Many travellers have only one day in Ouarzazate, between Marrakech and the desert. Here is how we would spend it, keeping the best for the evening.

8 am: Aït Ben Haddou

Leave early. The ksar is thirty minutes away and the morning light on the earthen walls is the finest. Cross the river, climb to the granary, come back down through the lanes before the groups arrive.

10.30 am: the road of the kasbahs

On the way back, stop at the kasbah of Tamdaght and then at Tifoultoute, which dominates the river five kilometres from the centre. Tea on a Tifoultoute rooftop is worth the pause.

Noon: a light lunch in town

A harira, some salads, warm bread. Keep your appetite for the evening.

1.30 pm: Kasbah Taourirt and the cinema museum

An hour in the maze of the Glaoui kasbah, then the museum opposite, to understand why the town breathes cinema.

3.30 pm: Atlas Studios

An hour of guided visit through the sets. Or, if you prefer nature, the Fint oasis twenty minutes to the south.

5.30 pm: sunset

On Lake El Mansour Eddahbi, or on the roof of Riad Chay in Tifoultoute, facing the kasbah as it glows.

7.30 pm: dinner

At La Table du Berbère, your menu is waiting. You composed it in the morning when you booked: a starter, a main, a dessert, prepared specifically for your table. The tagine arrives covered, the tea is poured from a height, and nobody hurries you. It is our house, and it is how we like to end a day in the valley.