Ouarzazate used to be the last outpost, before the inhospitable desert opened out before you. Originally a French garrison town, Ouarzazate was and still is a welcome sight after the hardship of crossing the High Atlas.

Today Ouarzazate has an international airport and many fine hotels, something the French Foreign Legion could only have dreamt of.

Taorit and Tifeltoute Kasbahs can be visited on route to the Ait Ben Haddou Kasbah. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, and used in the film Gladiator, the Ait Ben Haddou Kasbah is an unforgettable sight. After crossing a small river, climb the mud streets to be rewarded with far stretching views of the snow-capped High Atlas the north and the Jebel Sahro to the south.