Beni Isguen is the holiest and most conservative of the five M'zab ksour, a walled city that has maintained its own rules for entry and behaviour since the 11th century. Its old quarter is exceptionally well preserved — the mosque, the market, and the residential streets form a complete medieval Saharan town. A weekly auction of goods takes place in the central square, conducted according to traditional rules: items are announced verbally, bids are made in whispers to the auctioneer, and the proceedings follow a ritual formality unchanged for centuries.
Entry requires a guide and adherence to dress codes that go beyond what is expected elsewhere in the M'zab. Photography is restricted. The experience is one of the most genuinely otherworldly in North Africa — not staged, not curated, but a living community that has successfully preserved its way of life against enormous pressures.