Budget Day Tour to Ait Ben Haddou and Ouarzazate from Marrakech

The tour runs about 10 to 12 hours door to door, depending on traffic and on how long the group spends at each stop. The drive from Marrakech to Ait Ben Haddou takes roughly 3.5 to 4 hours each way, over the Tizi n’Tichka pass.

Pick-up is around 8:00 AM from your hotel or riad in Marrakech, and the group is usually back in the city in the evening. If your accommodation sits inside the medina where the minibus cannot reach, we agree on the nearest meeting point when you book.

29 EUR per adult and 20 EUR per child. The rate is the same whatever the size of your party, because the minibus is shared. It covers transport in an air-conditioned vehicle, an English and French speaking driver, and pick-up and drop-off at your Marrakech accommodation. Lunch, site entrance fees and the local guide inside the ksar are paid on the spot.

No, lunch is not included. The group stops at a restaurant near Ait Ben Haddou, usually with a view over the ksar, and everyone orders and pays for their own meal. Keeping lunch out of the price is part of what makes this a budget tour, and it leaves you free to choose what you eat and how much you spend. Expect roughly 8 to 15 EUR for a tagine or a set menu.

No, a guided tour of Ait Ben Haddou is not included. Your English and French speaking driver stays with the group and will tell you about the region along the way, but he does not guide inside the ksar. A licensed local guide can be hired at the entrance for a small fee, shared between whoever wants to join, if you would like the full history of the site. Otherwise you are free to walk up at your own pace.

This is a shared group tour. You travel in an air-conditioned minibus with up to 17 other travellers, which is exactly why the price is what it is. If you would rather have the vehicle, the timing and a guided visit to yourself, look at our private Ait Ben Haddou day trip from Marrakech, which includes both lunch and the local guide.

The heart of the day is Ait Ben Haddou, a UNESCO World Heritage ksar of earthen towers on the old caravan road. The route there crosses the Tizi n’Tichka pass in the High Atlas, at 2,260 metres, with stops for the view. In the afternoon the group reaches Ouarzazate, the film capital of Morocco, with the Taourirt Kasbah on the main road and the Atlas Film Studios on the edge of town.

Yes. You cross the riverbed and walk up through the ksar at your own pace, with free time at the top for the view over the palm grove. The climb to the old granary takes about twenty minutes and the path is uneven in places, so proper shoes help.

Comfortable walking shoes, sun protection, a hat and a camera. Ait Ben Haddou has uneven ground and very little shade. Bring a layer as well: the pass is cool most of the year and cold in winter, while Ouarzazate can be hot in the afternoon. Carry some cash in dirhams for lunch, entrance fees and the guide.

Yes. The driver stops several times on the way up and down the Tizi n’Tichka pass, at the viewpoints over the terraced valleys and the Berber villages built into the hillside. There are also stops for a break and refreshments on each leg of the drive.

Yes. Your driver speaks English and French and is happy to answer questions about the places you pass through. He is a driver rather than a licensed guide, so for a detailed visit of the ksar itself you can hire a local guide at the entrance.