossilesderfoud.com

Erfoud’s only point of (minor) interest is the local marble industry, which produces the attractive black marble that adorns every bar top and reception desk in town. Uniquely, the high-quality stone contains hundreds of little fossils – mostly nautilus and cone-shaped orthoceras – which you can see being slowly revealed in 3D at the Fossils D’Erfoud. It takes an hour for hefty-looking saws to cut the huge blocks into workable chunks, which are then carved, and polished up at smaller hand-held machines.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: ERFOUD

By bus CTM ( tel_icon 0535 576886) and Supratours ( 0535 577318) buses depart from their offices on Av Mohammed V; others, including local buses and minibuses for Merzouga (you may have to change at Rissani), leave from the gare routière which lies just outside of Erfoud on the road towards Tinghir.

Destinations Er Rachidia (1 CTM, 2 Supratours & 12 others daily; 1hr–1hr 30min); Fez (1 CTM & 1 Supratours daily; 8hr 35min–9hr 45min); Marrakesh (1 Supratours daily; 11hr); Meknes (1 CTM & 1 Supratours daily; 7hr 20min–8hr); Merzouga (2 Supratours & 4 others daily; 1hr–1hr 30min); Midelt (1 CTM & 1 Supratours daily; 3hr–3hr 20min); Ouarzazate (1 Supratours & 4 others daily; 6hr 30min); Rissani (1 CTM, 1 Supratours & 5 others daily; 30min–1hr); Tinghir (2 daily; 3hr 30min).

By grand taxi Grands taxis leave from opposite the post office on Av Moulay Ismail, making fairly frequent runs to Er Rachidia (1hr 30min), Rissani (30min) and Merzouga (1hr).

Services Most of what you may need – banks, internet, post office, the hospital and a little supermarket (daily 8am–8pm) – can be found along Av Moulay Ismail.

ACCOMMODATION

Canne 85 Av Moulay Hassan tel_icon 0535 578696, web_icon hotelrestaurantcannes.com. Good value, if noisy, and run by a team of efficient women, the dated Canne has spotlessly clean a/c rooms and a lively café below. 210dh

Kasbah Tizimi 2km west of town on the R702 to Tinghir tel_icon 0535 576179 or 0535 577374, web_icon kasbahtizimi.com. A modern pisé building featuring traditional wood beams, ironwork and immaculate tiling. The rooms are attractively decorated and ranged around patios and a flower-filled garden, and there’s a large pool, bar and spacious terrace. BB 685dh

Merzouga 114 Av Mohammed V tel_icon 0535 576532. Best of the rock-bottom options, this hotel has reasonably clean en-suite rooms with hot showers, or you can sleep on the terrace for next to nothing. Breakfast is decent value at just 20dh. Terrace 25dh, double 80dh

Xaluca Arfoud 7km north of town on the N13 to Er Rachidia tel_icon 0535 578450 or 0661 251394, web_icon xaluca.com. Smart pisé hotel complex, part of a small Spanish-owned chain, offering good value at this level. Swish rooms, opening onto small courtyards, are dominated by pastel colours, and the furniture, decor and fittings make use of regional arts and crafts – all the bathrooms are made from the local fossil-filled marble. The poolside bar is open to non-residents. BB 900dh

CAMPING

Camping Tifina 8km south of town, on the N13 to Rissani tel_icon 0610 231415, web_icon tifina-maroc.com. Far more appealing than Erfoud’s shabby municipal campsite is this well-appointed complex spread across several acres, with camping, Berber tents or West African-style bungalows. Facilities include a nice pool, jacuzzi, hammam, BBQ area and bar. Set menus are priced at 90dh. Camping 80dh, Berber tent 220dh, bungalow 340dh

EATING AND DRINKING

Most cafés and restaurants are found on Av Mohammed V and around Pl des FAR. Try to sample the local specialities: khalia, a spicy stew of mutton or kid, flavoured with over forty spices and served in a tajine with vegetables, egg and parsley; or madfouna, a wheat-flour base topped with onions, tomatoes, olives, minced lamb and cheese that is southern Morocco’s answer to pizza.

author_pick Dadani Av Mohammed V tel_icon 0535 577958 or 0670 361229, email_icon restaurantdadani@hotmail.com. Grab a drink and some patisserie at this congenial corner café with a large terrace, or head to the upstairs restaurant for Moroccan staples (including khalia) prepared with fresh ingredients and served in huge portions. Good coffee, too. Mains from around 45dh. Daily 6am–10pm.

Des Dunes Av Moulay Ismail tel_icon 0535 576793, web_icon restaurantdesdunes.com. Smart little restaurant with a welcome greeting: the mouthwatering waft of pizza freshly baked in a wood-fired oven. Moroccan is also on the menu, but it’s difficult to look past their speciality, with nine varieties to choose from – though given the surroundings you should probably go for heart of palm (60dh). Daily 9am–10pm.

