About twenty minutes from Merzouga, on a track running alongside the reg, Khamlia is home to a few dozen families descended from sub-Saharan peoples who settled in the region several generations ago.
The village is best known for one thing: its music.
What is the gnawa music played in Khamlia?
Gnawa music has nothing in common with the Berber melodies heard elsewhere in southern Morocco.
It is built around the guembri, a three-stringed lute with a deep, repetitive tone, and the qraqebs, metal castanets that drive the rhythm.
Together they create a musical trance, historically linked to spiritual practices long before becoming a performance for visitors.
Some Khamlia families pass this tradition down from generation to generation.
The groups who play for visitors today are often the direct heirs of this practice, not simply artists hired for the occasion.
The village's own name, sometimes referred to as the "black village" in some guides, refers to this settlement history — a term that deserves to be placed in context rather than repeated without explanation.
How does a visit to Khamlia actually work?
The format is simple: a short journey from Merzouga, then a live music session in a small room or open courtyard, often accompanied by mint tea.
Duration varies between thirty minutes and an hour depending on the group and time of day.
Do not expect a grand staged show.
It is a modest performance in form, often moving precisely for that reason: a few musicians, instruments worn by years of playing, and a rhythm that builds gradually rather than a show calibrated for effect.
Some visitors are invited to clap along or try the qraqebs for a few minutes.
It is not guaranteed, and depends mainly on the mood of the group present that day.
When is the best time to visit Khamlia?
Many tours include Khamlia at the end of the day, before or after sunset on the nearby dunes.
This combination works well: the low light on the reg on arrival, then the more intimate atmosphere of the music once night falls.
For those staying at a camp in Erg Chebbi, Khamlia is easier to visit at the start of the trip, before the camel departure, so as not to overload the last evening already taken up by dinner and camp entertainment.
For travellers with only one day in Merzouga, Khamlia remains optional: it enriches the stay without being its core, unlike the night in the dunes themselves.
What can you combine with a Khamlia visit?
Khamlia is not visited in isolation in most programmes: the 4x4 journey there crosses a stretch of reg that opens onto other possible stops.
The seasonal Dayet Srji lake, when it holds water, is nearby and can be added to the same outing.
Some local guides also offer a stop at small isolated dunes in the reg, less well known than Erg Chebbi but photogenic at sunset.
Grouping these stops on a single half-day 4x4 outing avoids multiple separate trips from Merzouga and makes better use of your stay.
For travellers staying at a camp, this type of side outing is easier to schedule at the start of the trip, before heading to the dunes for the night.
Should you expect a tourist show in Khamlia?
The main misunderstanding about Khamlia comes from poorly calibrated expectations.
It is not a show produced for tourists, with staging and polished lighting, but the continuation of a musical and spiritual practice belonging to a specific community in Tafilalet.
The musicians often play the same repertoire they would play among themselves, with or without a visiting audience.
Approaching the visit with this in mind changes how you perceive the session: the simplicity of the setting and the absence of staging are not a lack of means, but the sign of a tradition that has not been recalibrated to please at all costs.
Travellers who come expecting a polished concert sometimes leave disappointed; those who come to understand a genuine cultural practice generally take away more.
How do you fit Khamlia into a Merzouga stay?
The visit is generally booked as a short add-on, alongside a tour that already includes transport and accommodation.
Our page on Erg Chebbi places Khamlia among the other activities available around the dunes.
For the broader history of Tafilalet's communities and Moroccan cultural heritage, the Moroccan National Tourist Office website offers supplementary resources.
Practical tip
Bring a small cash contribution for the musicians at the end of the session: this is standard practice in Khamlia, in addition to or instead of a fixed rate depending on the group.
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