Three hotels, not one
When someone writes to us asking about "the Royal Mansour" they almost always mean the one in Marrakech, the one that appears in the magazines. But the collection is three hotels in three different parts of Morocco, and they are not alike, nor do they suit the same trip: one sits inside the Marrakech medina, another in the art deco centre of Casablanca, and the third on the Mediterranean coast, halfway between Tetouan and Tangier.
This guide is for choosing between them. The facts come from their own listings.
Royal Mansour Marrakech
A riad for each guest
It has no rooms in the usual sense: it has 53 private riads, of one to four bedrooms each, across five categories — Superior, Premier, Privilege, Prestige and Grand. Each riad is a house with its own courtyard, roof terrace and entrance.
The spa covers 2,500 m² over three floors, with a hammam, heated pool, gym, beauty salon and a central atrium.
Where you eat
- La Grande Brasserie — with chef Hélène Darroze
- Sesamo — Italian
- La Grande Table Marocaine — the house Moroccan menu
- Le Jardin — in the gardens, for daytime meals
If you travel with children
There is a kids' club for ages 4 to 10, babysitting and horse-drawn carriage rides. It is one of the few hotels in this bracket in Marrakech where a family with small children is not a complication. More on that in family travel.
Royal Mansour Casablanca
1950s Casablanca, intact
The interiors are the reason to come: marble, warm woods and mid-century furniture, in the city where that style was actually built. It is not a recreation.
It stands at 27 avenue des Forces Armées Royales, in the art deco district of Sidi Belyout — the heart of 1930s Casablanca, which is the best reason to sleep there rather than in the new part of town. It has deluxe rooms, duplex apartments and prestige suites, and its own Grande Table Marocaine.
It is the one in the collection that makes most sense as a one or two-night stop: Casablanca is a city of business and airports, not of long stays.
Royal Mansour Tamuda Bay
Villas with the sea in the window
You sleep neither in a riad nor in a city room: these are villas facing the Mediterranean, with the water in view from the living room. It is the side of Morocco almost nobody expects.
The newest: it opened in September 2024. It sits on the Mediterranean coast between Tetouan and Tangier, and it is 55 villas and suites — a beach hotel, not a medina one.
Where you eat
- Le Méditerranée — with Quique Dacosta, three Michelin stars
- La Table — with Éric Frechon
- Coccinella — with Massimiliano and Raffaele Alajmo
- Pool Beach — also Quique Dacosta, by the pool
That line-up is, without exaggeration, the strongest of any hotel in the country. If the trip is about eating, this is the argument.
Which one to choose
- First time in Morocco — Marrakech. It gives you the image of the country you came to see, and the desert leaves from there.
- Beach trip or a quiet honeymoon — Tamuda Bay. The Mediterranean, villas and the best table.
- Short or business trip — Casablanca.
- The whole north — Tamuda Bay pairs easily with Tangier and Chefchaouen, both a couple of hours away.
How we build it
Any of the three fits into a private itinerary: the transfers, the order of the cities and the desert nights are arranged around the hotel, not the other way round. To see how that looks, have a look at our luxury trips, or write to us and we will quote it with dates.
And if you are comparing, Morocco's most exclusive hotels lists every hotel in this bracket by region, including La Mamounia.
