After a 30-minute drive south from Marrakech toward the Atlas Mountains, you will find the Berber Lodge. A few minutes before you arrive, when the road gets narrow and rocky, you might wonder if you’d made a bad decision. But as soon as you enter the walls of the welcoming hotel, you know you were right to make the trip.
The Berber Lodge is an enchanting set of low-lying adobe buildings, laid out with the confidence of a man who knows when enough is enough. That man is the owner, Swiss-French designer Romain Michel-Ménière, and he’s created a series of inviting spaces—courtyards, patios, lawns, porches—where enlightened details, such as local-bamboo doors and chairs you’ll want to smuggle home, set the tone for relaxing and taking in the desert and mountains.
Berber Lodge is just the right combination of traditional and minimalist, and encourages you to adopt the effortlessness of the surrounding design. Little is required of you—there’s a small hammam and a kind staff.
But this does not aspire to be a luxury experience, and it’s all the better for it. Simply bring a good book to the large, unheated pool in the shade beneath a row of olive trees. (The property was an olive farm in a previous life.) With an attractive, younger French clientele, it’s easy to feel like you’re in an Éric Rohmer film.
Now, this pool plays no music, and you might have to track down a waiter for a mineral water or a glass of wine. But that’s the attraction of Berber Lodge. It’s not aspiring to provide the White Lotus experience.
Lunch is a set menu beneath an umbrella on the lawn: salads from the garden and meats off the wood-fired grill. The food is local and good, but it’s not the focus. What you want to do is take a short walk into the desert just as the sun goes down behind the mountains and the light is soft. You might see a Berber shepherd walk by with his flock. It’s the perfect antidote to the exhausting hum of travel. There are other activities if you feel the need—motorbiking, horseback riding, and more serious trekking—but most guests will be content to embrace the slower pace.
The Berber Lodge is an ideal two-day retreat from Marrakech, and by the time you’re done there, you’ll be restored for your trip back to the big town. Here are some ideas for what to do when you return.
1.
Royal Mansour
For a more refined experience, visit the exquisite Royal Mansour, one of the more opulent hotels anywhere. You don’t need to be a guest to visit—you can rent a cabana at the immense pool and take lunch from the excellent restaurant Le Jardin. And don’t forget six acres of wonderful gardens, with orange trees and an herb garden. It makes for a great afternoon in the city. And if you visit their exquisite hammam, in the most expansive spa in Marrakech, then it gets even more excellent.
2.
Plus61
There are plenty of lavish restaurants in grand hotels serving lamb tagine and couscous while musicians play in the background. And then there’s Plus61, a handsome, minimalist dining room where you’re more likely to find seared sea bream or wild-mushroom gyoza. This restrained setting, with flattering lighting, is the perfect backdrop for Australian chef Andrew Cibej’s terrific cooking. This restaurant is very much of the moment, and it’s no surprise that it’s popular with stylish locals.
3.
Le Jardin Secret
Many visitors to Marrakech brave the Instagram hordes at Jardin Majorelle to bask in a little of the Yves Saint Laurent glow. But if you’re looking for an escape from the exciting intensity of the medina souks and the tourists, then stop into Le Jardin Secret, which is hardly a secret but is absolutely lovely. There are large, somewhat formal, grid-like gardens of orange and lemon trees and more exotic plants from five continents. It’s a charming antidote to Jardin Majorelle and every bit as picturesque.
4.
Riad Mena & beyond
One of my best meals was in front of the fireplace at Riad Mena & Beyond, a very small riad hotel (six rooms) at the edge of the medina: a series of salads, harissa tomatoes, and a chicken in a tagine that was the best you can have outside of the old L’Ami Louis. A great destination for a more personal stay close to the action.
5.
Le Grand Café de la Poste
A wonderfully handsome café and restaurant in the old post office, and an easy place to visit at any time of day for tea or cocktails. Choose from the equally charismatic porch, terrace, main room, or bar.
David Coggins is the author of four books, including The Believer: A Year in the Fly Fishing Life, and the Contender, a travel newsletter