Rissani

RISSANI stands at the last visible point of the Oued Ziz; beyond it, steadily encroaching on the present town and its ancient ksour ruins, begins the desert. From the eighth to the fourteenth centuries, this was the site of the first independent kingdom of the south, Sijilmassa, traces of which survive to the west of town. Much later, it became the first capital of the Tafilalt, and served for centuries as the last stop on the great caravan routes – the British journalist Walter Harris reported thriving gold and slave auctions in Rissani as late as the 1890s.

A quarter of today’s population still live in a large seventeenth-century ksar, in addition to which there is just Place al Massira and a single street, lined by the usual administrative buildings. It’s a quiet town, coming to life only for its famous souk (Tues, Thurs & Sun), which can often turn up a fine selection of Berber jewellery, including the crude, almost iconographic designs of the desert.

Centre d’ Etudes et de Recherches Alaouites

On the main road (N13) through town • tel_icon 0535 770305

Operating out of an eighteenth-century kasbah at the middle of town, the Centre d’Etudes et de Recherches Alaouites (CERA) is mainly concerned with the study and restoration of the Tafilalt’s many significant kasbahs and ksour. It does, however, house a comprehensive library of some five thousand books and a small museum containing archeological finds from Sijilmassa, including ceramics (pots from Nigeria were uncovered here) and coins – a useful introduction given the scant remains at the site itself.

Sijilmassa

Clearly visible at the beginning of the last century, the ruins of Sijilmassa have all but vanished, its crumbling buildings methodically worn away by the relentless shifting of the sands. The most accessible and visible remains of this once-powerful kingdom are to be found a little to the west of Rissani, on the east bank of the Oued Ziz, and within the right angle formed by the N13 as it turns east to run into town – here you can trace the walls of a mosque with an early mihrab facing south, an adjoining medersa and the waffle-like walls of the citadel, topped by towers on the length by the river.

Just south of El Mansouriya, again on the east bank of the Oued Ziz, you can still see the gate that marked the ancient city’s northern extremity. Known locally as the Bab er Rih, it is thought to date from the Merenid period but has certainly undergone restoration since then.

THE BERBER KINGDOM

The ancient city of Sijilmassa was founded in 757 AD by Berber dissidents, who had broken away from orthodox Islam, and until its collapse under civil unrest in 1393, dominated southern Morocco. The kingdom’s wealth was built on the fertility of the oases south of Erfoud, a string of lush palmeries that are watered by the Oued Gheris and Oued Ziz, which led to Sijilmassa’s description as the “Mesopotamia of Morocco”. Harvests were further improved by diverting the Ziz, just south of modern-day Erfoud, to the west of its natural channel, thus bringing it closer to the Gheris and raising the water table. Such natural wealth was reinforced by Sijilmassa’s trading role on the Salt Road to West Africa, which persisted until the coast was opened up to sea trade, particularly by the Portuguese, in the fifteenth century – coins from Sijilmassa in this period have been found as far afield as Aqaba in Jordan.

Most historians agree that Sijilmassa stretched for 14km, from just south of El Mansouriya to a point near the ksar of Gaouz, on the “Circuit Touristique”, though opinion is still divided over its plan: some see it as a fragmented city, comprising several dispersed ksour, much as it was after the civil war at the end of the fourteenth century, others as a single, elongated city, spread along the banks of the rivers.

The garrison underwent a major restoration by the Alaouites, who brought Sijilmassa to renewed prominence as the provincial capital of the Tafilalt in the seventeenth century, but it was destroyed – this time for good – by the Aït Atta in the early part of the nineteenth century.

In the mid-1990s, the ruins were on the radar of the World Monuments Fund as an endangered site. But despite a decade of excavation (finds of which can be seen at the Alaouite research centre), no further preservation work has been carried out since 1998, and the ruins continue to erode into the dry earth of the Tafilalt.

With thanks to Dr Ron Messier

The Circuit Touristique

The circuit is signed off the N13 1.5km west of Rissani but is better driven in a clockwise direction, starting at Ksar Akbar and the Zaouia of Moulay Ali Shereef; from Pl al Massira in Rissani, head towards Merzouga and turn right at the first roundabout (about 1.5km from the square)

The local tourist office has strung together a number of well-preserved medieval ksour to the south of Rissani on a waymarked 21km “Circuit Touristique” through the palmeries. While no longer the bustling communities they once were, the ksour make an interesting and thought-provoking excursion, especially beautiful in the golden light of sunset.

Ksar Akbar

Heading clockwise around the circuit, the first ksar you’ll encounter, about 2.5km southeast of Rissani, is the nineteenth-century Ksar Akbar, an awesomely grandiose ruin that was once a palace in exile, housing the unwanted members of the Alaouite family and the wives of the dead sultans. Most of the structure, which still bears considerable traces of its former decoration, dates from the beginning of the nineteenth century.

