Ouarzazate Desert MTB — Draa Valley

Ouarzazate — dubbed ‘the door of the desert’ — sits at the junction of the High Atlas and the Saharan pre-desert, where the landscape transitions from mountain to dune in the space of a morning’s ride. The Draa Valley below the city stretches south through an almost continuous date palm oasis for 200km, flanked by ancient kasbahs and ksar villages that have barely changed in centuries. It’s a setting that has drawn film crews for decades (Lawrence of Arabia, Gladiator, Game of Thrones) and the MTB riding is as cinematic as the scenery.

The Routes

The 30km Draa Valley Piste rolls south from Ouarzazate through the palm oasis to the ksar of Aït Benhaddou — the UNESCO-listed fortified village used in countless films — on flat to gently rolling desert piste. The 18km Kasbah Circuit visits four intact kasbahs through the Skoura palm grove, accessible to all fitness levels. The 45km Jebel Sarhro MTB is the adventure option — climbing into the volcanic Jebel Sarhro massif east of Ouarzazate on technical desert mountain terrain with extraordinary geology and complete solitude.

Getting There

From Marrakech take the N9 over the Tizi n’Tichka pass (2,260m) to Ouarzazate — a spectacular mountain road, 200km, approximately 3.5 hours. Regular bus services from Marrakech. GPS: 30.9333, -6.9167.

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