Palace · Skoura
Dar Ahlam
A 19th-century kasbah turned palace hotel. The Maison's standout in the south.
Doors to the desert
Ouarzazate
The town, in a breath
Where Morocco shoots its films.
Ouarzazate sits south of the Atlas, at the mouth of the southern oases. Atlas Studios — Lawrence, Gladiator, Game of Thrones — and the kasbahs of the Drâa.
Most clients use Ouarzazate as a Sahara waypoint; a Maison composition includes Aït Benhaddou, the studios, and a night at Skoura's Dar Ahlam.
Where to sleep
Palm groves and kasbahs.
Private · Aït Ben Haddou
Kasbah retreat
Off-list private kasbah for full buyout. Eight bedrooms, full staff.
01 · Aït Benhaddou
The fortified village.
UNESCO. A Maison guide, after-hours photography, sunset on the kasbah.
- Aït Benhaddou
- Kasbah
- Sunset
02 · Atlas Studios
Cinema in the desert.
A private, after-hours studio tour with a producer who has worked Hollywood productions.
- Atlas Studios
- Private tour
03 · Skoura
The palm-grove route.
Twenty kilometres of palms, kasbahs, Berber lunches. The Maison's slow afternoon.
- Skoura palms
- Kasbah lunch
Maison advice
A waypoint, beautifully held.
Ouarzazate is the gentle entry to (or exit from) the Sahara. A single night at Dar Ahlam is the elegant rhythm.
Oct — Apr
The right months
Cool clear desert weather. Summer is hot.
Stay
One night
One, on the way in or out of the Sahara.