Saffron and gardens half day: a private tour from Marrakech to the Ourika road

By the Ourika Valley team · Updated 27 October 2026

• Private half day, 10:00 to about 15:00, Wednesday to Sunday
• 120 EUR per vehicle for 1 to 7 people, 200 EUR for 8 to 17
• Le Paradis du Safran: organic saffron farm, barefoot path and saffron tea
• The bio-aromatic garden of Ourika near Tnine Ourika
• Saffron crocus in flower in late October and November
• Pickup and drop-off at your hotel or riad in Marrakech

The day, stop by stop

1. 10:00, pickup in Marrakech

   Your driver collects you at your hotel or riad at 10:00. If you stay inside the medina, where cars cannot enter most lanes, we meet you at the nearest point a vehicle can reach. The evening before, your driver sends you a WhatsApp message so you know who to look for.

2. The Ourika road

   The road leaves Marrakech towards the south and the High Atlas. After the last suburbs, olive groves, orchards and gardens line the road, and the mountains come closer. The drive to the saffron farm takes about an hour.

3. 11:00, Le Paradis du Safran

   We arrive when the farm opens. You walk the organic garden at your own pace: about 200 plant species, the saffron plots, a barefoot path with basins of water and medicinal plants, and a terrace with a view of the Atlas. The visit ends with an organic herbal tea with saffron and a small snack. Allow an hour to an hour and a half.

4. The bio-aromatic garden of Ourika

   A little further up the road, near Tnine Ourika, the bio-aromatic garden grows around fifty aromatic, medicinal and ornamental plants on about one hectare. You walk among the plants on your own, or take the guided visit of about 30 minutes to smell, touch and learn their uses. With the lunch option, lunch is served on the way.

5. Around 15:00, back in Marrakech

   The drive back takes about an hour, and you are at your hotel or riad around 15:00, with the rest of the afternoon free in the city.

The saffron and gardens half day is a private tour from Marrakech to two gardens on the Ourika road: Le Paradis du Safran, an organic saffron farm about 30 km from the city, and the bio-aromatic garden near Tnine Ourika, about 35 km away. Your driver picks you up at your hotel or riad at 10:00 and you are back around 15:00. It costs 120 EUR per vehicle for 1 to 7 people, 200 EUR for 8 to 17, and runs Wednesday to Sunday.

What is the saffron and gardens half day?

It is a slow, short outing built around plants. You spend the late morning at Le Paradis du Safran, where saffron is grown organically in a botanical garden, then walk among the aromatic and medicinal plants of the bio-aromatic garden of Ourika before driving back to Marrakech for the afternoon. The vehicle and driver are for your group only.

Saffron is the dried stigma of a crocus, Crocus sativus, which flowers in autumn. Each flower carries three red stigmas, picked and separated by hand, and roughly 150 flowers give one gram of dried saffron. Our guide to saffron in the Ourika Valley tells the whole story, from the farms of the valley to the women who work the harvest; this page is about the tour itself.

The half day, stop by stop

10:00, pickup at your hotel or riad

Your driver is at your door at 10:00. If you stay inside the medina, where cars cannot enter most lanes, we meet you at the nearest point a vehicle can reach, as close as possible to your riad. The evening before, the driver sends you a WhatsApp message with his name, so you know who to look for.

The late start is deliberate. Le Paradis du Safran opens at 11:00, and there is no reason to leave earlier and wait at the gate.

The Ourika road

The road heads south towards the High Atlas. Once the last suburbs are behind you, olive groves, orchards, nurseries and gardens line the road, and the mountains fill the windscreen. It takes about an hour to reach the saffron farm. Your driver speaks French, English and Spanish and can stop for a photograph of the Atlas if the sky is clear.

11:00, Le Paradis du Safran

Le Paradis du Safran was created by Christine Ferrari on the Ourika road. It is a quiet place, designed to be walked slowly. According to the farm's website, the entry price covers:

• a welcome drink of mineral water with flower petals;
• the self-guided visit of the organic garden, with about 200 plant species;
• a barefoot path with basins of water and medicinal plants, towels and argan oil;
• a relaxation area with a view of the Atlas;
• a spice quiz and brochures that explain saffron;
• an organic herbal tea with saffron, and a small snack.

You walk at your own pace, without a fixed route. Most visitors remember the barefoot path, so wear shoes that are easy to take off. Allow an hour to an hour and a half. For hours, ticket and everything else about the farm, see our practical page on Le Paradis du Safran.

