The Intelligence of the Heart
In the High Atlas, the Aït Bougmez valley, a four-hour drive west of Marrakech, reveals a myriad of villages clinging to the mountainsides. It is here that you will meet our team. We are always committed to valuing and preserving our culture and our country. We share a common purpose, driven by a common spirit of service: to offer our guests a beautiful human experience through the pleasure of travel.
Since 2007, through our skills in hospitality and tourism, we have brought to life the values of sharing that are so dear to us.
The History of Touda Ecolodge
The Genesis of an Amazigh Dream in the Bougmez Valley
Touda Ecolodge sprang from the magic of an encounter. When Saïd met Ali, the idea came to him to create a place that, beyond being a guest house, would also be an opportunity to celebrate Amazigh culture and to foster connections. Saïd was born in a neighbouring valley of the High Atlas. He is familiar with the mentality of the Amazigh people among whom he grew up. In order not to disturb the life of Zawyat Oulmzi, he bought a plot of land a little apart, overlooking all the houses below. Over the course of a year, from 2007 to 2008, local workers carried stones from the valley on muleback, followed little by little by all the materials necessary to build the structure. There was no question of building a road and disturbing the site.
Our Values
Our values are inspired by Amazigh culture, where hospitality, generosity, and sharing are a way of life. These values define the spirit of Touda and the experience we offer in the Aït Bougmez valley.
Authenticity and Tradition
We celebrate Amazigh traditions and the life of the High Atlas villages by offering hospitality that is simple, genuine, and deeply rooted in this place.
Sharing
Every stay is an encounter. We cultivate moments of sincere exchange between travelers, hosts, and the inhabitants of the valley.
Respect for Nature
The mountain is our home. We are committed to preserving its landscapes, its resources, and its balance by promoting gentle and responsible tourism.
The Touda Ecolodge Team
Throughout the year, you will be welcomed as friends by
Ahmed
Without a doubt, listening to Ahmed hum as he guides you along the trails will charm you. Ahmed is a guide who is a born communicator - he has a way with words and carries melody with him. The language barrier is never an issue; everything about him communicates. Shepherd, farmer, worker, tooth-puller, guide he is the keystone of Touda, the man you can count on at the lodge and on the mountain paths.
Nejma
In the shadows yet so luminous. Self-effacing at first glance, Nejma is both a precious second to Fatima in the kitchen and a formidable organizer regarding the logistics necessary for treks and stays at the lodge. She may not speak much to clients, often shy about the language, but her good mood and smile is contagious and overcomes any language barrier.
Zakaria
Versatile and discreet, Zakaria is a pillar of daily life at Touda Ecolodge. Whether working at Reception, offering service, or providing support on numerous tasks, he fully embodies the team spirit of the place.
Photographer, videographer and visual storyteller, he also lends his skilled eye to the service of Touda Ecolodge and the High Atlas, telling the story of the place, the landscapes, and the moments shared with travelers through images.
Native to the region, he represents an engaged youth, attached to his region and to sustainable development.
Saïd
Saïd Marghadi is a committed actor in ecotourism and regional development in the Azilal region, in the heart of the Moroccan High Atlas.
With experience combining ecolodge management, mountain guiding, audiovisual production, and development projects, he has contributed to making Touda Ecolodge a national reference for sustainable tourism.
In parallel, he is involved in social projects, including the fight against menstrual poverty. His commitment aims for a sustainable, inclusive, and authentic development of the High Atlas. Touda is in his image: turned towards others.
The History of Touda Ecolodge
A Project Anchored in the Moroccan High Atlas
The construction of Touda Ecolodge, in the heart of the High Atlas, is above all a human adventure conducted with the valley and for the valley. In an isolated location, the project took shape gradually, following the rhythm of the seasons and local expertise.
Between March and October 2007, the major part of the construction site was carried out by artisans from the region. Only a few elements, such as traditional Marrakech plasters (Tadelakt), were brought in from further away. After overcoming the technical, human, and administrative challenges inherent to a project carried out at the end of the world, Touda opened its doors in 2009.
It is a place born of the mountain, shaped by its inhabitants, and guided by the desire to build differently.
Articles and Interviews
You will find on this page several press article about Touda Ecolodge,
as well as its founder Saïd Marghadi.
As tourism soars in Morocco, so do calls for responsibility
2025
Morocco – an ecolodge under the Aït Bougmez sky
2012
Discovering the eco-museum of the Bougmez valley
2016
The "real" people of Touda in Morocco
2015
A week in the Aït Bougemez valley
2015
My Rendezvous in Unknown Land
2015
Hiking in the M’Goun Gorges #1
2018
Hiking in the M’Goun Gorges #2
2018
Charmed by Touda and the High Atlas
2018
Hiking to Lake Izourar in the Moroccan High Atlas
2015
Meeting the children of the Happy Valley
2015
Touda's delicious Moroccan crepes: THE recipe!
2015
Reportages
Touda on Screen
Touda has been the subject of several reports and documentary films, produced by media and independent teams. These outside perspectives offer a sensitive and immersive impression of the ecolodge, its founder Saïd Marghadi, and daily life in the Aït Bougmez valley.
Morocco: Ecotourism vs. Overtourism
Tourism is the third most important sector of the Moroccan economy after agriculture and industry. A mass tourism that nevertheless threatens the integrity of the environment and local cultures.
— arte.tv
Morocco Ready for tomorrow
In the High Atlas, the Aït Bougmez valley, a four-hour drive west of Marrakech, reveals a myriad of villages clinging to the mountainsides. It is here that you will meet our team.
Ahmed, the Keystone of Touda Ecolodge
It is undoubtedly listening to him hum along the trails that first charms you. Ahmed is a guide who has a way with words and carries melody with him.
A Family Week at Touda Ecolodge
Touda Ecolodge allows you to choose your program every day. Based on your desires and enjoyed at your own pace, we offer numerous sporting or cultural activities.
The Community
l’Arbre du Voyageur
L’Arbre du Voyageur is an association created by Touda Ecolodge to encourage and promote responsible tourism in Morocco, anchored in the High Atlas and more specifically in the Aït Bougmez valley.
Its objective is to support sustainable eco-tourism practices that preserve the mountain environment, respect local populations, and contribute to their social, cultural, and economic development.
Through this initiative, we wish to mobilize travelers to become active participants in the sustainable development of the Aït Bougmez valley, by making travel choices that are conscious, supportive, and respectful of the region and its inhabitants.
