The journal · field notes from Ouarzazate
No top-10 listicles. Slow, opinionated dispatches from the atelier on when to come, where to go first, what to skip and how to spend your dirhams well. Read before you book — and certainly before you pack.
This month's long-read
One slow, in-house piece every month. No commissioned writers, no sponsored takes — just the answers we already give our guests on WhatsApp, written down properly.
Latest field note 9 min readGorges · June 2026
Drive east on the N10 to Boumalne Dadès, then north up the R704 — the famous switchbacks sit about 25 km up the valley, roughly 2.5 hours from town. Where the hairpins and monkey-finger rocks actually are, how to take the bends safely, day trip versus overnight, and how the Dadès loops into the Todra and the road east.
The archive
Re-read every season by our team. If anything is out of date we annotate it at the top of the piece — the south changes slowly, but it does change.
02Gorges 9 minGorges · June 2026
About 13–15 km north of Tinghir the limestone walls close to roughly 10 metres apart and soar 300 metres overhead — and a flat path runs straight through the narrows. Where the gorge is, the drive east via Tinghir, the narrowest section, walking versus rock-climbing, day trip versus overnight, and how it pairs with the Dadès an hour away.
03Seasons 9 minSeasons · June 2026
Spring (mid-March–May) and autumn (mid-September–early November) are the standout months — warm, dry, clear days for the kasbahs and the desert. A month-by-month guide to the high-desert weather, the cold winter nights, the summer heat, the May rose harvest, and the best window for a Sahara trip.
04Practical 8 minPractical · April 2025
An honest, expectations-first guide to the 'Gateway to the South'. Ouarzazate is a modern, spread-out film and administrative town that most travellers visit for a single night as a base — here is what it actually is, the high-desert cold nights, why to carry cash, and the long, winding High Atlas drive in.
05Ouarzazate 9 minOuarzazate · June 2026
Most people treat Ouarzazate as a one-night stop on the way to the dunes and miss it. Here is the three-day rhythm we recommend — the Taourirt Kasbah, the Atlas Film Studios, Aït Ben Haddou at golden hour, the Fint oasis, what to skip and where to eat.
06Desert 10 minDesert · June 2026
Traditional or luxury? Goat-hair khaima or transparent dome? We map the trade-offs in comfort, privacy, silence and price — and what a night out on Erg Chebbi or Erg Chigaga actually includes — with the camps we still send guests to.
07Practical 8 minPractical · June 2026
The gentle etiquette and mechanics of bargaining in southern Morocco — fair price ranges, the phrases that help, what's actually fixed-price, what to watch for at the kasbah co-ops, and why a smile beats a hard sell.
08Practical 6 minPractical · May 2026
Guides, drivers, kasbah hotels, desert camps, restaurants — who to tip, how much, and in what currency. The honest, no-guesswork numbers we give our own guests before every trip.
09Cinema 10 minCinema · June 2026
Why they call it 'Ouallywood' — the studios where Gladiator, Game of Thrones, Lawrence of Arabia and The Mummy were filmed. What's actually on the backlot tour, the museum sets, and how to read the desert as a film set.
10Food 9 minFood · June 2026
Slow-cooked tagine over charcoal, the Berber tanourt bread, harira at sundown, the street-food counters worth queuing for — what to order, where, and how to eat well in the kasbah country whatever your diet.
11Atlas 7 minAtlas · June 2026
The High Atlas pass that links the red city to the kasbah country — the switchbacks, the argan and saffron stops, Telouet's Glaoui palace and Aït Ben Haddou. What a good crossing actually looks like, and how to time the light.
12Oasis 7 minOasis · June 2026
Half an hour from town, a ribbon of palms and water in the bare hills — Berber villages, river crossings, a guesthouse or two and total quiet. How to spend a perfect 48 hours off the kasbah circuit.
13Planning 9 minPlanning · June 2026
The honest, current picture — solo and women travellers, the common scams around the kasbahs, the mountain roads, health and the desert. What we actually tell our own guests.
14Practical 7 minPractical · June 2026
No 'breathable convertible trousers'. A real packing list that changes with the month and the route — the kasbahs, the gorges, the High Atlas passes and a Sahara overnight all ask for different things.
15Planning 8 minPlanning · June 2026
Daily spend, kasbah entry fees, where the money goes and the honest ways to save without missing the point of the trip — with sample budgets in USD for shoestring, mid-range and comfortable.
