Ait Benhaddou Kasbah is one of Morocco’s most impressive historic landmarks and a popular film location for Hollywood movies. This day tour involves a spectacular opportunity to see a great deal of Morocco all within one full day. Some of the blockbuster movies shot in this location include the Bond classic Living Daylights (1987), Lawrence of Arabia (1962) and The Last Temptation of Christ (1988). Kasbah of Ait Benhaddou, The fortified village was declared amongst Morocco's eight world heritage sites by the UNESCO and it is well preserved.
Ait Benhdaou Kasbah is a typical example of the Berber traditional architecture sculpted from traditional mud bricks and fortified by walls of dark red pisé, this Kasbah lies on the old trans-Saharan trade route, at the border of the High Atlas Mountains and Sahara Desert. Walking through the ‘streets’ and under passes you get a small glimpse of how life once was. It is the ideal trip for those who do not wish to spend a few nights sleeping out in the desert and want to be back in Marrakech for an evening eating out.
This full day trip from Marrakech to the UNESCO world heritage site of Kasbah Ait Ben Haddou and the Hollywood of Africa Ouarzazate is a wonderful plan to spend the day out of the big city. This journey involves a spectacular opportunity to see a great deal of Morocco all within one full day
It is the ideal trip for those who cannot spare more than a day to explore the Sahara desert and want to be back in Marrakech the same day.
Marvel at the brilliant landscape views dotted with Berber villages to reach the Kasbah of Ait Benhaddou and the Hollywood of Africa Ouarzazate famous for Gladiator, Game of Thrones and Star Wars were filmed. UNESCO as one of the world’s cultural treasures has classified the fortified village of Ait Benhaddou. It is studded with crenellated towers and its buildings decorated with geometrical motifs and are considered to be one of the most beautiful villages of this kind in Morocco. A program of restoration work is currently under way to encourage the population of the village, which is at present inhabited by just few families.
From here, we continue to Ouarzazate, which marks the gate of the Sahara desert. Visit Taourirt Kasbah. This former Glaoui residence, situated on the edge of the town, on the road to Morocco Sahara desert, is considered to be one of the most beautiful Kasbahs of Morocco. It consists of a maze of luxury apartments, simple clay houses and crenellated towers, which are lavishly decorated with geometric motifs. Part of the fortified village is open to the public.
After some time at leisure for a cup of mint tea or coffee, drive back to Marrakech later in the afternoon while crossing the High Atlas Mountains.
Travel through the High Atlas Mountains; enjoy the lush forest area and the sight of Berber homes.
Sublime experience with changing colors and run through the High Atlas Mountains creating an absolutely magnificent spectacle.
Visit the ancient Kasbah of Ait Benhaddou that was used as a backdrop for legendary Hollywood movies like Gladiator, Lawrence of Arabia and Jewel of the Nile.
Visit the Cinema Atlas Studio in Ouarzazate.
Scenic photo of the old Taourirt Kasbah.
Tripadvisor previous guests reviews
We were booked and had paid a deposit for a trip late March of 2020, which was canceled due to the pandemic. Said, the owner of MD, went to extraordinary lengths to refund the deposits for our travel group of six from the U.S. Apparently the Moroccan banking system is not "user friendly" when it comes to wire transfers for reasons unclear to me. Nevertheless, Said managed to refund all our money using a very creative approach. We would DEFINITELY travel with MD in the future given this level of honesty and effort; but we do hope that MD will accept credit cards rather than wires in the future. Thank You Said & Morocco Discovery!
Three of use booked a 19-day with Moroccan Discovery Holidays for March, 2020 and paid a 50% deposit. When Morocco closed its borders due to Covid. Initially we put our trip on hold and asked Said to hold our deposit. Said agreed to this. When it appeared holiday travel would likely go on for many months we asked for a refund. Said again agreed but the Moroccan banks, being what they are, refused to release all of our deposit. With some pressure on the bank from us and Said's help we did receive 100% of our deposit.
We planned our April-May 2020 trip to Morocco in the late fall of 2019 and worked with Said at Morocco Discovery. We were taking our adult children and their partners and Said was patient and added everything we wanted and more. One month prior to travel we were surprised by the pandemic, with flights cancelled, borders closed and no idea when we could travel again. Said remained as diligent, helpful and honest throughout the arduous process of refunding our downpayment. We were thrilled with Said, and his company's commitment to customer service and would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone travelling to Morocco. As soon as it is safe again it is our intent to rebook with them!
From their already outstanding reviews when I started working with Sayd, this was an amazing experience. I got prompt friendly responses to every question I had and as this was our first trip to Africa I had a lot of questions. The price was incredibly reasonable - I don’t know how they can put the trip together on this budget. We stayed at amazing Riads in every city with excellent food every evening and great breakfasts - our driver was AMAZING- he was always ready wherever we were 1 minute before we needed him. The prearranged guides were the best. If you are going to Morocco - you want to go with Morocco Discovery and you definitely want a driver.
I have to admit, when I first started looking at using a local Moroccan tour company for our trip I was very nervous. After having toured Morocco for 11 days with Morocco Discovery Holidays, I would HIGHLY recommend them without any hesitation. Said worked with me for over a year to come up with a customized trip that included everything we (2 couples) wanted to see and more. Every change I made to the itinerary was completed within hours of my request.. and I made many. Said is very prompt at responding to e-mails and questions. Having a private driver was definitely the ideal way to see Morocco. Our driver, Mohamed was amazing. From the minute he met us at the airport (with sweets to welcome us) until he dropped us off at the port for our journey to Spain, Mohamed could not do enough for us. Mohamed is funny, engaging, very knowledgeable and was totally flexible and I felt very safe at all times, even on the curvy, narrow road. If I wanted him to turn around so I could take a picture, he would…and Did!! LOL Our Riads were beautiful and the meals that were included were some of the best meals we had in Morocco. I cannot say enough about the 5* service and attention we received from Morocco Discovery Holidays and Mohamed during our trip.
Mr Said provided us with a very pleasant and safe driver (Mustafa) as well as a new van, so we had a very enjoyable round trip Casablanca-Rabat-Fes- Marrakech-Casablanca. Local guides accompanied us in Fes and Marrakech, and we could have had other tours but we opted to spend more time walking around the towns. The Riads selected for us were very satisfactory and service all round was great. No hesitation at all in recommending Morocco Discovery.
Said arranged an excellent holiday for us. We began with one of the standard trips as our starting point and adapted it to better suit our needs with an added night here and there and starting in Marrakesh rather than Casablanca. Everything went very smoothly from start to finish.The choice of the Riads in which we stayed was great, as were the guides that were arranged for us. Abdoul proved to be a first rate driver - safe, dependable, friendly and very professional. We felt very comfortable being driven by him and we enjoyed his company.