The catch at Palais Namaskar
Five things stand between Palais Namaskar and the stay in the photographs. Most of them come with what makes it worth booking, the space, the quiet and the water gardens beyond the Palmeraie, and each one is easy to plan around once you know it.
On our shortlists
- Best pool hotels in MarrakechPrivate pools in the Junior Suites, Pool Suites and villas
- Best family hotels in MarrakechNamaskids for ages 4 to 12, and two-bedroom suites with a pool
- Best design hotels in MarrakechMoorish and Andalusian lines among lakes and reflecting pools
- Best spa hotels in MarrakechTwo private duo spa suites, each with its own hammam
- Best hotels with a view in MarrakechLounge Suites with a 50 m² terrace facing the Atlas
Nothing is within walking distance, and the Medina is a 24-minute drive
The hotel stands on Route de Bab Atlas, beyond the Palmeraie on the north-eastern edge of Marrakech, about 12 km from Jemaa el-Fna. Off-peak, the drive takes 24 minutes to Jemaa el-Fna, 23 to the Koutoubia and 21 to the Jardin Majorelle, and the airport is 29 minutes away. Nothing a visitor wants is within walking distance. Every trip into the city, for the souks, a museum or dinner, means a taxi or a car arranged through the hotel, there and back, so a day in the Medina is a planned outing rather than a stroll after breakfast.
What to do. Ask the hotel to arrange your airport transfer and any car into town before you arrive. Group the sights into one or two full days in the city rather than short trips, and plan one or two dinners in Guéliz or the Medina rather than every night.
The Atlas is a distant horizon, and only some rooms look at it
The hotel promises a view of the Atlas from the rooftop Nomad Bar, the Lounge Suites and the first-floor terraces of the Water and Mountain Palaces. The Superior and Deluxe rooms, the Junior Suites, the Pool Suites and the Pool Villas face their own terraces, gardens and water, with no Atlas view promised. The mountains themselves are 47 to 67 km to the south, clear on dry winter days and lost in haze on others, with snow on the peaks only in season. The sun sets in the west, over the palms, not behind the mountains.
What to do. If the view is the point, book a Lounge Suite. Otherwise, go up to the rooftop on a clear afternoon for the Atlas and stay on for the sunset to the west.
The rooftop bar turns lively after dark, beside the rooms with the view
Le Nomad Bar is the hotel's best feature and also its busiest. It takes outside reservations by phone, serves cocktails and tapas, and turns festive after dark to the sets of a resident DJ. The Lounge Suites, the rooms that share its Atlas view, sit between the panoramic bar and Le Namaskar restaurant. Couples who come for sunset drinks will like being close by; light sleepers who want silence by nine should know where the rooms are before they book.
What to do. Ask the hotel what time the DJ finishes on your dates. For the quietest nights, a Pool Villa, behind its own walls at the end of a garden path, is the more secluded choice.
For dinner there is one restaurant, or a 20-minute drive
The hotel has two restaurants, but they keep different hours. La Table, in the garden by the pool, is a lunch restaurant of salads, tarts and seasonal vegetables. In the evening the choice is Le Namaskar, classic French cooking with Moroccan spices under Murano chandeliers, the tapas on the rooftop, or a romantic dinner set up on request. That is plenty for a long weekend; over a week you will want a few dinners out. The nearest good tables outside are in Guéliz, Hivernage and the Medina, 21 to 24 minutes away by car.
What to do. Book Le Namaskar for the nights you stay in, and plan two or three dinners in town with the car booked through the hotel for the return.
Winter evenings are cold, and the pools are outdoors
Marrakech in winter is sunny but not hot. Ten years of weather records for the grounds put the average January afternoon at about 20°C and the average January night at about 5°C, rising to about 23°C and 9°C in March. That is lovely for lunch on a terrace and cold for a swim before breakfast or a drink on the roof after dark. The main pool and the private pools of the suites, villas and palaces are all outdoors, and the hotel does not say which of them are heated; the one heated pool it mentions is in the spa's larger duo suite.
What to do. Pack a warm layer for the evenings from November to March, and ask the hotel before you book whether the private pool of your suite or villa can be heated on your dates.
Who should skip it
Anyone who wants to walk out of the door into the souks, eat in a different place every night without a car, or count on a warm outdoor swim in January. Travellers who want a riad in the Medina, with the city on the doorstep, will be happier inside the walls.
Who should book it anyway
Couples, families and friends who want space, quiet and water rather than the bustle of the Medina. Every room has its own terrace, the Junior Suites, Pool Suites, villas and palaces have private pools, the gardens are full of lakes and reflecting pools, the 650 m² spa has two private duo suites with their own hammams, children aged 4 to 12 have Namaskids, and the rooftop bar looks over the palms to the Atlas. Book a Lounge Suite or a Pool Villa, come in spring or autumn, plan a day or two in the city, and the distance becomes the point.
The catch elsewhere in Marrakech
- La MamouniaMedina
Breakfast is not included in the room rate, so budget for it on top of a price that already starts high
- Royal Mansour MarrakechMedina
There are only 15 Superior riads, from about €2,300 a night in March 2027; on some spring dates they sell out, and the cheapest riad left is the Premier at about €2,780
- El FennMedina
The roof terrace and its bar are open to non-residents every day from 12:00 to 23:00, drinks are first come, first served, and it fills at sunset
- Dar KandiMedina
The rooftop pool is not heated, and there is no lift up to it
- La Villa des OrangersMedina
The entry Deluxe Rooms are 20 m² on the ground floor, opening onto a courtyard; a private terrace starts with the Room with Terrace, which is the same size
- Nobu Hotel MarrakechHivernage
The rooftop bar, with DJ sets after dark, stays open until 1am, and 2am on Fridays and Saturdays: light sleepers should ask for a quiet suite
- Fairmont Royal Palm MarrakechRoute d'Amizmiz
Jemaa el-Fna is a 20-minute drive: the Medina means the free shuttle at set times, a taxi or a hotel car
- Dar RhizlaneHivernage
Outside the Medina: Jemaa el-Fna is about 32 minutes on foot, so plan on taxis
- Inara CampAgafay
The Agafay is a stony desert of bare hills, not golden sand dunes
Things to do from Palais Namaskar
The nearest of the experiences we would book, by car from the hotel.
The cooking classMoroccan cooking class with a local chef
From €36.345(2,000)20 min by car
The blue gardenJardin Majorelle, with a timed entry ticket
From €26.904.5(13,900)21 min by car
The Agafay desert eveningAgafay desert at sunset: quad, camel ride and dinner show
From €20.584.8(46,700)22 min by car
The hammamHammam scrub and massage, with pickup
From €55.694.6(3,700)23 min by car
Questions people ask
Good questions about Palais Namaskar
What are the downsides of Palais Namaskar?
Five things stand between Palais Namaskar and the stay in the photographs. Most of them come with what makes it worth booking, the space, the quiet and the water gardens beyond the Palmeraie, and each one is easy to plan around once you know it. Nothing is within walking distance, and the Medina is a 24-minute drive The Atlas is a distant horizon, and only some rooms look at it The rooftop bar turns lively after dark, beside the rooms with the view For dinner there is one restaurant, or a 20-minute drive Winter evenings are cold, and the pools are outdoors
Who should not book Palais Namaskar?
Anyone who wants to walk out of the door into the souks, eat in a different place every night without a car, or count on a warm outdoor swim in January. Travellers who want a riad in the Medina, with the city on the doorstep, will be happier inside the walls.
Our verdict
A calm, water-filled resort with a terrace for every room and the Atlas on the skyline from its rooftop. Check availability for a Lounge Suite.