Indulge / Morocco
Marrakech, Riads and Rooftops
Marrakech · 8 min read
Marrakech is intense at street level and completely calm behind a riad door, which is the whole design principle of the medina. The contrast is what makes it such a good short escape.
Four nights is right: two in the medina, one for the Atlas, one for doing nothing at all.
Staying in a riad
A riad is a house built inward around a courtyard, usually with five to eight rooms, a plunge pool and a roof terrace. The good ones serve breakfast on the roof and dinner in the courtyard, and they are the reason to come.
Book one inside the medina walls, accept that a porter will meet you with a cart because cars cannot reach the door, and choose based on the courtyard rather than the room size.
The medina and the souks
Jemaa el-Fnaa is best at dusk when the food stalls set up. The souks behind it are organised by trade, still working, and best approached with a fixed idea of what you want and no fixed idea of the route.
Bargaining is expected and should be good natured. Fix your own price before you start and be prepared to walk away.
Gardens, hammams and the Atlas
The Jardin Majorelle and the Yves Saint Laurent museum are busy but genuinely good. The Bahia Palace and the Saadian Tombs are quieter in the last hour of the day.
Have a proper hammam, ideally a traditional one rather than a hotel version. Then drive an hour to the Ourika valley or the Atlas foothills for cool air and a completely different Morocco.
Why it feels like a gift
Very little luxury travel still feels this atmospheric, and a good riad costs a fraction of a European equivalent.
Come in spring, when the Atlas still has snow on it and the courtyard is warm.
