It is possibly the most exclusive hotel with the best service on the African continent. Royal Mansour was conceived as a ‘medina within a medina’ and designed by King Mohammed VI. With only 53 private riads, this fabulous hotel is the ultimate luxury experience.
It is located on the eastern edge of the medina in the Hivernage neighbourhood and is surrounded and fortified by the same wall as the medina, ensuring utmost privacy and safety. It is a ten-minute taxi ride away from the famous square Djemaa el Fna and 15 minutes away from the airport. Staying at the Royal Mansour comes with the perk of getting picked up at the airport and brought to the hotel in a luxurious BMW.
Once you cross the wall to enter its grounds, you’ll find a security cordon where they’ll verify your identity. After you get past this point, you’ll travel down a path meandering through its beautifully landscaped gardens until you get to a square where they’ll help you alight from the car and collect your luggage. Upon entering the hall, an open-air courtyard with columns flanking a fountain in the centre, you’ll begin to appreciate the air of peace and tranquillity permeating the Royal Mansour.
Once you’ve checked in, they’ll accompany you to your riad, crossing a few small streets as if you were inside a medina amidst the majestic riads and enjoying the carefully groomed gardens.
Each riad—whether with 1, 2 or 3 bedrooms—is distributed across three floors. On the ground floor, you’ll find a small open-air courtyard, with some armchairs and a small fountain. Inside, there’s a small hall with a sofa and next to it is a sitting room with a dining table and a fireplace. On the other side, there’s a staircase, a washroom and the kitchen, where you can make yourself some tea or coffee using the Nespresso machine there.
If you go up the stairs to the first floor, you’ll find a corridor with a washroom, two dressing rooms and the entrance to the master suite. This is a spacious room with a very large bed and a dressing room at the back—all decorated and clad in carved wood. The bathroom, entirely in marble, has a huge tub and a shower.
On the second floor, you’ll find a terrace with a private pool and a fireplace to enjoy cooler evenings.
All the riads boast state-of-the-art digitally controlled lighting, air-conditioning and heating, and you can even use one of the many touchscreens around the room to enable do-not-disturb mode.
You’ll never see or run across any staff of the Royal Mansour—whether inside the riad itself or out in the gardens—, as each of the riads are connected by underground tunnels which the staff navigate through to attend to your every need. This is the reason why the Royal Mansour sets the gold standard in service in its category.
With regard to dining, there are three restaurants to choose from: La Table, which serves exquisite French cuisine; La Grand Table Marrocain, which features a blend of Moroccan and contemporary cuisine; and last but not the least, Le Jardin, which is headed by Chef Yannick Allenó and offers Asian fusion cuisine. It is perhaps one of the best restaurants in Morocco.
More info: royalmansour.com
