A local summed it up aptly for me over traditional Maghrebi mint tea and pastilla at one of the city’s many picturesque garden restaurants. ”The Red City is not like the bliding lights city , but it holds on to its past and culture in ways that are both equally charming and frustrating. So while you will lap up the overload of authenticity, the well-priced argan oil, the Berber carpets and the hammam spas. Marakech will get you out from your daily life, forget about Uber or even speak your language ,but visit for an adequate number of days, and Marrakech will cast a spell on you, like it did on many before you—Yves Saint-Laurent and Talitha Getty included.
For a taste of the city’s ultimate A-list experience, check in to one of its impossibly lavish hotels, where decadence and luxury are just another everyday reality. Each more photogenic than the other, you wouldn’t be wrong to assume that you’ve probably stumbled into a movie set.
Go inside The Djemaa El Fna
The entire spectrum of Moroccan life enfolds before you, a vibrant hub of bric-a-brac stalls, musicians, storytellers, fortune-tellers, and snake charmers that never seems to rest. Find the best argan oil and walk through the laberinth sorrounded by locals with the most exotic teas, handmade rugs. Head for the roof terrace at the Café du Grand Balcon on the northwest corner to observe the spectacle over a glass of mint tea and taste the infinite variety of desserts
Visit the Yves Saint Laurent Museum
This museum is stablished in one of the cities that inspired the designer, with an appropriate flourish of high-style elegance, the mix with Marrakech will bring a complete experience with history, fashion and a wide variety of activities. The museum features a wall of photographs tracing the evolution of Saint Laurent’s life and career. The project was spearheaded by Pierre Bergé designing a 130-seat auditorium, a bookshop, café, and research library with more than 5,000 books on fashion, Arab history, the Berbers of North Africa, geography, literature, and botany.
Stay al El Fenn
Every detail in this hotel is filled with surprise, as the authenticy of Marrakech, it lets you experience the busiest neighbourhood with an unapologetic dose of sophisticated cool. El Fenn houses 28 rooms and suites, tree-filled courtyards and a roof terrace restaurant—all covered by a blanket of discreet privacy. A place to kick back and enjoy the tranquility of an abundance of hidden spaces before stepping outside to soak up the atmosphere of a city that’s seduced everyone from Yves Saint Laurent to Winston Churchill.
