L’Hôtel Marrakech

Character and identity

A five-suite riad tucked into a quiet pocket of the medina near Bab Doukkala, this is Jasper Conran's converted 19th-century palace, and it reads more like the home of an exacting collector than a hotel. Orange blossom, antiques, tadelakt and pared-back calm set the tone, with a 1920s-inflected glamour running through the bar (crimson-and-white striped lounge chairs, martinis, Django on the speakers) and a glass-walled dining room opening onto a green courtyard. Cooking is traditional Moroccan home-style, with a steak frites concession. Service is charming, old-fashioned and unintrusive, with a round-the-clock guardian.

Who's it for

Bottom line

What you're buying is atmosphere and curation, a private-house feeling at riad scale, not a full-service resort with treatments and nightlife on tap. Book it if you want to decompress in beautiful rooms among someone else's art collection. The Casablanca Suite is the showpiece; the Zagora is smaller, lighter, and opens onto the pool, the smarter pick if you want air and a terrace.