Morocco Travel:
The Top 10 Natural Wonders of Morocco
Part 4
Kelaat M'Gouna: the Valley of Roses
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Everything is about the roses in Kelaa |
Watching the photos of Kelaat M’ Gouna (or El Kelaa as
it’s often called by the locals) I first couldn’t believe my eyes, or that such
place can really possibly exist! But indeed, this uniquely beautiful place, is
the place where there are beautifully pink Damask Roses everywhere for a couple
of weeks every year, covering May, when the whole process of harvesting
rose-petals is crowned with an alone-standing festival called Festival of the
Roses. El Kelaa is the country’s largest manufacturers of the world famous
rose- oil and rose-water that’s also a vital part of Moroccan cuisine and it’s
also used for religious ceremonies and for weddings.
The home of Moroccan Rose Oil
El Kelaa is literally the home of the Moroccan Rose Oil,
which is used in dozens of beauty products in Morocco, can be bought here
straight from the manufacturer once you are at El Kelaa. Your eyes are
guaranteed to see pink, pink and even pinker and as an addition all products
are also pink too! Keep in mind the quantities which are pretty shocking: 3
tons of rose petals are necessary to produce 1 liter of rose water. But before
harvesting, when you visit El Kelaa, you will see roses flourishing everywhere.
It’s a 4200 km long route where the roses flourish so, just imagine how much a
treat it gives the eye.
Historically Kelaat M’Gouna met with roses with the
help of the French who brought the culture of rose growing and manufacturing
rose oil and rose water in 1938 when it also opened the first distillery in the
area. Since then, El Kelaa is the rose-land of Morocco. As for the process of
Rose oil making, this is done with the process called steam-distilling and rose
water is in fact the by-product of this process.
The Rose festival lasts for 3 days with parade, music
and food and it’s a thing of beauty to witness therefore it’s fame is growing slowly and steadily, with the
number of tourists visiting El Kelaa specifically for this festival. This is a Berber celebration during which the Rose Queen is chosen and paraded around the village with lots of music and food present. This festival is getting to be more and more known about and there is a growing number of tourists visiting el Kelaa during May just to take part in this very unique and so really colorful celebration.
El Kelaa is a Berber village
that is situated in the Northern Atlas mountains and its part of the Dades
Valley region, located very close to the similarly popular Ourzazate which is around
3-4 hours by train or by bus from Marrakech and it’s easy to reach by a local
or CTM bus. From Ourzazate it is best to take a taxi, but make sure you be
careful with the price, it shouldn’t be more than 2-3 EUR per trip.
If you
would only like a daily visit, sign up for a daily guided tour which explores
the Dades Valley generally organized from Marrakech or Agadir, the two nearest
large cities to the Dades region (about which I will talk more in detail in the
next chapter of my Morocco Top Ten series).
Check out the great article of Telegraph written on the yearly
Rose Festival.
Check out more photos of
Kelaat M'Gouna on my Pinterest by clicking
here.
Continue reading to Part 5 by clicking
here.
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