Zaouia of Moulay Ali Shereef

2km southeast of Rissani • Daily 8am–7pm; mosque and tomb closed to non-Muslims • Free

Standing proud beside Ksar Akbar is the popular but peaceful Zaouia of Moulay Ali Shereef, the original Alaouite stronghold and mausoleum of the dynasty’s founder. It was from this zaouia (which is still an important national shrine) that the ruling Alaouite dynasty launched its bid for power, conquering first the oases of the south, then the vital Taza Gap, before triumphing finally in Fez and Marrakesh. It has had several face-lifts in its time – most significantly when it was rebuilt in 1965 following the flooding of the Ziz – and owes its modern appearance to the latest round of aesthetic tweaking, in 1997. Although you’re unable to venture beyond the central courtyard, you can still make out the tomb from the entrance, and peer into the mosque next door.

Ksar Oualed Abdelhalim

A second royal ksar, Ksar Oualed Abdelhalim, stands 2km further down the road. Although notable for its huge ramparts and the elaborate decorative effects of its blind arches and unplastered brick patterning, it’s unfortunately in a pretty poor state of repair. A ksar was first built here in the fourteenth century, though the current ruins date from 1846, when it was constructed to house the governor of the Tafilalt.

Asserghine, Tabassant and Tingheras

The circuit continues round, passing Asserghine and half a dozen or so other ksour on its way to Tabassant, to the left and some distance from the road. On the way back up to Rissani, a turning to the left leads to Tingheras, perhaps the most interesting ksar on the entire route, set on a knoll and enjoying fine views over the Tafilalt.

Ksar al Fida

2km northeast of Rissani • Closed for renovation at the time of writing but normally daily 8am–7pm • Donation expected • Coming by car, follow signs from the N13 towards Mezguida

The nineteenth-century Ksar al Fida served as the caïd’s palace until 1965. Today, the welcoming owner is normally on hand to give you a whistle-stop tour of the building in a mixture of French and Arabic; even if you speak neither language, you’ll get his drift. Unfortunately most of its antique items have been moved to Er Rachidia, but it’s still well worth a visit.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: RISSANI

By bus CTM ( tel_icon 0535 770238) services run from their office in busy Pl al Massira; private buses pull into the bus station 500m to the north. Minibus vans leave for Merzouga hourly from the square.

Destinations Er Rachidia (1 CTM, 1 Supratours & 5 others daily; 1hr 45min–2hr); Erfoud (1 CTM, 1 Supratours & 4 others daily; 30min–1hr); Fez (1 CTM & 1 Supratours daily; 9hr 15min–10hr); Marrakesh (1 Supratours & 3 others daily; 12hr); Meknes (1 CTM & 1 Supratours daily; 8–9hr); Merzouga (2 Supratours daily; 30min); Midelt (1 CTM & 1 Supratours daily; 4hr); Ouarzazate (1 Supratours; 7hr 30min); Tinghir (1 Supratours daily; 4hr 30min); Zagora (1 daily; 6hr).

By grand taxi Taxis to and from Erfoud (30min) use a rank opposite Hôtel Sijilmassa, just north of Pl al Massira; taxis for Merzouga (30min) leave from opposite the pharmacy on the corner of the square.

INFORMATION AND TOURS

Money Both the Banque Populaire and Crédit Agricole on Pl al Massira have ATMs (the last chance to get money out before the Sahara, as there are no ATMs in Merzouga).

Guides You can explore the Circuit Touristique outside town with the help of the knowledgeable Driss Youssoufi Alaui (1hr 50dh; 4hr 150dh) or take in the wider area on a day tour (200dh); he can usually be found at the Maison Tafilalet co-op, just opposite the Zaouia of Moulay Ali Shereef, or ring in advance on tel_icon 0661 872975. Additionally, you can contact Abdel Karim who can set up guided and driving tours of the region.

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

With the dunes just down the road, few travellers spend the night in Rissani, instead visiting on a day-trip from Merzouga (or Erfoud) or taking in the ksour en route elsewhere. Those that do stop over tend to stay at places just outside of town, on the N13 to Erfoud – the small hotels in the centre are generally grubby and overpriced. Eating options are equally limited: head for the area around the souk for standard café food.

El Manzah Opposite the Ksar Ouled Abdelhalim, along the Circuit Touristique tel_icon 0662 061493 or 0622 239543. A peaceful place to stop off for lunch when touring the Circuit Touristique, conveniently sited next to one of its main highlights. The brochettes are tasty, but of course the madfouna is a speciality. Daily 8am–8pm.

Kasbah Ennasra Next to the Ziz petrol station 3km north of town, on the N13 to Erfoud tel_icon 0535 774403, web_icon hotelkasbahennasra.com. Rissani’s best luxury option: highlights include four-poster beds (in spacious rooms), an attractive patio and swimming pool, and a first-class restaurant (set menus at 150dh). Non-residents can drop by for lunch or dinner (90–120dh menu, depending on the season) and a dip in the pool. HB 750dh

Merzouga and the Erg Chebbi

“No one who has stayed in the Sahara for awhile is quite the same as when he came… Once a man has been under the spell of the vast, luminous, silent country, no other place is quite strong enough for him, no other surroundings can provide the supremely satisfying sensation of existing in the midst of something that is absolute.”

