In Marrakech, a Fresh Swell of Charming Hotels and Chic Boutiques

22.12.2023 - 14:14 / cntraveler.com / saint Laurent

There is so much more to Marrakech than the European rock stars who have famously partied here and the iconic expats, like Yves Saint Laurent, who adopted it as their home. The past two decades have seen this North African city become accessible to more travelers as an armada of courtyard homes, or riads, within the ochre walls of the medina have been transformed into chic but affordable boutique hotels, providing options beyond the lavish hotels owned by Morocco's king.

The outside dining patio at Maison Brummell Majorelle, a new riad-inspired boutique hotel with views of the Majorelle Garden

The sculptural exterior of the design-forward Maison Brummell Majorelle.

During the COVID pandemic, the city continued to evolve, leaning into its rich artisanal traditions in new ways. This past fall, Marrakech's high season, numerous long-delayed projects were set to have their grand debut, including a flurry of new hotels in the medina, like Izza, Riad Alena, and Maison Brummell Majorelle. On the outskirts of town, the four-bedroom former artist retreat Farasha Farmhouse planned to open with photographs and sculptures by the Moroccan artist Amine El Gotaibi and a 164-foot-long olive-tree-lined swimming pool. Then came the 6.8-magnitude earthquake that struck central Morocco last September 8, devastating hundreds of villages in the High Atlas Mountains. Marrakech itself was largely spared, but some of the openings were put on hold again.

A classic juice cart painted by Laurence Leenaert, the designer behind the new riad Rosemary and the lifestyle brand Lrnce

A Patrice Kouadio caftan, available at the El Fenn Boutique.

Now, several of these hoteliers are joining forces to promote the city—especially to travelers who mistakenly think that the appropriate thing to do is stay away. “Just the opposite! We need people to come,” says the Brazilian-born, Marrakech-based clothing designer Adriana Bittencourt, whose Riad Nour—with interiors by Bill Willis, the designer behind two of Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé's Marrakech homes—is now available to book. Bittencourt is brainstorming marketing campaigns alongside her new medina neighbor, Laurence Leenaert, the Belgian designer behind the new riad Rosemary and the made-in-Morocco lifestyle brand Lrnce, and the fashion legend Romeo Gigli. In December, Gigli opened Romeo, a five-bedroom contemporary riad with origami-like chandeliers and flamboyant hand-painted headboards. Gigli and his wife, Lara, bought the house 18 years ago, but the pandemic gave them time to tear out the interiors and rebuild every detail, down to the evil-eye floor tiles. The couple's daughter Diletta runs the hotel, and Lara will soon sell her Berber- and Tuareg-inspired silver cuffs and brass