Marrakech: What's New: Marrakech Update

Marrakech Update

Marrakech is forever on the move. A flurry of new hotels have opened recently, and the air is abuzz with future plans. In the medina, Riad Noir d’Ivoire is probably one of the prettiest new openings of the past year; Maison MK is boho cool; the Murano Oriental is alive with cool tunes; and if you prefer something more grown-up and more peaceful, there’s Riad Meriem, the recent modern Moroccan creation of New York interior designer Thomas Hays, and Riad Tarabel, exquisitely good-looking; delicate glass chandeliers, vases of fresh roses; lots of creams, whites and taupes.

Legendary La Mamounia, which has long offered the best of both Marrakech’s worlds (proximity to the medina and a parklike setting), is undergoing a much needed renovation and is slated to reopen soon. Other big hitters have big plans, too. Rocco Forte has bought a 500-acre estate with olive groves and ancient waterways just outside the city. He plans to open a 90-room hotel with a spa, an 18-hole golf course and a golf academy by the end of 2009. And, what excitement, Gordon Campbell Gray, the man who gave us One Aldwych in London and Carlisle Bay on Antigua, is opening two new hotels a twenty-minute drive from Marrakech toward the Atlas Mountains. Expect private pools, a contemporary Moroccan design and a series of linked courtyards with attractive gardens. Space and light are the name of the game.

Also for 2009, Mandarin Oriental is all set to open Mandarin Oriental Jnan Rahma, a sleek hideaway in the Palmeraie region with lush landscaped gardens, palms, pools and fountains and 145 large rooms with spacious outdoor terraces. MO is renowned for its exceptionally good spas, so it’s no surprise that the chain will also offer the most comprehensive range of wellness, beauty and massage treatments available in Marrakech. Sounds too good to be true? Don’t panic; you can splash out and buy one of the 45 private villas, all of which are for sale. It’s a winning combination: total privacy but with hotel backup. With all these newcomers on the horizon, many people are beginning to fear that Marrakech is becoming overrun. Let us reassure you that so far, thankfully, nothing has spoiled the snake charming beauty of what has to be the world’s funkiest, cool medina.