Their Heads are Green and their Hands are Blue, Paul Bowles

The Erg Chebbi dunes at MERZOUGA are indisputably one of the great sights of Morocco. Rising to 150m in places, these giant sand hills lining the Algerian border may not be as imposing nor as extensive as some in North Africa, but they come closer than anywhere else in the country (at least, anywhere else that’s relatively accessible) to fulfilling most people’s expectations of what a true desert should be. The result, though, is that Merzouga can sometimes feel less like the désert profond than a Saharan circus, with groups of luxuriously turbaned tourists posing for photographs with hommes bleus under the acacia trees or astride camels.

To stand any chance of experiencing the scenery in its essential state, you should aim to come here out of season (Jan & Feb are the quietest months) and choose your spot very carefully. At the height of summer, the few visitors who brave the fierce heat to reach Merzouga are mostly Moroccans, attracted by the reputed power of the sands to cure rheumatism. Sufferers are buried up to the neck for a few minutes in the afternoon – any longer (and earlier) than that can be fatal.

CAMEL RIDES AROUND MERZOUGA

Having crossed Morocco to stand at the edge of the Sahara, you can hardly leave without hopping onto a camel and heading off into the dunes. Rides range from a two-hour lollop over the crescents to catch the sunset (100dh) to a fifteen-night expedition deep into the desert (4500dh); most people opt for an overnight stay at a Berber camp (300–400dh), where you’ll enjoy the clearest of night skies and a memorable sunrise the following day. A cameleer, meals, tea and blankets are included in the price, but it’s advisable to bring extra clothes and a sleeping bag, as nights can get excruciatingly cold. If you’ve never been to the desert before, think about starting with a short trip before signing up for longer journeys – the feeling of pure isolation, surrounded by a seemingly never-ending sea of sand, is an incredible experience (described as a “baptism of solitude” by Paul Bowles), but it’s not to everyone’s taste.

You can arrange a trip through your hotel or at one of the other auberges around Merzouga; Kasbah Mohayut and Nomad Palace are particularly recommended, or you could contact Best of Merzouga ( tel_icon 0661 144620, web_icon bestofmerzouga.com), who specialize in longer trips and tours from Marrakesh and Fez. Each outfit works its own jealously guarded routes and camps – the smaller, more expensive setups (usually no more than six people) are more atmospheric but less comfortable than the permanent camps – but it can be a matter of luck whether you hit a crowded section of the dunes or not. Generally, the further from the main group of auberges you go, the more chance you have of avoiding other camel trains and (even more importantly) 4WD drivers and quad bikers, though their noisy antics have been more limited in recent years. Note, too, that the longer multi-day trips stop operating after February, after which time it just gets too hot.

The dunes

Rising dramatically from a plain of blackened hammada, the dunes of the Erg Chebbi stretch 28km from north to south and are 7km across at their widest point – a relatively modest sea of sand compared with the great Erg Occidental of southern Algeria but still an impressive taste of the Sahara’s grandeur. The highest dunes are those near, or just south of, Merzouga itself, peaking with the aptly named Grande Dune de Merzouga, a golden mountain recognizable – in addition to being the tallest dune around – by the distinctive tamarisk tree at its base. The dunes are spectacular at any time of day, but early morning and late afternoon are the best times to view them; to find a relatively peaceful ridge free of footprints, however, you’ll have to be prepared to walk for an hour, or else arrange a camel trip.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: MERZOUGA AND THE ERG CHEBBI

Thanks to the paved road from Rissani, getting to Merzouga is easy these days, though getting to your hotel isn’t quite so smooth. Pistes – marked with posts – peel east off the main road at regular intervals (at junctions flagged by signboards); if you’re driving in a standard rental car, don’t be tempted to improvise, as there are many patches of soft sand where you might easily get stuck. To avoid the faux guides who greet buses and grands taxis, book your accommodation in advance and try to get your hotel to meet you on arrival.

By bus Supratours make the long journey down from Fez and across the south from Ouarzazate, via Tinghir, Erfoud and Rissani, but there are also local buses from Erfoud and Rissani as well as hourly minibus vans from the latter.

Destinations Erfoud (2 Supratours & 4 others daily; 1hr–1hr 30min); Fez (1 Supratours daily; 10hr 45min); Marrakesh (1 Supratours daily; 12hr 30min); Ouarzazate (1 Supratours daily; 8hr); Rissani (2 Supratours daily; 30–45min); Tinghir (1 Supratours daily; 5hr).

By grand taxi Grands taxis regularly ply the route from Rissani to Merzouga village (30min), leaving from the corner of Pl al Massira.

ACTIVITIES AND TOURS

Camel rides The most popular activity in Merzouga can be arranged at hotels and auberges, or with tour company Best of Merzouga.

Sandboarding You can go sandboarding on the dunes south of the village; Le Grand Dépôt de Merzouga, 300m down the street from Café des Amis, on the corner of the main road through Merzouga village, rents boards (and skis) for 100dh a day ( tel_icon 0535 576605, email_icon ammar_karraoui@hotmail.com).

