Palais Rhoul - Pool

Palais Rhoul in Marrakech occupies five hectares of garden in the Palmeraie, along the Route de Fès about five kilometres from the city centre. The building began as a private residence in the twentieth century and still operates with that instinct: sixteen rooms and suites spread through the main house and across the grounds, the owners' taste visible in every surface, and a scale small enough that the property rarely feels crowded even at full occupancy. The pool is the architectural centrepiece. It sits in front of the main building, large and open, framed on its edges by a colonnade of tall stone columns in a Greco-Roman style that gives the water a theatrical quality unusual in Marrakech. The columns catch light differently through the day, casting long shadows across the deck in the morning and standing bright against the garden in the afternoon. Loungers line the pool's perimeter under the colonnade and along the open sides, and meals are served poolside through lunch and into the evening. The setting reads closer to a villa on the Mediterranean than a hotel in the Palmeraie, and the contrast with the palm-dense garden surrounding it sharpens the effect. An indoor plunge pool sits within the spa area for cooler days. Day passes include pool access with sunbed, towel, and a two-course lunch from the restaurant, which serves Moroccan and international cooking. The lobby bar operates in a separate register: dimly lit, draped in rich fabric and vintage furnishings, with a cocktail list that includes a signature rose-based drink. The atmosphere tilts toward old-world bohemian, more Parisian salon than poolside resort. Rooms in the main building overlook the pool from private balconies or open onto the garden from ground-floor terraces. The suites and tents scattered through the grounds are the more distinctive option: permanent structures decorated around individual themes with antiques, ornate bathrooms, fireplaces, four-poster beds, and rich textiles. The Harem Tent includes its own indoor pool. Villa Rhoul, a few metres from the main property, functions as an independent five-suite residence that can be fully privatised. The spa houses a hammam, steam room, and treatment rooms. A tennis court, library, and table tennis fill the grounds beyond the garden. Palais Rhoul treats its pool as stage set: the columns frame the water, the garden presses in around the stone, and the small number of guests means the scene holds its composure.