RRoses Festival
of El Kalaa M'Gouna
Festivals
and celbrations in Morocco
Morocco is famous throughout the world for its
superb rose oil that's known as rose
otto (from the Arabic itr,
meaning perfume).
The
roses are not farmed in fields as you might see in the south of Morocco
around Dades valley, but are simply hedgerow plants that bloom once a
year.
French essential oil producers descend on the area at harvest time and
set up stills in the fields. Thousands of tons of petals of rosa damascena are
distilled in the big copper pots. Rosewater is the main product, but
it's the essential oil, in fact a by product of the process, that is so
valuable. That's taken back to France and sold to perfume and cosmetic
houses; it's extremely expensive. The retail price of just 3ml, or half
a teaspoon, costs over 150 Euros. The essential oil is extremely
difficult to find in Morocco, and simply isn't available in El Kelaa
M'Gouna at all. But you can find rosewater and lots of pink face and
body creams.
The Dades Valley in Morocco is also known as the Valley of the Roses,
as it
is here where the fragrant rose oil and rose water is produced for the
country,
and the landscapes are a sea of pink Persian roses. Their beauty and
subtle
aromas fill the air, and to farmers in the area, harvesting the petals
of these
delicate, yet perfect, crops is done with love and not seen as hard
labor. To
celebrate the wealth and success of the harvest, the Dades Valley hosts
the
annual Rose Festival.
El Kelaa M’Gouna is the only settlement in the area, and is home to the
two
massive rose water factories of the region. Rose water is quite an
expensive
commodity in Morocco and is used not only for its fragrance but in
traditional
cooking as well. The reason for its price tag is because of the fact
that the
four thousand two hundred kilometers of rose hedges can only produce
one
thousand four hundred liters of the product. The process uses
approximately
three thousand kilograms of rose petals to extract a liter of rose oil.
Visitors to the festival will therefore see tons of rose petals being
transported to the factories to extract the precious oils, leaving a
trail of
rose scent lingering in the air. A massive market, known as a
souk, is opened in the town of El Kelaa M’Gouna
where tourists will find various fascinating items being sold, and
musicians
and dancers livening up the festival spirit. During the festival, a
Rose Queen
is crowned, who will reign over the successful harvest of fragrance. It
is an
attraction that is a unique experience, and with such a large supply of
roses,
it is no wonder that this region is said to be the best festive
aromatic destination in
Morocco.
Tour Itinerary:
Day
1: New York –
Casablanca – Marrakech
You will depart from New York on a Royal Air Maroc
overnight flight to Casablanca, where you will board a plane to
Marrakech. Dinner will be served on board,
and a movie
will be available for your entertainment during the flight.
Day 2:
Marrakech
Upon your arrival at the Menara Airport in Marrakech, you
will find your guide waiting to take you to your hotel for check-in. the morning will be to relax and
acclimate. An introductory tour of the
city high lights of Gates, ramparts and the famous Jamaa El Fna Square
will be
at your disposal.
Day 3: Marrakech
This unique city is located where the desert and
mountains meet. Known is the “Pearl of
the South,” it was established in the 11th century by the
Almoravide
Dynasty. You will spend your day
visiting sights including the Saadian Tombs, the Dar Si Said Museum,
the Menara
Gardens, and the city’s focal point: the 12th century
Koutoubia
Minaret. After lunch, you will have an
opportunity to visit the souks, a plethora of alleyways with
multicolored
shops, and the Djemaa El Fna Square, where snake charmers, acrobats,
and fortune-tellers
put on a never-ending show. You will
conclude your day with dinner and accommodations at your hotel.
Day
4: Marrakech – El Kalaa M’Gouna
Following breakfast, you will start your journey
southward to Tinghir via Taddert and the Tizin Tichka Pass, located in
the
heart of the Atlas mountain chain.
Additionally, you will visit the Berber village of Ait Ben
Haddou and
stop in Ouarzazate for lunch. Afterward,
you will follow the route of a thousand Kasbahs through the Dades
Valley to the
village of Tinghir, where you will visit Kalaa des Mogouna, the Persian
roses
haven. You will end your day with dinner
and other accommodations at your hotel.
Day 5: El Kalaa M’Gouna
Spend your full day enjoying the Souk and the festivities
in el Kalaa M’Gouna. Food Music and dance
all around the wild roses.
Day
6: El Kalaa – Tinghir – Zagora
Land Rovers will take you across the desert to the
magnificent dunes of Erg Lihoudi in Zagora.
To watch the sun set over the spectacular Tinfou dunes in the
Sahara is
a breathtaking encounter worth experiencing.
Saddled camels will be offered as an option for those who would
like to
explore the area. Afterward, you
will
be served dinner over these dunes in a nomadic fashion.
Enjoy a night under the African skies.
Day 7:
Zagora – M’Hamid – Tinfou – Tamegroute
Breakfast with the Tuaregs, then ride your camels to meet
your vehicles to take on an excursion that will take you to the real
gateway of
the Moroccan Saharan Desert. You will
drive through the lowlands and along the mountain passes to Tamegroute,
a
humble village where deep knowledge is transmitted in the most
simplistic
way. There you will visit the famous
Moorish Koranic Library, the Zaouiia Nasseria.
Full of rare books and documents, the library includes 13th
century writings made on gazelle hide.
Afterward, you will return to Zagora for the night.
Day 8: Zagora –
Ouarzazate
Following breakfast, you will leave for your return trip
to Marrakech, stopping in Ouarzazate, where women still weave the
Ouazguita
carpets famous for their natural colors and geometric and symbolic
designs. Here, life is concentrated in
the oases and Kasbahs, contrasting with the vast and stark desert
plateaux that
surround the city. Finally, you will
return to Marrakech for a farewell dinner, where you will experience a
typical
Moroccan meal under a caidal Berber tent along with a spectacle of the
Fantasia.
Day 9:
Ouarzxazate – Casablanca – New York
You will depart from the Marrakech airport for your
transatlantic flight, connecting via Casablanca on your way to New York.
Small
group family adventure tours are run with a
mixture of sightseeing
walking, hiking, trekking, cycling, riding
camels in the Atlas Mountains and
Sahara Desert, Guided outdoor
adventure travel vacations
For Morocco Tour Information and Reservations
contact:
Sarah Tours, Inc.
Call (800) 267-0036 or (703)
619-0777
Fax (703) 619-9399
sarahtur@erols.com