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If you are planning a trip to Morocco, you’re not alone. Last year, the kingdom dethroned Egypt as the top tourism destination in North Africa. According to UN tourism data, Morocco’s tourism numbers have been steadily increasing, with a 20% jump from 2023 to 2024, when 17.4 million tourists visited. Among of all its cities — including Casablanca, Fez and Rabat — Marrakech ranks the most popular destination in Morocco for visitors.
Though Marrakech isn’t quite suffering the full-blown effects of over-tourism, some early signs, including crowds and higher prices, persist. Thankfully, there’s an easy escape from the crowds available if you want a quieter trip. Less than an hour’s drive from the bustling city, the Atlas Mountains offer nature, adventure and a singular culture, making them an ideal detour destination to get off the beaten path from Marrakech for a day or two.
The mountains are home to jutting peaks ripe for climbing (by foot, bike or donkey), dramatic desert landscapes and dozens of villages where the indigenous Berber communities live. Whether you hire one of the myriad tour companies offering excursions to the mountains, rent a car or snag a bus to the area on your own, here’s what to do once you arrive.
What to see and do
The Atlas Mountains have three sections: the High Atlas (or just Atlas), the Middle Atlas and the Anti-Atlas (or Little Atlas) Mountains. The High Atlas Mountains are the most accessible from Marrakech, with the closest large village of Asni just about an hour’s drive away from Marrakech.
Go hiking
The High Atlas Mountains have more than 400 peaks, with several over 13,000 feet. Still, the range has a variety of trails with an assortment of skill levels. Mount Toubkal, the highest mountain in northern Africa at 13,665 feet, can be trekked with a guide. For a scenic, more challenging hike, try a trail through Mgoun National Park, a UNESCO Global Geopark known for its scenic rivers, deep gorges and dramatic mountain scenery.
Visit a Berber village
One reason to hike with a guide is that they will typically bring you to a Berber village at the end of your trek (often a relative of theirs), which is a great way to experience the local culture. In the mountains, it is common for Berber families to open their humble homes to hikers and travelers, making fresh mint tea and flatbreads in their clay ovens.
Witness the man of the house prepare Moroccan mint tea, made with fresh herbs usually grown in their garden, by continuously pouring the mixture between the pot and glasses to fully combine it before serving the brew in dainty glasses. Meanwhile, his wife will flatten the bread dough and press it against the inside of her clay wood-fired oven to bake it. If you’re lucky, your hosts may also serve cured olives from their trees and olive oil hand-pressed in their village’s communal stone mill.
The Atlas Mountains were also home to several Jewish communities in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Most Jewish Berbers from the Atlas Mountains left Morocco in the 1950s and ’60s, but a few villages remain, although they’re unpopulated. One is Anraz, a photogenic ghost town of abandoned clay structures, which you can visit with a local guide. There is a well-kept synagogue — still used for holidays by Jews from Casablanca — and a preserved cemetery.
Shop locally made textiles
Another highlight is a visit to the Eve Branson Foundation Tamgounssi Weaving Centre in the village of Tansghart, where women learn to embroider and weave by hand to earn an independent living. Watching the weavers on the loom is fascinating, and their beautiful handmade rugs, tablecloths and other items are also for sale.
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Where to stay
There are several local kasbahs to stay in, but if you want to use points, the Virgin Limited Edition Kasbah Tamadot in Asni is the most luxurious option in the Atlas Mountains. Like many buildings in the region, it sustained some damage during the 2023 earthquake; after a seven-month closure, it reopened at the end of 2024, just in time for its 20th anniversary in 2025. The renovation brought the hotel from 28 to 42 rooms, adding a new restaurant and kids club.
The original building, a kasbah first owned by a local governor and then an Italian businessman who restored it, dates back to 1920. Richard Branson, the founder of the Virgin Group, bought the estate in 2000 and turned it into a hotel in 2005.
Some of the largest accommodations are the newly built, stand-alone riads, which feature rooms decorated with local textiles, metalwork and ceramics. They also come with private pools or hot tubs.
When it reopened, the hotel also added a new restaurant under a massive canvas tent. Assays serves Moroccan and Western food, some nights offering a traditional Moroccan tasting menu accompanied by live Moroccan music. There’s also an outdoor patio restaurant overlooking the pool for lunch, where every meal begins with an array of Berber flatbreads.
Do leave time to explore the hotel: Indulge in a hammam treatment at the spa, play tennis on the clay courts, partake in a tagine cooking class and enjoy a glass of freshly prepared mint tea with Mohammad, an employee from Asni who has been working here since 2005. All of the employees at Kasbah Tamadot are Moroccan, so ask them for their local tips — they have many.
Booking with points
Rates at Virgin Limited Edition Kasbah Tamadot start from $577 per night. But you can also redeem Virgin Red points starting at 140,000 points per night. After a minimum two-night stay, additional nights cost 70,000-85,000 Virgin points. (This is one of the lowest redemption rates available for any Virgin Limited property.) To book, contact Virgin Limited Edition at (877) 577-8777 or email enquiries@virginlimitededition.com to confirm availability and points rates.
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club partners with every major credit card rewards program, and once you link your Flying Club account to your Virgin Red account, your points will sync across the programs. (Note: Capital One miles transfer directly to Virgin Red.)
Though that isn’t the best redemption rate, you can make your points go slightly further by taking advantage of Chase Ultimate Rewards’ 25% transfer bonus to Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, which runs through June 15.
How to get there
The closest major airport to the Atlas Mountains is Marrakech Menara Airport (RAK), which is seeing an expansion of direct flights from the U.S. that are bookable on points and miles.
United direct flights to Marrakech
Last year, United Airlines launched seasonal direct flights between Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) to RAK. That route resumes Oct. 25, 2025, and runs through March 28, 2026.
If you use United MileagePlus miles to book this flight from EWR to RAK, one-way economy tickets start at 42,200 miles, and business-class tickets from 180,000 miles (taxes and fees are minimal at around $5.60). United prices its awards dynamically, so you may have to use more miles on peak dates, while even lower pricing may be available to United credit card holders and Premier elite members.
Delta direct flights to Marrakech
Delta Air Lines will launch its own direct seasonal service to Marrakech on October 25, 2025, from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL). This service runs through the end of April 2026.
To book this ATL to RAK flight using Delta SkyMiles, expect one-way economy tickets to start at 48,000 miles, and Delta One tickets from 270,000 miles, with taxes and fees around $5.60. Delta awards are also dynamically priced, so expect to use more miles on peak dates. Delta credit card holders can expect discounts on redemptions.
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