LA MAMOUNIA, MARRAKECH, MOROCCO
The elegantly dressed receptionists at La Mamounia have more patience than most. Ever since Anna Delvey, the ‘fake heiress’ played by Julia Garner in the Netflix series Inventing Anna, stayed in one of the hotel’s three private riads, they’ve been inundated with Instagrammers. The story goes that when Anna checked out, her credit card was declined (a friend picked up the bill, but ultimately it led to her conviction for fraud). ‘Now, whenever payments don’t go through, guests laugh and say, “Don’t worry, I’m not Anna!” and we sincerely hope they’re not,’ one tells me.
American socialites (real or imagined) aren’t the only ones to have swept through this iconic hotel in the centre of Marrakech. Omar Sharif, Joan Collins, Nelson Mandela, Mick Jagger, Gwyneth Paltrow, Elton John and Nicole Kidman have all stayed here, in the shadow of the snow-capped Atlas mountains, just a short walk from Jemaa el-fnaa square.
It was Winston Churchill’s favourite winter retreat; Alfred Hitchcock filmed scenes here for The Man Who Knew Too Much; Paul Mccartney wrote the song Mamunia here and Yves Saint Laurent called it home before finding a more permanent one in the medina (don’t miss the brilliant Yves Saint Laurent Museum next to the Majorelle Gardens, which also inspired him). Jacques Majorelle painted the Orientalist ceiling in what is now La Mamounia’s trendy main bar and one of the suites (in his famous vibrant blue hue) is named in his honour. There’s a suite named after Churchill, too, as well as a bar, which is so wonderfully evocative of him that even non-smokers will consider puffing on a cigar.
Stepping from the sunshine into the dark, hushed interior, the first thing you notice as you sip on almond milk and nibble on dates (a traditional Moroccan welcome) is the huge marble statue of a man on the back of a camel armed with a spear. Then, as your eyes adjust, you start to see just how much thought was put into the most recent renovation in 2020. It’s in the elaborate chandeliers, sumptuous silk cushions, inlaid tables and delicate woodwork that fill every corner, and it continues into the rooms. Ours, a Park Suite, has heavy, painted doors, muted coral, green and sand tiling, white stone latticework and a walk-in wardrobe with leather drawers in a Hermès orange hue. There are palaces less ornate, I think, as a bellboy pours me a glass of vintage Champagne, made exclusively by Taittinger for the hotel.
We also have a double-length terrace overlooking the magnificent gardens – 20 acres filled with cacti, palm trees, orange groves and sweet-smelling roses. It’s these tranquil gardens, the peace only broken by birdsong, nonchalant cats and the occasional call to prayer, that define the hotel
– literally. The name La Mamounia comes from an 18th-century prince called El Mamoun, who was given the gardens by his father as a wedding present. No doubt the feast they enjoyed back then was akin to the one we had at the hotel’s Le Marocain restaurant. Serenaded by musicians, we devour pigeon pastilla, monkfish tagine and pistachio ice cream in an intimate sitting. Two other restaurants, L’italien and L’asiatique, overseen by Michelin-starred chef Jean-georges Vongerichten, have also opened in the hotel, and Parisian pastry chef Pierre Hermé is now in charge of afternoon tea.
Together with a little help from Anna Delvey and Netflix, they’ve managed to do what other grand dame hotels have not; reinvent themselves for the next generation. And with the hotel about to celebrate its centenary in October, it couldn’t have come at a better time. I would love to spend 1,001 nights here – I’m just not sure my credit card would be accepted when I left… EMMA JUSTICE CLASSIC ROOMS AT LA MAMOUNIA START FROM £666 A NIGHT. MAMOUNIA.COM. SCOTT DUNN OFFERS THREE NIGHTS AT LA MAMOUNIA FROM £1,950PP, INCLUDING RETURN FLIGHTS FROM THE UK AND PRIVATE TRANSFERS. SCOTTDUNN.COM