Game of Thrones Grand Morocco Tour

Game of Thrones Morocco Grand Tour invites you to discover the best scenery of Morocco. You will be traveled with us to Yunkai, the city of slaves; to Pentos, the Free City located across the Sea of Westeros; and to Astapor, one of the three great city-states of Slaver’s Bay.

Morocco is reputed as a unique country with exotic natural scenes and special cultural traditions. This uniqueness attracted many international filmmakers over the world and crowned the country as the Hollywood of Africa.

The reputation of Morocco has been gaining momentum over the last years since one of its locations ranked as the 2nd “Top 10 most Instagrammed Game of Thrones filming locations” by entertainment.

Game of Thrones has been shot in 3 places namely Ksar Ait Ben Haddou, Ouarzazate, and Essaouira.

Certainly, Ait Ben Haddou constitutes one of the most recognizable Games of Thrones backdrops in Morocco. This ancient town reported as Yunkai, the fictional city ruled by an oligarchy of slave merchants.

It’s easy to see why the producers of Game of Thrones chose Ait Ben Haddou as the backdrop for the Yellow City.

The town fits perfectly George Martin’s description of Yunkai. Therefore, it provided a captivating setting for Daenerys’ battle with the Second Sons to liberate slaves.

For good reason… Ait Ben Haddou was once a key stop were slave traders rest on their way from Timbuktu or Western Sahara.

From an adventurous perspective, this makes visiting Ait Ben Haddou very exciting, as even a glance at the fortified village will take you to Essos. Furthermore, strolling through the ancient streets, you start to feel like Daenerys… Or, at the very least, one of her followers.

Exactly like Ait Ben Haddou, Ouarzazate constitutes another fascinating location for the Game of Thrones. Visiting Ait Ben Haddou won’t take more than 2 hours. Therefore, you can visit Ouarzazate in the same day.

Ouarzazate is home to the famous Atlas Studios, which is the largest filming studio in the world.

This majestic place served as the backdrop of more than 20 Hollywood movies, including Gladiator, Cleopatra, Troy….etc.

In the Game of Thrones, Ouarzazate served as Pentos, one of the free cities located in Slavers Bay.

Pentos is a big port city, more crowded than Astapor on Slaver’s Bay. Located nearest of all the Free Cities to King’s Landing in Westeros, Pentos is one of the westernmost of the Free Cities. The city lies on the Bay of Pentos off the narrow sea, with the Flatlands and Velvet Hills to the east.

Despite being located in the middle of nowhere, Quarzazate is a vibrant and modern town, known as the ‘Gateway to the Sahara’.

Indeed, visiting the city will enchant you.  If you took some time to look around the town, you will enjoy its rich history; as evident but its huge Taourirt Kasbah, home to a 19th-century palace.

Essaouira served as the city of Astapor in Game of Thrones. In addition, some scenes featuring King’s Landing were also filmed in Essaouira.

Astapor is where Daenerys, the mother of dragons, meets the Unsullied Army for the first time.

What attracted the producer to this city is its ‘ramparts’. Constructed in the 1760s, the big walls were established around the town to protect the city from outside threats. Their majestic architecture inspired the Game of Thrones producers, as they were used to create Astapor’s ‘Walk of Punishment’.

However, like Ait Ben Haddou and Ouarzazate, Essaouira is much more than just a Game of Thrones Morocco set. The city is charming. The European influence is clear on its white-washed buildings and Portuguese Fortress. However, the city is authentically Moroccan, ith the Medina bustling with merchants selling anything from Berber carpets to Argan Oil.

There are 3 places where you can start your Game of Thrones Grand Morocco Tour, namely Casablanca, Marrakech, and Fez.

Day 1: we meet you at the airport and we drop you off at your hotel/Riad.

Day 2: We travel to Essaouira (Astrapor). The drive will take around 5 hours. After lunch, you will hang out to discover game of thrones locations. At the same time, you will discover the other part of the city and you will enjoy the beach.

Day 3: We travel to Marrakech. The drive will take almost 3 hours. After that, you will have a guided city in Marrakech. You will see the most important places in the city. At night, you will discover the famous Jamaa el Fna.

Day 4: On the 4th day, you travel to Ait Ben Haddou (Yunkai). You will discover the fortified town and the old Kasbah. Then, you move to Ouarzazate (Pentos). You will visit the “Atlas Studio” and the Game of Throne’s locations. Overnight at you hotel in Ouarzazate. (If you like to visit the desert, we will travel to dades valley, the to Merzouga. This will take at least 2 extra days)

Day 5: Indeed, on the last day, you travel back to Marrakesh/or Casablanca. This depends on your flight details.

This tour is made for people who don’t have time and can be extended for a more relaxed trip. Here are some suggestions:

=> Visit Casablanca (Day 2): Instead of traveling in the morning to Essaouira, you delay the travel to the afternoon and you explore Casablanca in the morning.

=> Spend a day in Essaouira: Instead of 1/2 day, Essaouira is a charming city and it deserves more than a half day. Therefore, you can enjoy it the most and discover its hidden treasures if you have more time.

=> Spend a day in Marrakech: We all know that Marrakech is the city where the magic happens. Therefore, you can enjoy a full-day guided visit of the city before you go to Ait Benhaddou. 

=> 2 extra days to the Desert: Instead of coming back from Ouarzazate to Marrakech, you can make it to Merzouga. You will travel from Ouarzazate to the desert of Merzouga on the 1st day, and then from Merzouga to Marrakech on the second.

If you have more time and you don’t know which option to choose, please contact us for FREE advice. We will suggest the best attractions and we will help you design your ideal tour.   

Just like the tour of Casablanca, the tour from Marrakesh will follow the same itinerary. The only difference is that the tour from Marrakesh will start and end in Marrakesh. The duration will be 5 days, but it can be extended as you like. 2 more extra days will be good to visit the Sahara and ride camels. Therefore, the extended tour itinerary will be like this.

Day 1: Transfer from Airport to your hotel in Marrakesh.

Day 2: Marrakesh to Essaouira. You will spend the night at your hotel in Essaouira.

Day 3: Essaouira to Marrakesh.

Day 4: you travel from Marrakesh to Ait Ben Haddou, and then from Ait Ben Haddou to Ouarzazate. Later, you will travel to Dades Valley. You will see beautiful scenery along the way and you will have multiple stops. Overnight at your hotels in Dades Valey.

Day 5: you travel from Dades Valley to Merzouga via Todra Georges. You reach Merzouga where you ride camels to your camps in the desert. You spend your night under the starry sky of the desert.

Day 6: You travel back to Marrakesh. Overnight in Marrakesh.

Please note that the travel will take up to 10 hours. If, for some reasons, you can’t afford it, you can split the distance by having another night in Ouarzazate.

Day 7:  Finally, on the last day, we transfer you to the airport.

Similarly to the tour from Casablanca, this tour also can be extended by adding some extra days. If you need help, please contact us.

Unlike the tours of Marrakesh and Casablanca, the Game of Thrones Morocco Grand Tour from Fez will include other destinations along the way. The tour will be just like 3 days tour from Fez to Marrakesh plus 1 extra day to Essaouira. If you need details about tour from Fez to Marrakesh, please read 3 Days Tour from Fes to Marrakech, 4 days tour from Fes to Marrakech.

Once you arrive at Marrakesh, you will rest at your hotel. The next day, you travel to Essaouira. After one day, you will travel back to Marrakesh or Casablanca.

Finally, Game of Thrones Grand Morocco Tour will help you to discover some of the best places in Morocco.

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