Guided tours Several hotels run guided tours of the oasis at the end of Hassi Labiad or to nearby villages to listen to Gnaoua music. Additionally, you can contact Abdel Karim who can set up guided and driving tours of the region.

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

Merzouga’s accommodation is strung out over a wide area, nestled at the foot of the dunes in a straggling line; much of it is actually around Hassi Labiad, the small village north of Merzouga proper. It helps to know where your chosen hotel actually is before you arrive, as the final leg off the N13 from Rissani is across rough hammada and can be a long one if you stay at the northernmost group of hotels, some of which lie a considerable way from the tarmac. Outside high season, rates are surprisingly low, mainly because most places make their real money on camel trips. With just a few unremarkable café-restaurants to choose from, you’ll get a much better deal if you eat at your hotel, paying an inclusive half- or full-board rate. The accommodation below is listed in the order you encounter it from Rissani.

author_pick Auberge Derkaoua 23km north of Merzouga village; 5km from the main road tel_icon 0535 577140 or 0661 343677, web_icon aubergederkaoua.com. Beautiful pisé complex in traditional style, set amid olive, almond and fruit orchards on the northern fringes of Erg Chebbi. The traditionally decorated en-suite rooms are very comfortable, but you’ll probably want to spend more time lazing in the lovely garden, which has a pool and a pretty terrace restaurant. Closed Jan, July & Aug. BB 700dh

Auberge Kasbah Mohayut 4.5km north of Merzouga village; 2km from the main road tel_icon 0666 039185, web_icon mohayut.com. Welcoming duneside kasbah, run with a smile by Moha and his cousin, whose cheerily decorated rooms flank shady corridors or are dotted around a pleasant pool. You can tuck into tasty meals in an attractive tree-dappled courtyard; there’s a good buffet breakfast, too. Organizes a variety of camel rides as well as more unusual trips, such as a mule-back tour of the Hassi Labiad oasis. HB 700dh

Auberge l’Oasis 6.5km north of Merzouga village, at Hassi Labiad; 2.5km from the main road tel_icon 0535 577321 or 0661 739041, web_icon aubergeoasismerzouga.com. Jolly little setup with simple en-suite rooms around a central garden, and the option of bunking down on the roof terrace or pitching a tent (with light, water and power). Bargain dinner menu for 30–60dh. Terrace 60dh, camping 60dh, double 400dh

author_pick Chez Julia 100m behind the mosque in Merzouga village tel_icon 0535 573182, web_icon chez-julia.com. In a traditional desert house in Merzouga itself, this perennial favourite is defined by an appealing combination of comfort and authenticity. Owned and run by Austrian painter Julia Günther, the auberge has half a dozen uniquely decorated colour-themed rooms, sharing three bathrooms between them. When it’s available, the good menu features a combination of Moroccan and Austrian dishes (from Schnitzel to pastilla), all freshly prepared at reasonable prices. HB 500dh

Dar el Janoub 3.5km north of Merzouga village; 2km from the main road tel_icon 0535 578922 or 0668 471516, web_icon dareljanoub.com. One of the better top-end places, with large, minimalist rooms, a shady courtyard, a lovely pool that’s softly lit at night, and a perfect terrace for sundowners, right by the desert’s edge. If you really want to push the boat out, take one of the two suites that enjoy their own lounge and private terrace overlooking the dunes (1600dh). HB double 680dh, suite 900dh

Guesthouse Maison Merzouga 6.5km north of Merzouga village, at Hassi Labiad; 2.5km from the main road tel_icon 0535 577299, web_icon merzouga-guesthouse.com. Six doubles in the pisé guesthouse of the Seggaoui family, set back from the dunes but with cosy rooms, a keyhole pool and plenty of good old-fashioned hospitality. Courses in Berber and Berber cooking available. BB 600dh

author_pick Kanz Erremal 4km north of Merzouga village; 2km from the main road tel_icon 0535 578482, web_icon kanzerremal.com. Stylish kasbah with variety of lantern-lit rooms adorned with hand-crafted local knick-knacks – some come with private terrace, all have swish little bathrooms. The large public areas leading off the central atrium make a pleasant retreat from the sun, though the highlights lie outside: a chic terrace at the edge of the sand and a superb infinity pool that gives the impression you’re actually taking a dip in the Sahara. BB 720dh

Kasbah Yasmina 18km north of Merzouga village; 11km from the main road tel_icon 0535 576783 or 0661 351667, web_icon hotelyasminamerzouga.com. Established budget auberge right on the dunes, beside a seasonal lake where you might see flamingos – the situation is spectacular and the views from the sunny rear terrace superb. The rooms, mostly en suite, are cool, and there is a large grouping of Berber tents at the edge of the sand. Nice pool also, but the food is so-so. HB Berber tent 400dh, double 550dh

