HOTELHOTELHOTELHaini (market day Thursday) and onward to Imilchil.
IMILCHIL: MOROCCO’S MEET MARKET
Just another striking Middle Atlas Berber village most of the year, Imilchil is flooded with visitors during its three-day September
marriage moussem . At this huge festival, local Berbers stock up for long months of isolation in winter, and scope the scene
for marriage material. Women strut their stuff in striped woollen cloaks and elaborate jewellery, and boys preen in flowing white
jellabas.
The festival usually runs Friday to Sunday in the third or fourth week of September; dates are posted at tourist offices
throughout the country. Organised tours to the event are available from cities throughout Morocco, and newly paved roads
from Rich and Aït Haini to Imilchil have brought busloads of tourists to see romance blossom. With hustlers, faux guides and
souvenir stalls eyeing the tourists, onlookers are beginning to outnumber the young lovers – but there’s no denying the
voyeuristic fascination of the event.
Accommodation
During the festival, the area is covered in tented accommodation. Otherwise, there are three basic hotels in town, in order of
relative amenities:Chez Bassou €
( 0523 44 24 02; www.chezbassou.com; s/d incl half-board Dh260/400) Fifteen rooms with en-suite bathrooms.Hotel Izlane €
(www.hotelizlane.com; s/d incl half-board Dh195/360) Fourteen rooms, four with en-suite bathrooms.Aït Yaselmane Hotel-Restaurant €
( 0523 42 66 88; d per person incl half-board Dh150) Four rooms and hot meals (Dh60).
Getting There & Away
To get to Imilchil from Marrakesh, head northeast by bus or grand taxi to Kasba Tadla, and onward by grand taxi to El-Ksiba. At
El-Ksiba there is a daily bus to Aghbala. The turn-off for Imilchil is near Tizi n’Isly, about 10km before Aghbala. From the turnoff,
61km of paved road leads south to Imilchil. You may also find local grands taxis or trucks Imilchil-bound for Friday and
Sunday souqs .
With more time, it’s possible to reach Imilchil (a breathtaking 160km by 4WD or souq-bound lorry) from Boumalne du Dadès
or Tinerhir. Minivans leave Imilchil for Tinerhir (Dh50 to Dh55) on Saturday.Tinejdad
POP 7500
Back when caravans arrived loaded with gold and dazed after months of Sahara sun, they were
understandably skittish – but Tinejdad (‘nomad’ in Tamazight) put them at ease. Five Berber and
Saharan tribes crossed paths at this hitching post, quenching thirsts at the Sources de Lalla
Mimouna natural springs, sleeping peacefully in well-fortified ksour in the Ferkla oasis and
conducting business at 1000-year-old Ksar Asir , a medieval commercial centre that housed an
Almoravid mosque and a sizeable Jewish community. Water, shelter, business and baraka
(blessings): what more could a nomad need?
Zooming through Tinejdad, this crossroads culture remains remarkably intact just off the N10.