Skoura

Skoura (Berber: ⵙⴽⵓⵔⴰ, Arabic: سكورة) is a town in Ouarzazate Province, Drâa-Tafilalet, Saharan Morocco. It consists of a modern town as well as a historical oasis and palmeraie with traditional rammed-earth architecture.

Skoura consists of a historic fertile oasis lined with immense palm groves (a "palmeraie"), at the confluence of several rivers and streams descending from the central High Atlas mountains. Most of these are wadis, except in spring, some have dams as part of the irrigation system. Within the oasis, a few of these rivers join together to form the river known as Oued el-Hajjaj, which in turn joins the Oued Dadès a short distance further south.

The town itself has some 4,300 inhabitants, out of 25,000 in the commune Skoura Ahl El Oust.

Skoura is 40 km east of Ouarzazate and easy to reach with tourist vehicles.

31°3′35″N 6°33′25″W

Map of Skoura

The main modern town of Skoura is on the eastern edge of the oasis, along the main road from Ouarzazate.

The oasis and palmeraie is dotted with many traditional kasbahs (fortified family mansions) and ksour (fortified villages) built in rammed earth, dating from various periods in the last few centuries, some of which are crumbling today while others have been recently restored or converted to new uses.

The palmeraies are a sight in themselves.

• 31.046217-6.581241 Kasbah Amridil.  

• 31.07287-6.560181 Kasbah Palmeraie Skoura, Ahl louast, ☏ +212 6 62 15 30 49, [email protected]. €16.  (updated Feb 2018)
• 31.10066-6.597752 Bassatines Skoura (previously Dar Grenadine), ☏ +212 601237133, [email protected]. 2018-02-27 From €15 (dormitory) to €75.  
• Kasbah Ait Ben Damiette, Douar ouled ali - Khamsa, [email protected]. 13 20–55-m² rooms with AC, refrigerator and hair dryer. (updated Mar 2020)