Nomad Palace 7km south of Merzouga village, at Ksar Mezguida tel_icon 0535 882089 or 0662 191244, web_icon hotelnomadpalace.com. The dunes aren’t as high at this far southern end of the Erg Chebbi, but the area’s much more peaceful as a result. The auberge boasts a huge Moroccan salon with an open fire, and well-furnished rooms opening onto a quiet courtyard garden and swimming pool. The owner also runs excellent camel trips to a less frequented area on the far, east side of Erg Chebbi, via a more varied route than normal. HB 600dh

Panorama 2km north of Merzouga village; 1km from the main road tel_icon 0668 967625. Run by the hospitable Aït Bahaddou family, this budget auberge stands further from the sand than most, at the top of a hill outside Merzouga, but the views are stupendous: the sunset terrace enjoys arguably the best panorama this side of the Atlas. The rooms (shared and en-suite options) are well aired and the restaurant serves tasty tajines and madfouna (“Berber pizza”). They run various tours including visits to hear Gnaoua music at a nearby village. HB shared bathroom 200dh, en suite 350dh

author_pick Riad Madu 4.5km north of Merzouga village; 2km from the main road tel_icon 0253 557 8740 or 0661 352895, web_icon riadmadu.com. A very stylish and contemporary option with an original feel. Ten en-suite rooms (four luxury suites and six standard) come with their own unique decor centred around a particular colour. The open-view kitchen serves delightful Moroccan and Berber food with a modern twist (130dh set menu). A swimming pool and roof terrace complete the picture. The riad also owns its own luxury camp in the dunes. HB standard 1200dh, suite 1500dh

DESERT WILDLIFE

At first glance, the desert seems harsh and inhospitable, a scorched habitat devoid of life bar the occasional scarab beetle leaving tiny tracks across the sand. But there are acacias, tamarisk and calotropis here, and lichens and algae that survive on the dew that clings to the undersides of rocks and stones.

Such modest pickings provide sustenance for the many birds that pass through on their spring and autumn migrations, as well as native desert-dwelling species. Spotted sandgrouse, white-crowned wheatears, Egyptian nightjars, eagle owls and Houbara bustards are just a few of the magnificent species that can be seen, while, incredibly, greater flamingos can sometimes be found at Dayet Sriji and other lakes near Merzouga – but bear in mind that these can disappear to nothing in dry years.

The desert and hammada also house reptiles such as Berber skink, Montpellier snake and fringe-toed lizard, whose feet are perfectly adapted for their desert environment, as well as nocturnal mammals; you’re less likely to see them, but jerboa, desert hedgehogs and fennec (desert fox) make their presence felt by leaving footprints in the morning sand.

PRECIOUS STONES? BUYING ROCKS AND FOSSILS IN THE SOUTH

Throughout the south, boys bound into the paths of oncoming cars to offer crystalline mementoes of Morocco, and rocks and fossils fill most tourist shops across the region. But before you part with your hard-earned dirhams, it’s worth knowing what to look out for: tennis-ball-sized crystals in a hollow geode can cost more on the Moroccan hard-shoulder than they would in Britain or the US, while brilliant orange and red geodes look attractive but are unknown to natural science, as are the rock crystal (quartz) given an iridescent metal coating by vendors.

Attractive spirals of ammonites (Carboniferous to Jurassic) are common in limestone areas of Britain, but in Morocco they can be bought sliced and polished as well as “raw”. Don’t rely on the names you’re given by the shopkeeper – look at the centre spiral of the ammonite and the ridge around its shell to check how far features have been “enhanced” by a chisel.

Slightly older than ammonites, trilobites appear in shops as identical beige-coloured fossils on grey slate. In nature, they are rarely so perfect – beware plaster casts. The early trilobite Paradoxides is about the size of a hand, with long whisker-like spines. A deep-sea inhabitant, it is often found looking rather squashed sideways, where the silts on which it lived have been sheared by pressure. The Calymene and Phacops types of trilobites are about 200 million years younger than Paradoxides, and measure about two inches long, with a crab-like outer skeleton. The half-rounded shield-like skull, often found separated from the exo-skeleton, can appear in a shop with the skeleton carved around it as a tribute to modern Moroccan craftsmanship.

In the black limestone regions near Erfoud, the white crystalline shapes of nautilus and orthoceras are cross-sectioned and polished to emphasize their internal structure before being formed into ashtrays and coffee tables. They can of course be transported for you at a cost – though they never quite seem to look so good back home.

Alnif

Trilobites and potatoes are the stock in trade of ALNIF, 90km west of Rissani – the former scraped from ancient canyon walls around the town, the latter grown in the palmery winding northwards into the hills. It’s along the line of this old watercourse that a well-frequented piste cuts across a saddle dividing the Jebel Saghro and Jebel Ougnat ranges to join the N10, the main Dadès highway, 21km southeast of Tinghir. In town, the Ihmadi Trilobites Centre (on the main road) sells genuine fossils with fixed pricing – the owner, Mohand, spent time mapping the area for the British Geological Survey and runs short trips to local fossil sites (from 200dh; tel_icon 0666 221593, email_icon alnifearth@gmail.com).

