For anyone who devoured the brilliant Netflix hit show, Inventing Anna, you will know that city of Marrakech in Morrocco had a key role, playing host to fake heiress, Anna Delvey, when she took her friends on a once-in-a-lifetime holiday to a beautiful and luxurious hotel (before being exposed as a con artist who couldn’t pay the bill.) Well, while the show – based on a true story – was set and filmed at the famous La Mamounia hotel, we think we might just have found an even more beautiful, more luxurious and even more fabulous hotel: Royal Mansour Marrakech. A property so stunning, elegant and fabulous with such attention to detail and impeccable hospitality, that never mind feeling like a millionaire heiress, your stay will make you feel like royalty, which is apt as the hotel was designed by the king of Morocco, King Mohammed VI, as a sanctuary for his friends and family.
The entrance alone is magnificent. Arriving past security and through a giant triumphal arch, which is modelled on Marrakech’s signature city gates, you enter the open air lobby with palms, fountains, traditional hanging lanterns and swathed in billowing white curtains. All the interiors, featuring acres of refined zellij (geometric mosaic), stucco, carved wood and cut bronze and silver furniture were completed by over 1,500 local artisans.
The property’s 53 riads – each with their own private pool – are housed within the imperial city walls and come together to create a mini Medina, although this one is infinitely more tranquil. The grounds are overlooked by the peaks of the Atlas Mountains and set in five hectares of the most sweetly scented gardens with wafts of jasmine, orange blossom and lavender at every turn. There’s also an impressive swimming pool surrounded by palm trees. It’s worth remembering the exact route to your riad, as it’s easy to get lost in the beautiful winding pink roads of the resort.