Earthen architecture
Towers stepping up the hill.
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A fortified earthen ksar on a hillside in the Ounila valley, on the old caravan route that linked the Sahara with Marrakech across the Tizi n'Tichka pass in the Atlas. It is considered one of the finest examples of Moroccan earthen architecture and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987. The site has been fortified since the eleventh century under the Almoravids, though its present buildings are not thought to be older than the seventeenth century, built by the same methods used for centuries: houses and towers of rammed earth and mud brick stepping up the hill, threaded by lanes and passages, with a communal granary crowning the summit. Most residents moved to the new village across the river, and only a few families still live in the ksar, which you reach today over a footbridge. Many international films and series have been shot here, among them Gladiator and Game of Thrones. From the top there is a wide view over the valley, the desert and the Atlas. Wandering the ksar is free; owners of some houses may ask a small fee to go inside, and local guides are paid by agreement. The best times are early morning or just before sunset, when the earth turns golden, and the climb to the top needs comfortable shoes.
Towers stepping up the hill.
Views over the valley.
Gladiator, Game of Thrones.
Ounila valley, about thirty kilometres north-west of Ouarzazate
Yes, just a few families, as most residents moved to the new village across the river, so respect the privacy of inhabited homes.