There’s something about this remote spot close to the western edge of the vast Sahara Desert that feels eerily familiar.
I’m standing in a historic fortified village made entirely of rammed earth, clay, straw and wood that towers high above the dusty plains and valley below. Everywhere around me, in all directions, are crumbling networks of winding paths leading ever upwards, and one large flat arena, all brushed the same muted hue of old burnt toffee.
I’ve never been to this part of Morocco, along the old caravan route between the Sahara and the fabled ancient market city of Marrakesh, and have never even heard anything about it. So why on earth do I have this strange sensation that I know it well?
Then I spy a tiny restaurant along one of the spider web of alleyways. It’s called Gladiator. Two doors down is a souvenir stall, selling photographs from the TV drama Game of Thrones.
And, finally, it sinks in. This tiny 11th-century corner of North Africa with its intact 17th-century structures might be virtually unknown to most of us, but it’s been seen on screen by billions of people worldwide. That’s as the site where Maximus Decimus Meridius, played by a young Russell Crowe, fought for his life to enact vengeance on his enemies, and where Daenerys Targaryen marched up to the earthen walls with her army to free the slaves.
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So, of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world – to quote Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca, another classic set just 420 kilometres north of here – Ait Benhaddou in southern Morocco is one of the oldest, and best-preserved complete ksars (fortified villages) on earth, and one that could comfortably stand in for any ancient empire facing dark days.
For today’s set-jetting tourists – those who love to visit the places where their favourite films were shot – this place glows head and shoulders over its cinematic rivals.
The UNESCO-listed mud-brick citadel, topped with a granary from which there are magnificent 360-degree views, has inspired everyone who’s visited, and continues to inspire all those who watch the films and TV series that have been shot here.
And that’s all the way back to scenes in the 1962 epic Lawrence of Arabia, and all the way forward to this year’s mega-hit The Odyssey, directed by Christopher Nolan. Yes, of course. Where else could honestly look such a fitting ancient backcloth for Homer’s classic poem?
In between, there have been some scorchers – The Man Who Would Be King, starring Sean Connery and Michael Caine in 1975; The Jewel of the Nile, with Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito in 1985; and Martin Scorsese’s The Last Temptation of Christ in 1988.
There’s The Mummy from Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz in 1999; Ridley Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven in 2005 with Orlando Bloom; and even Nicole Kidman got to stay for the 2015 Werner Herzog film, Queen of the Desert.
But standing there, in this still-intact slice of the old world, its rugged paths worn by millions of footsteps over the centuries, its ancient walls constructed using medieval methods and designed to repel all invaders, its small homes still inhabited by several families … It’s a stunning glimpse of life from a long-ago age.
“Filmmakers love coming here,” says local man Mohamed Elmekke. “There is so much for them to see, and it looks just as it did when it was first built so many centuries ago. And we, over all that time, have been enjoying working as extras!”
As we speak, a steady stream of visitors start the walk from the modern village next door over the bridge across the river to the citadel and then to ascend the long paths spiralling around the ksar to the top. For anyone visiting Morocco, this is an absolute highlight.
And with the flood of overseas visitors expected to come to Morocco for the 2030 FIFA World Cup – co-hosting with Spain and Portugal – it’s likely to become much better known, too.
THE DETAILS
TOUR
Inspiring Vacations’ 15-day Magical Morocco Premium Small Group Tour is a fully escorted tour of no more than 14 travellers with an English-speaking guide and local experts along the way. It includes 13 nights in four-star hotels and boutique riad accommodation, breakfasts, six dinners and three lunches. From $4595 a person, land only; flights extra. See inspiringvacations.com
FLY
Emirates has daily flights from Sydney and Melbourne to Casablanca via Dubai. See emirates.com
MORE
visitmorocco.com
The writer travelled as a guest of Inspiring Vacations.