The four-day festival is usually held in late April. Read on for what to expect at the festival.
The scent of roses is a feature of the soap merchants in souks and in the gardens of Morocco.
It is believed that the first Persian rose was introduced to the Dades Valley by pilgrims from Mecca. Other theories believe the flower was brought to Morocco by the French.
Today the area around Kelaat m’Gouna in the High Atlas Mountains is famed for its roses which are everywhere. Smell them in gardens, hedges, and the shops- this is a really fragrant place.
The Kelaat M’Gouna Rose Festival celebrates these flowers annually and is famous throughout Morocco. This small town near Ouarzarzate is home to the M’Gouna Tribe who enjoy celebrating the rose harvest with a festival.
At rose festival time there is singing and dancing in the streets of Kelaat M’Gouna which go on into the night.
Rose petals are thrown onto the dancers in the streets below and as part of the celebration a Rose Queen is chosen. She reigns over the crop for the year.
This is one of the prettiest and most fragrant festivals in Morocco with exquisite rose displays, divine food, and lots of Berber dancing and music. It is usually held in the springtime and lasts for 3 days in the beautiful town set in the Draa Valley and High Atlas.
Roses are used in Moroccan cuisine and the perfume industry. 3000 petals are used to make a litre of rosewater as the distilling process is complex. As the harvest generally yields 14,000 litres the cost of the product is very expensive.
Roses are seen in hedgerows and the dried petals are a favorite in the souks all over Morocco. The Kelaat M’Gouna Rose Festival is a unique event in Morocco and is worth the journey for a very special experience