Erfoud, in southern Morocco, the date capital

Erfoud, the city of dates

A small town (less than 10,000 inhabitants), Erfoud is only remarkable for its location in the heart of the of the Tafilalt, and its moussem of dates, at the end of the summer.

Born in 1917 from the installation of a French garrison, like many southern towns, Erfoud is pleasant, but its medina has nothing to hold the attention. However, the Borj (fortified tower) overlooking the village offers a splendid view of the palm grove and the desert.

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Erfoud is a town of desert gastronomy and the Guetna, or date moussem, which celebrates the end of the harvest, was an occasion to savour, in addition to the different varieties of this fruit, other specialities, including the kahlia, a tagine of minced mutton accompanied by eggs, tomatoes, onions, peppers, and flavoured with 44 different spices (not to be confused with the khlia)! Or the medfouna, a small snack of

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bread topped with eggs, onions and various spices is served at the end of the camel race that closes the moussem.

This race, which takes place in the dunes of Merzouga, near the Timbuktu hostel, is an extraordinary, timeless spectacle. One could believe oneself to be back in the era of the great Berber caravans, the salt masters, of the gold, slave and ivory traders. Unfortunately, in 2006, this moussem was replaced by an “international date fair” which takes place earlier, in mid-September, and which, in the modest words of the authorities, “no longer has the social side that the moussem had, to concentrate on the commercial aspect.”

Erfoud remains a convenient starting point for excursions in the South and especially in the desert.

Erfoud: practical information

Getting to Erfoud

You can get to Erfoud either from Ouarzazate, or from Fez via the Ziz Valley, and CTM buses connect the town to the main destinations. For a large taxi, it will cost you about 100 dirhams from Ouarzazate, 70 from Rissani. It is possible to rent cars on site.

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Shopping, restaurants and hotels in Erfoud

Accommodation is of good quality and varied, from small inns to luxury kasbahs.

The bazaars offer Berber crafts. Many fossil sellers will offer you more or less authentic pieces. Many of them are locals who collect fossils on their journeys, and dream of the great bargain everyone talks about, the fossil that will make them rich. There is a parallel market, but the export of valuable fossils is regulated.

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It is also possible to visit a marble working workshop a little outside the town that works a black marble studded with fossils, particularly goniatites.

Weather and climate of Erfoud

At the gateway to the desert, in the desert itself, Erfoud is an oasis with a hot and dry climate. It is too far from the Atlantic to benefit from the humid winds that can still arrive in the Draa valley.