Out of the desert to Tafraoute

by Shona · November 1, 2025

Taftaoute is a small town in Southern Morocco located in the Anti Atlas Mountains, with its history deeply rooted in its Berber (Amazigh) culture. Historically, the region was a site of mining for copper, iron, and manganese.

Tafraoute was first discovered in the 60s by the flower power generation, when droves of tie-dyed hippies trundled south in their combi vans.

These days, it’s patronised by the world’s leading rock climbers, lured by the sleek, wind-sculpted faces of sheer granite.

On the way to Tafraoute, we stopped at the small village of Ait Kine. We were there to visit a granary that is still in use. A granary is like a village bank where families can “deposit” their valuables, documents and grain for safe keeping.

It is not know how old this particular granary is, but there is a private archived document dated 1709 that mentions a granary is this village.

The holes near the doors allow the village cats to get in to kill any rodents and stop them from eating the grain inside each vault.

The keeper of the key also keeps important contracts and documents for the village. Some of these seemed quite old. Thank goodness for dry desert air!

In case of emergency, someone would run up the ladder and sound the warning as demonstrated by our keeper of the keys. He is 70+ years old.

From here it wasn’t long before we were back on the back roads traveling through some amazing scenery.

There had been some major flooding in this area in the last 12-18 months that had caused a lot of damage to roads and washed out many causeway and bridges.

We arrived in Tafraoute early evening to stay at the wonderful Hotel Les Amandiers. Not to everyone’s taste but quirky enough for me to love!

Apparently it was a former officers’ mess of the French protectorate and is a piece of Moroccan postcolonial (1956) history as well as a hotel that dominates the town, providing panoramic views of the mountains that surround it. You can still find some original French Art Deco elements in the decor.

Next day we went for a short drive and the a bit of a hike up to a village to look at the irrigation system still in use and experience a traditional Berber tea gathering. There was an added surprise of a Berber sing-a-long as well.

The spring fed cistern for irritating and a water tap for the villagers.

There as been no substantial rain for a number of years causing a lot of the younger people to head into the larger cities like Marrakesh.

After an earthquake in 2016, many of the villages moved from the old village and built a new on a bit further round the mountain.

Note the huge lump of sugar and the special hammer used to break it up.

Later that afternoon we went for a short drove to the “Painted Rocks” of Morocco. The village of Tafraoute is surrounded by famous blocks of pink granite. In the middle of this setting is one of the most surprising artistic creations of the region: Painted Rocks.

In 1984, the Belgian artist Jean Vérame painted a dozen blocks of rocks (with the help of the local fire brigade) in blue near Tafraout. Whether we like it or not, this work does not leave anyone indifferent and we will even find lovers of this psychedelic setting. There is something for everyone. It’s absolutely worth seeing.

A lot of Morrocans think they’re are a good thing as it’s brings in the tourist dollar. I’m glad I saw then, but definitely not my cup of tea. But, as our tour guide said, “We have a lot of rocks in Morocco. “