Tazzarine and around

Beyond Alnif, the scenery grows wilder as you approach TAZZARINE, 66km to the west and set in a grassy oasis surrounded by bare mountains. There’s a straggling row of shops but little you’d really want to stop for in town. Further afield, though, at Tiouririne (7km away) and Aït Ouazik (26km), you can find some vivid prehistoric rock carvings (gravures rupestres), the six-thousand-year-old drawings depicting giraffes, ostriches, buffalo, antelope and other animals from a time when the surrounding area was grassy steppe – ask at Camping Amasttou, 800m down a track to the left at the Taghbalte/N’Kob junction just west of town.

N’Kob

The rambling ksar of N’KOB, 190km west of Rissani and only 40km from the junction with the Drâa Valley road, dominates the most spectacular stretch of the N12, its kasbah-studded old quarter looking north from the rim of an escarpment across a large palmery to the peaks of the Jebel Saghro. The number of grand houses in N’Kob testify to its former prominence as a market hub for the region, but today the town is a refreshingly off-track destination – other than a couple of prehistoric rock-carving sites across the valley (which you’ll need help from your hotel or guesthouse to find), there’s nothing much to see, but the traditional pisé architecture and fine views from the roof terraces tempt many visitors into staying longer than they intended.

Into the Jebel Saghro

For trekkers, N’Kob serves as an important staging post for trips across the Jebel Saghro, though you can also explore the mountains from a spectacular piste that heads north of town to crest the Saghro via the Tazi n’ Tazazert, eventually dropping into the Dadès Valley at Iknioun, near Boulmane du Dadès. Winding through dramatic rock formations and gorges, the route rivals the crossing of the High Atlas, with superb views from the pass. An added incentive is the spectacular pinnacles of Bab n’Ali, which you can reach in a half-day’s walk from a pleasant, conveniently situated gîte, 8km along the road from N’Kob.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: WEST TO THE DRÂA

By public transport Buses cover the route between Rissani and Zagora (1 daily; 6hr), leaving Rissani’s gare routière at 10am; grands taxis depart from the rank near Hôtel Sijilmassa (1hr) for Alnif, where you can pick up another taxi for the next onwards leg.

By car It’s a long haul to the Drâa (295km from Rissani to Zagora), but the road is good; there are petrol stations in Mecissi, Alnif and Tazzarine. Leaving Tazzarine, make sure you turn right to stay on the N12/R108 for Zagora – the road that heads straight on, to Zagora via Taghbalte, is a rough piste that, despite being much shorter, will actually take you a lot longer.

Guides Mohammed at the Bureau des Guides in N’Kob ( tel_icon 0667 487509) speaks very good English and runs various treks into the Jebel Saghro, including a reverse of the classic three-day Tagdilt–N’Kob crossing; alternatively any of the hotels in N’Kob can arrange excursions into the range.

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

Most people cover the road between Rissani and the Drâa in one go, but given the distance, you may want to break the journey in two; if so, it’s worth pushing on to N’Kob, by far the most appealing place to stay along this route, with a good choice of accommodation.

ALNIF

Etoile du Sud In the centre of town, on the left as you head towards Tazzarine. The best place for a quick meal if you’re just passing through, this simple café has friendly staff and reasonably priced traditional food – the menu includes brochette and good chips, made from Alnif’s staple staple (60dh). Daily 8am–9pm.

La Gazelle du Sud At the top end of town tel_icon 0670 233942, email_icon lagazeldesud@yahoo.fr. There’s no denying this place is bright: done out in pink, with the handful of small and simple rooms (three en suite) a contrasting shade of mint green. The clean bathrooms are spiked with incense, and there’s also an on-site restaurant (half-board rates at 150dh are a decent deal). 100dh

N’KOB

Auberge-Camping Ouadjou 500m west of town tel_icon 0524 839314, web_icon ouadjou.com. The best camping option in the area, with very welcoming staff, though you can also sleep in Berber tents or in compact but clean rooms in a pisé kasbah complex. There’s a swimming pool and a basic but cheerful café. Camping 100dh, Berber tent 180dh, double 280dh

author_pick Kasbah Baha Baha The old quarter tel_icon 0524 307801, web_icon kasbahabaha.com. This splendidly renovated kasbah is owned by an ethnographer from Marrakesh, with a library of interesting academic papers, a small museum and some lovely rooms in the square towers on the upper floors, decorated with plush Moroccan textiles and carpets. Outside, the garden features a couple of mock-Berber encampments flanking a pool, and the whole site enjoys a wonderful panorama over the valley. Mule trips into the Jebel Saghro and camel rides into the hammada can be arranged. BB Berber tent 190dh, double 370dh

Ksar Jenna 2km west of town tel_icon 0524 839790, web_icon ksarjenna.com. Owned and run by an Italian-Moroccan couple, this self-consciously chic place has just seven rooms, all stylishly furnished with ceramics and expensive textiles – though the highlight is a lush garden filled with flowers, fruit trees and water features. Lunch and dinner (open to non-residents) is a daily-changing affair. HB 900dh

< Back to The southern oases routes

Figuig

Hard up against the Algerian border, in the far southeast of the country, the charming oasis town of FIGUIG (pronounced “F’geeg”) is literally the end of the road. The border has been closed since 1994, and so the long slog to get here from Er Rachidia is a somewhat perverse route to take – a lot of travelling in order to complete a loop via Bouarfa to Oujda in northern Morocco. For those that do make the trip (and not many do), the journey is half the fun: spectacular in its isolation and scenically extraordinary, dominated by huge empty landscapes, blank red mountains, mining settlements and military garrisons.

