Blessed with many charming assets, the city of Marrakech never ceases to captivate visitors from all corners of the world. A blazing sun, monuments, warm hospitality, and breathtaking landscapes. Just minutes from the city center, palm trees stretch as far as the eye can see, creating a paradisiacal setting whose origin remains enigmatic.
Genesis of an oasis
The most popular version takes us back to the 11th century. Under the reign of Youssef Ben Tachfine, leader of the Almoravid dynasty, Marrakech became the capital of Morocco, and legend has it that the Palm Grove appeared during this same period. Stories attribute the emergence of this oasis to the passages of nomads, Sahrawi travelers, who allegedly stimulated the soil's fertility by throwing date pits from all points of the desert. Thus, the approximately 12,000 hectares of date palm trees formed the Palm Grove, a remote area of the city frequented only by shepherds and farmers at the time.
Over the years, this new paradise corner was endowed with several water sources, notably the "Khettayas," underground galleries storing water from the Atlas Mountains. Today, the Palm Grove has more than 118,687 adult palm trees and has been classified as a "protected site" since 1929 by Royal Dahir.
On March 19, 2007, the Mohammed VI Foundation for Environmental Protection, in partnership with the Wilaya and the City, launched the "Plan for the Safeguarding and Development of the Palm Grove". This initiative aims to maintain existing palm trees and plant new ones. The site is also classified as of "biological interest" following this project, an approach that aims to develop a culture of protection of the Palm Grove among Marrakchis and visitors.
In recent years, the Palm Grove has attracted investors and now houses a large part of the most renowned establishments in the ochre city, including the Palmeraie Rotana Resorts, the Palais Mehdi, the Palais Rhoul, the Palais Namaskar, the Amanjena hotel, etc. Away from the spotlight, some celebrities and political figures come to take refuge under the palm trees and are said to even have a second residence, such as Naomi Campbell, Jamel Debbouze, Paloma Picasso, Nicolas Sarkozy, Gad Elmaleh, and many others.
Photo: Madalena Roquette