Where to Stay
Discover Morocco through its Hotels
The DNA of Morocco
Where Ancient Craft Meets North African Modernism
| Morocco’s architectural identity is extraordinarily rich and instantly recognisable, yet far more varied than the familiar image of the riad. The medinas of Marrakech, Fez and Essaouira bring together courtyard houses, palaces, mosques and fondouks, shaped by intricate zellige, carved plaster, cedar and tadelakt. Casablanca adds an entirely different layer, with one of Africa’s great collections of Art Deco, Streamline Moderne and post-war Modernist architecture. From the Atlas Mountains to the Atlantic coast and the edge of the Sahara, contemporary architects and designers continue to reinterpret traditional materials and building techniques without reducing Moroccan design to decoration.
Food and drink are equally layered. Tagines and couscous may be the international shorthand, but Moroccan cooking changes significantly between cities, mountains, coast and desert. Preserved lemons, olives, spices, dates, almonds and vegetables meet Atlantic seafood, slow-cooked meats and extraordinary breads and pastries, with Amazigh, Arab, Andalusian, Jewish and Mediterranean traditions all contributing to the table. Mint tea remains an essential ritual of hospitality, while a younger generation of chefs is bringing regional ingredients and traditional techniques into more contemporary restaurants without losing their Moroccan identity. Morocco’s most interesting hotels offer some of the world’s most atmospheric places to stay. Centuries-old riads, restored ksour, former palaces, desert camps, Modernist buildings and contemporary retreats turn craftsmanship, gardens, courtyards and landscape into essential parts of the experience. At DNA Hotels, we curate the places where architecture, food, craft and culture come together—hotels that reveal a Morocco beyond the familiar visual clichés, where extraordinary traditions continue to inspire genuinely original contemporary design. |