The bio-aromatic garden near Tnine Ourika

The second stop is a little further up the road, near the market town of Tnine Ourika. The bio-aromatic garden of Ourika, run by the Moroccan natural cosmetics brand Nectarome, grows around fifty aromatic, medicinal and ornamental plants on about one hectare. You can walk it on your own or take the guided visit of about 30 minutes, in which a guide lets you smell, touch and sometimes taste the plants and explains their uses in cooking, herbal medicine and skin care. There is a shop with the brand's cosmetics; buying is up to you.

After two gardens, many travellers are happy to sit down. With the lunch option, lunch is served on the way, before the drive back.

Around 15:00, back in Marrakech

The drive back takes about an hour. You are at your hotel or riad around 15:00, with the rest of the afternoon free for the souks, a hammam or the pool.

How much does the saffron half day cost?

The tour costs 120 EUR per vehicle for 1 to 7 people and 200 EUR for 8 to 17 people in 2026. The price is per vehicle, not per person, so it goes down for each traveller as the group grows. Entrance fees to the two gardens are not included and are paid on site.

The price covers the vehicle, fuel, the driver and pickup and drop-off in Marrakech. One option can be added when you book: lunch at 20 EUR per person.

Which entrance fees do you pay on site?

You pay two entrance fees in dirhams, on the spot: 150 MAD per person at Le Paradis du Safran and 35 MAD per adult at the bio-aromatic garden, according to their websites in 2026. Bring cash: the saffron farm gives a small discount for payment in cash.

Prices and hours can change. We check them when we plan your day, but they belong to the gardens, not to us.

Which days does the tour run?

The tour runs Wednesday to Sunday only, because Le Paradis du Safran is closed on Monday and Tuesday. On those two days, choose our private Ourika Valley day trip or the Ourika Valley half day, which leaves at 8:00 for Setti Fatma and its waterfalls. Monday is also the day of the weekly souk in Tnine Ourika.

The bio-aromatic garden publishes seasonal hours. It is open from 9:00 to 17:00 from October to May and later in June, July and September; August is not listed on its timetable, so in August we confirm before we include it.

When can you see the saffron in flower?

The saffron crocus flowers in late October and November, and the flowers are picked early in the morning, before they wilt. If you book in those weeks, there is a chance to see the purple flowers in the plots, but the farm does not publish its harvest dates, so we cannot promise it. Out of season you still see the plants, the garden and the dried threads.

A dedicated harvest experience, with an early-morning visit to pick flowers during the flowering season, is in preparation. For now, the saffron half day is the simplest way to see where saffron grows near Marrakech.

Is this tour for you?

It suits travellers who like plants, quiet gardens and learning how a spice is grown, and who want a short outing without hiking. The walking is easy and on flat paths.

It does not suit families with children under 12, who are not admitted at Le Paradis du Safran. With younger children, a day with the bio-aromatic garden, a women's cooperative and the river is a better choice; our guide to the Ourika with kids has ideas.

If you want the gardens and the mountains in one day, the saffron day trip keeps Le Paradis du Safran, adds a village stop and lunch by the river, and ends at Setti Fatma with the walk towards the waterfalls, for the same price per vehicle.

Half day or full saffron day?

What should you bring?

• Shoes that are easy to take off for the barefoot path, and a small towel if you like.
• Cash in dirhams for the two entrance fees, drinks, purchases and tips, and the balance of the tour, paid to the driver on the day.
• Sun protection: hat, sunscreen and sunglasses. The gardens are open to the sky.
• A light layer in autumn and winter: the Ourika road is cooler than Marrakech.
• A bag if you plan to buy saffron, plants or cosmetics.

How do booking, payment and cancellation work?

You book online on this page and pay a 50% deposit with PayPal or a bank card through PayPal. The balance is paid in cash to the driver on the day. Cancellation is free up to 48 hours before the tour, with the deposit refunded. If the weather makes the valley unsafe, we offer you another date or refund the deposit. Our WhatsApp number, +212 661 454 738, is there for questions; bookings are made on this page.

Sources

• Le Paradis du Safran, official website: opening hours, closing days, 2026 price, what the visit includes, children policy
• Jardin Bio-Aromatique d'Ourika, visits page: entry prices and seasonal opening hours
• Wikipedia, Saffron: Crocus sativus, autumn flowering, three-pronged style with crimson stigmas, about 150 flowers per gram of dried saffron