Aït Benhaddou

Aït Benhaddou's earthen buildings, clustered into a fortified ksar along a hillside above a seasonal river, have survived largely intact for centuries thanks to traditional rammed-earth construction techniques still used to maintain them today. UNESCO listed the site as a World Heritage Site in 1987, recognizing it as one of the best-preserved examples of southern Moroccan pre-Saharan architecture, built originally as a stop along the caravan route connecting the Sahara to Marrakech.

That dramatic, sun-baked architecture has made Aït Benhaddou one of the most filmed locations in Africa. Lawrence of Arabia used it in the 1960s, and productions have kept coming since, including Gladiator, Kingdom of Heaven, The Mummy, and multiple seasons of Game of Thrones, all drawn by the same combination of striking earthen walls, reliable desert light, and the practical infrastructure built up around nearby Ouarzazate's film industry over decades.

Ouarzazate itself, a short drive from the ksar, hosts Atlas Film Studios, one of the largest film studio complexes in the world by physical area, and the town's film-industry reputation has earned it the nickname "Ouallywood," a nod to Hollywood that's stuck firmly enough to show up in local tourism branding.

Very few people actually still live within the historic ksar itself; most residents relocated across the river to a newer, more modern village decades ago, leaving the old fortified town largely preserved as a living museum rather than a fully active settlement, though a handful of families and shopkeepers remain to maintain a genuine presence.

A steep path leads up to a ruined granary and fort on the hill directly above the ksar, and the climb rewards visitors with a full view over the earthen rooftops and the river valley below, a viewpoint that's become one of the most photographed in Morocco, particularly around sunset when the clay walls take on a deep, saturated red-orange glow.