Ourika or Ouzoud Waterfalls?
Ourika or Ouzoud from Marrakech: 63 km against 160 km by road, a valley walk against a boat at the foot of the falls, prices, lunch options and which day suits whom.
Ourika and Ouzoud are both waterfall day trips from Marrakech, and they are different days. Ourika is close: 62.9 km by road from Jemaa el-Fnaa to Setti Fatma, where a guided walk climbs to the falls above the village, with stops at an argan cooperative and a Berber house and time by the river. Ouzoud is far: 159.8 km by road from Jemaa el-Fnaa to the village by the falls, about 3 hours each way on an Ouzoud day trip, for a walk round the falls and, on most options, a boat ride at their foot. If you want a relaxed day with the least time in a van, take Ourika: Marrakech City Life SARL’s Marrakesh: Ourika Waterfalls, Atlas Mountains, Guide + Lunch is from $16 in current promotion (usually $21) a person, checked November 2026.
The calendar above is Marrakech City Life SARL’s Ourika day from Marrakech, with 26,978 reviews (checked November 2026).
The short answer
It depends what you want from the day. Choose Ourika for a shorter, easier day that mixes a waterfall walk with the valley, a Berber house and lunch by a river, and leaves you back in Marrakech in the late afternoon. Choose Ouzoud if the waterfall itself is the whole point, you would like to see it from a boat, and about 6 hours on the road there and back does not put you off.
Marrakesh: Ourika Waterfalls, Atlas Mountains, Guide + Lunch
Marrakech City Life SARL: pickup in Marrakech, a local guide, the argan cooperative, mint tea in a Berber house, about 80 minutes at Setti Fatma for the walk and 80 by the river. Lunch is option 2.
Check dates →Marrakech: Ouzoud Waterfalls with Boat Trip & Optional Lunch
Click Excursions: about 3 hours each way by van, a coffee stop at Tamallalt, and about 4 hours at the falls; a local guide and the boat ride come with options 2 and 3, lunch with option 3. Back about 7 pm.
See the Ouzoud day →Prices, ratings and review counts from the listings (GetYourGuide checked November 2026). Operators price by date and season, so treat the figures as the shape of the market, not a quote.
Where they are
The Ourika Valley runs south-east from Marrakech into the High Atlas; its road ends at Setti Fatma, below the waterfalls. Ouzoud lies north-east of Marrakech, in Azilal Province, and the road there runs north-east to the village beside the falls. Without stops, a car takes about 80 minutes to Setti Fatma and about 3 hours to Ouzoud, by a routing estimate without traffic.
Side by side
| Ourika | Ouzoud | |
|---|---|---|
| By road from Jemaa el-Fnaa | 62.9 km to Setti Fatma | 159.8 km to Ouzoud |
| Road time on a tour | About 50 minutes to the first stop, about 75 minutes back | About 3 hours each way, with a coffee stop |
| At the falls | A guided walk from Setti Fatma, about 80 minutes there on Marrakech City Life SARL’s day | About 4 hours at the falls on Click Excursions' day |
| On the water | No boat ride on the tours carded here | A boat ride at the foot of the falls, options 2 and 3 |
| Other stops | Tnine Ourika, an argan cooperative, a Berber house, the river | Tamallalt for coffee |
| Lunch | Option 2, by the river | Option 3; otherwise about €12 to €13, paid locally |
| From | $16 in current promotion (usually $21) a person | $16 in current promotion (usually $18) a person |
Tours compared: Marrakech City Life SARL’s Ourika day and Click Excursions’ Ouzoud Waterfalls with Boat Trip & Optional Lunch, GetYourGuide checked November 2026. Distances routed by road from Jemaa el-Fnaa.
Check dates for the Ourika day
What each day is like
Ourika is a valley day as much as a waterfall day. You stop in the valley, see argan oil made at a women’s cooperative, take mint tea in a Berber house, walk up to the falls above Setti Fatma on a rocky path, and end at a restaurant terrace by the river. The walk is optional, so it works for a mixed group. Setti Fatma waterfalls has what the walk is like.
Ouzoud is a waterfall day with a long drive either side. On Click Excursions’ day you get about 4 hours at the falls, with a walk round the basin and, in options 2 and 3, a local guide and a boat ride at the foot of the falls; option 1 is self-guided, with no guide and no boat. On that day, in heavy rain the area round the falls can become dangerous and the boat may not run; you then get more time for the guided walk or free time instead. On GMG - PDL Excursions’ Ouzoud Waterfall, Guided Hike, Boat Ride & Lunch the guided hike includes monkey spotting and is moderately challenging; anyone who would rather not hike can wait at a restaurant by the falls.
Who each suits
- Ourika suits a first day out of Marrakech, a mixed group in which not everyone will walk, and anyone short of time: the road is short and the day ends in the late afternoon.
- Ouzoud suits travellers with a full day to spare who want a day centred on one waterfall and a boat ride below it. It is back in Marrakech about 7 pm.
With time for both, do them on separate days; Ourika is the easier first one.
More Ourika Valley Tours
Ourika and Atlas Day Trips with Open Dates
Day trips from Marrakech with live availability. Pickup, what is included and cancellation terms are on each listing.
The Shorter Waterfall Day
Marrakech City Life SARL's Ourika day: about 50 minutes to the first stop, the argan cooperative, a Berber house, the walk at Setti Fatma and the river. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
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