Day 4: Merzouga – Rissani – Tinghir – Boumanle Dades – Ouarzazate
The day will be started by dating with the sunrise in a panoramic view that is worth waking up for, after your breakfast at hotel, we leave Merzouga after a great lifetime experience in the Sahara desert, driving toward Rissani is the ancient capital of Tafilalet which was a principal road of caravans, and considered as a commercial center in the region with a large market โSoukโ where you will take a chance to connect and to interact with locals, then continue our journey to Erfoud โFossils Cityโ as well-known as filmmakerโs destination thanks to the beauty of the surrounding Desert Sahara and towns of oasis areas, movies had filmed here are March OR Die, The Mummy, and Prince Of Persia. After two hours of driving, we will reach one of the famous spots of the high atlas, called Todgha gorge located 16KM far away from Tinghier consists of several canyons and a large river.
This stunning area affords plenty of opportunities to walk between the gorgeous oasis palm trees, such as along the river through the garden or up the road on the other side of the gorge. Besides, the Todgha Gorge had deemed as a station for tourists and locals who are interested in climbing and hiking in its canyons and having a walk through the gorge, you will have lunch in a beautiful restaurant which is overlooking the river. In the afternoon, we carry on our journey to the Boumalne Dades is famous with lovely valley located in a desert plateau, 1500m high and is known as an old way of transhumance, and the valley has recognized as Figs Valley. Furthermore, we continue our expedition to another valley called Valley of the Roses โKalaat Mโgounaโ the city is the central district of many villages, and it has two special days for the local market, first day in Tuesday, it is only for livestock trade, and Wednesday is the second day is for food and other goods. Kalaat Mโgouna is well-known for its rose products of beauty recognized as natural products, also used in Moroccan cuisine and the perfume industry, as well the city famous for a festival in early of May because there is no set date for the festival, it determines on the harvest season, during festival local Berber musicians playing traditional instrumentals and dancing.
The last day of a festival is a special day to choose Ms. Roses. You will stop enjoying and discovering the fascination of one thousand kasbahs road, you reach Ouarzazate, known as the gate of the Sahara desert, which is a city of the Draa-Tafilalet region too. Our first site to visit is Kasbah of Taourirt, built-in 17th by a dominant local family, the kasbah had a great position controlling the junction of several river valleys because considered as Desert Sahara Trade Roads, in the 1990s registered as historical attractiveness in UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Furthermore, Ouarzazate is an elementary tourist destination and one of the favorite spots for filmmakers over the world, if you are interesting, we can visit Atlas Studio is biggest cinema studio in the region that attracts international companies to act in. films had filmed for instance “The Man Who Be King” in 1975, “The Last Temptation of Christ” (1988), “The Mummy” (1999), “Gladiator” (2000), and Hanna in 2011, and so on. You have overnight in Riad/Hotel.