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We've compiled the best of the best in The Great Oasis Valleys - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
To better understand and appreciate how water is obtained in the desert, it's worth stopping to see the traditional underground water channel system. The channels, known as "khattarat," are an important part of this region's history. This is also a great stop to see baby camels. You'll be offered tea and a tour by someone from a local family upon arrival. There's no set price, but you should tip about 50 DH for their time and effort.
If you're looking for things to do in Ouarzazate, visit Atlas Studios—Morocco's most famous studios—next to the Hotel Oscar. Guided tours start every 45 minutes, and the price is discounted if you're a guest of the hotel. It isn't Universal Studios, but you do get a sense of just how many productions have rolled through town—including Hollywood blockbusters like The Mummy and Gladiator, and classics like Cleopatra and Lawrence of Arabia.
Ask for Mohammed Brad Pitt as your tour guide.
For another angle on the Ouarzazate film industry, check out the rather grand-looking kasbah off to the right just out of town on the way to Skoura. One enterprising local producer, frustrated by the increasingly expensive charges being levied on film crews wanting to film around real kasbahs, decided to build his own and undercut the competition.
This small but ambitious community-oriented spot is well worth a stop if you're driving east from Tinerhir toward Merzouga. Housed in the 19th-century ksar of El Khorbat, it contains old maps, photos, antiques, and exhibits that document the traditional lifestyle of the southern oasis, with proceeds going to development and educational projects in the village. You can also buy locally made items at the craft workshop, and then enjoy a meal or spend a night in the atmospheric El Khorbat guesthouse—both are part of the same tourism initiative.
Midway between Erfoud and Rissani, this private museum is hard to miss—just look for the giant replica dinosaurs standing outside. Take a peek inside at the interesting, well-presented collection curated by Moroccan paleontologist Brahim Tahari; it includes fossils, bones, minerals, flints, crystals, and assorted oddities.
There’s a shop attached if you want to purchase your own bit of prehistory.
