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Palais Namaskar, Marrakesh: suite dreams
A pool suite at Palais Namaskar
By Fiona DuncanLast Updated: 3:24PM BST 22/05/2012
Ultratravel’s new guide to the world’s most sumptuous hotel rooms. This time: A palace within a palais in Marrakesh, Morocco.
Pool Suites, Palais Namaskar
Route de Bab Atlas, Syba (00 212 5 2429 9800,palaisnamaskar.com)
Opened: April 2012
Price: From £980 per night
Size: 1,160sq ft
USP
The calm. The water. The feeling of letting go. Palais Namaskar, on the edge of the Palmeraie, between the Atlas Mountains and the mysterious Djebilet Hills yet a 20-minute drive from central Marrakech , has a palpable, almost intensely soothing effect on its guests. Set in 15 acres of emerald green, scented, Balinese-inspired gardens, four acres of which comprise water – pools, channels, rills, waterfalls – its 41 discreet villas and suites are hardly visible amid the towering palms, exotic foliage and bowers of white bougainvillea.
There’s a long, tranquil walkway leading to a sheet of shallow water crossed by stone paths, a domed restaurant pavilion, a shadowy, seductive spa, in-house yoga and a glamorous rooftop bar, sensational at sunset. The hotel was designed by the Frenchman Philippe Soulier , who is a strong believer in the principles of feng shui – hence there is a balance of wood, fire (in every room), earth, metal and water. There are also glittering
Murano glass chandeliers, reflections of rippling water on walls and ceilings, more than four miles of silk curtains and an entire floor of crystals deemed to release positive energy.
The details
At first I worried that the minimalist uniformity of the suites – mushroom and black curtains, subtly patterned carpets, wooden furniture, metal lamps and light fittings – was unexciting, but their harmonious simplicity and the repetition of decorative motifs throughout the hotel really did help me unwind. Each of the six pool suites looks on to its own heated pool, which itself is part of a larger lake framed by pillars and Mughal arches.
For extra privacy, billowing curtains can be drawn around each pool. The suites have walled gardens, glass bathrooms surrounded by greenery, large, airy lobbies and wood-burning fireplaces – as well as overbearing televisions, the one jarring note, though they can be removed. Service is unobtrusive and kind, as befits this serene hotel.
Five more Marrakesh suites with gardens
La Mamounia Riad
An 8,500sq ft suite in the city’s oldest gardens, with its own pool and three hand-crafted bedrooms (£7,313, mamounia.com).
Four Seasons Royal Villa
Four- bedroom, 3,500sq ft contemporary, cool riad with dining room for 12, and private pool (£8,595, fourseasons.com).
Selman Riad Sharav
Sumptuous, 6,000sq ft yellow and black one-bedroom riad designed by Jacques Garcia, with a private pool (£1,235, selman-marrakech.com).
Royal Mansour Riad D’Honneur
Opulent, super-private semi-palace built by – and for – the King of Morocco (£25,703,royalmansour.com).
Amanjena Al-Hamra Maison
Serene, two-bedroom villa with enormous living spaces and, outdoors, two pavilions, a large pool and fireplace (£2,087, amanresorts.com).
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