16Stays 7 minStays · June 2026
Town centre, the road to Aït Ben Haddou or out at the Fint oasis — which area suits which traveller, and what to look for before you book, so you get the kasbah view, the calm and the location right.
17Stays 8 minStays · March 2025
An area-by-area accommodation guide to Ouarzazate town, Aït Ben Haddou, the Skoura oasis and the Dadès — who each base suits, why a night at the ksar beats day-tripping, and where to break a Marrakech-to-desert route.
18Itineraries 11 minItineraries · June 2026
The classic one-week loop from Ouarzazate, day by day — Aït Ben Haddou, the Skoura palm grove, the Dadès and Todra gorges, the Drâa valley and a Sahara night — with honest drive times and what to skip.
19Practical 8 minPractical · June 2026
Road conditions on the N9 and N10, the mountain switchbacks, the gorges, fuel between towns and the real cost trade-off — and why most of our guests end up with a private driver instead of a rental.
20Culture 6 minCulture · June 2026
Why the tea is poured from a height, what the foam means, how the gunpowder green and fresh mint are brewed and the etiquette of accepting a third glass — the small ceremony at the heart of Berber hospitality.
21Aït Ben Haddou 8 minAït Ben Haddou · June 2026
The UNESCO-listed earthen ksar above the Ounila river — how to cross to it, climb to the agadir at the top, read the pisé architecture, and when the light is best. What it costs, and how to dodge the tour-bus crush.
22Shopping 9 minShopping · June 2026
Saffron from Taliouine, Berber rugs and kilims, rose products from the Valley of the Roses, fossils and silver — where to find the real thing, how to bargain gently, and how to get it all home.
23Family 9 minFamily · June 2026
Where to go, how to pace it, the kasbah hotels and desert camps that work for families, camel rides, the film-studio sets and food kids will actually eat — the practical things we tell parents before they come.
24Oasis 7 minOasis · June 2026
The Skoura palm grove and the Kasbah Amridil, then north into the rose-growing valley below the Dadès — what to actually do there, day trip versus overnight, and how to fold it into a kasbah-country loop.
25Culture 8 minCulture · June 2026
From Aït Ben Haddou at dawn to the Dadès switchbacks, the Fint oasis and the film-studio sets — where to shoot, when the light is right, and the etiquette of the lens.
26Desert 8 minDesert · June 2026
The tall dunes of Erg Chebbi or the closer, gentler sands beyond Zagora? We compare drive times from Ouarzazate, the dunes, the camps and who each option suits — so you don't shortchange the desert night.
27Culture 8 minCulture · June 2026
The Rose Festival in El Kelaâ M'Gouna, the date harvest in the Drâa, moussems in the kasbah villages, Ramadan and the Eids — the events worth planning a trip around, month by month.
28Desert 7 minDesert · June 2026
The 4x4 or camel transfer, the tents and domes, the tagine cooked in the sand, the cold nights, the sunrise over the dunes — and the difference between a simple Bedouin camp and a luxury one.
29Food 9 minFood · June 2026
Charcoal-grilled brochettes, the best tagine counters, Berber breakfast bread and amlou, where locals actually eat, and the kasbah-hotel terraces worth the splurge — how to eat well in the gateway to the desert.
30Seasons 8 minSeasons · April 2025
The gateway to the south is hot and intensely sunny from June to August, with highs in the high-30s °C and an even hotter desert beyond. Here is what the heat is really like, the early-and-late rhythm that makes the kasbahs and the studios work, what to pack — and why spring or autumn may suit you better.
31Planning 7 minPlanning · April 2025
One day or two? Ouarzazate is the gateway to the south — a base and a stopover, not a long-stay city. One full day covers the town's highlights (the Taourirt Kasbah, the Atlas Film Studios, the Cinema Museum) plus Aït Ben Haddou at golden hour; a second day earns its place only if you base here for the southern kasbahs and gorges. An honest, decision-first guide.
32Desert 9 minDesert · June 2026
How do you get from Ouarzazate to the desert? It is about 360 km and six hours of paved driving east to Merzouga and the dunes of Erg Chebbi — along the Road of a Thousand Kasbahs. The route in one glance, one long day versus two relaxed ones, where to stop (Skoura, the Dadès and Todra gorges, Erfoud and Rissani), 4x4 logistics for the sand, and how to reach the camp.
Letters from Ouarzazate
No marketing. Just one field note, one hotel or camp we love this season, one practical tip — written in plain English, signed by a real person.
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