The other half is the town itself. Figuig is notable for the strange, archaic shape of its pink-tinged ksour, their watchtowers having evolved as much from internal tension within the ksour as from any need to protect themselves from the nomadic tribes of the desert. It’s a laidback place, where life ticks by at an addictively slower rhythm, and the simple pleasure of wandering its shady alleys never seems to fade.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: FIGUIG

By bus Most buses use the CTM office on Bd Hassan II, the main road through the new town (tickets sold in advance), with services to Oujda (1 CTM & 2 others daily; 6hr) via Bouarfa (2hr), where you can connect to Er Rachidia (2 daily; 5hr).

By car It’s a very long journey from both Er Rachidia (378km) and Oujda (386km) but easy enough in a normal tourist car, the only diversion being the roadside gendarmerie who pass the time collecting car numbers and your mother’s maiden name (the “undefined boundary” with Algeria runs parallel to the road).

INFORMATION

Guides It can be worth hiring a guide through your hotel to help you navigate the confusing network of alleyways that make up Figuig’s various ksour – try English-speaking Youseff Jebbari ( tel_icon 051 659473, email_icon survivor.afiguig@hotmail.com), who is also contactable through Hotel Figuig.

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

Auberge Oasis Rue Jamaa, Ksar Zenaga tel_icon 0536 899220, web_icon auberge-oasis.com. A proper guesthouse, set in a restored traditional house deep in Ksar Zenaga, with comfy beds weighed down by Berber blankets and communal dining that’s centred around honest home-cooked local dishes. 170dh, FB 600dh

Figuig Bd Hassan II tel_icon 0536 899309, web_icon figuig-hotel.com. Well-maintained, mid-range place in the modern part of town, with stunning views down the valley to the closed border, and Algeria beyond. There’s also a secure area for camping and a café that benefits from the same memorable vista, though the pool can sometimes lack its essential ingredient. Camping 70dh, double 280dh

Maison Nana Rue Ouled Sellam, Ksar Zenaga tel_icon 0536 897 570, web_icon maison-dhote-nanna-figuig.com. The hotch-potch of modern en suites may lack character, but the warmth of hosts Sylvie and Mostapha more than makes up for it, as does the food, made with vegetables from their own garden. Great views and stargazing are to be had on the panoramic terrace. HB 575dh

< Back to The southern oases routes

The southern oases routes

Highlights

GETTING AROUND: THE SOUTHERN OASES ROUTES

BY BUS

BY CAR

BY TRUCK

INFORMATION

KSOUR AND KASBAHS

THE DRÂA KASBAHS

THE DADÈS KASBAHS

Telouet and the Tizi n’Tichka

Kasbah Telouet

The main halls and reception rooms

The roof

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: TELOUET AND THE TIZI N’TICHKA

ACCOMMODATION

THE TIZI N’TICHKA

TELOUET

Aït Benhaddou and around

A WALK THROUGH THE OUNILA VALLEY

ACCOMMODATION

The ksar

Tamdaght

THE GLAOUI

Kasbah Tamdaght

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: AÏT BENHADDOU AND AROUND

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

Ouarzazate

LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION! OUARZAZATE ON THE SILVER SCREEN

Kasbah Taourirt

Musée du Cinema

Atlas Corporation Studios

CLA Studios

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: OUARZAZATE

GETTING AROUND AND INFORMATION

TOURS

ACCOMMODATION

CAMPING

EATING AND DRINKING

SHOPPING

DIRECTORY

The Drâa

GETTING AROUND: THE DRÂA

Agdz and the road to Zagora

Tamnougalt

BIRDING AT THE EL MANSOUR EDDAHBI BARRAGE

Timiderte

LIFE IN THE PALMERIES

Tinzouline

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: AGDZ AND THE ROAD TO ZAGORA

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING

AGDZ

TAMNOUGALT

TIMIDERTE

DIRECTORY

Zagora

Amazrou

Jebel Zagora

DESERT TRIPS FROM ZAGORA

Musée des Arts et Traditions de la Vallée du Drâa

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: ZAGORA

GETTING AROUND AND INFORMATION

ACCOMMODATION

CAMPING

EATING AND DRINKING

SHOPPING

DIRECTORY

South to M’Hamid and the Erg Chigaga

Tamegroute

A DATE TO REMEMBER

Zaouia Naciri

Tinfou

M’Hamid and the dunes

Erg Lehoudi

Erg Chigaga

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: SOUTH TO M’HAMID AND THE ERG CHIGAGA

TOURS

ACCOMMODATION

TAMEGROUTE

TINFOU