Welcome to Kasbah Angour: The Authentic Moroccan Mountain Retreat
– An oasis of peace and calm just 35 minutes from Marrakech
– A gorgeous 4-star boutique hotel perched on a hill-top, with authentic Berber design, local food and Moroccan wine
– Book guided walks and treks into the mountains and explore the local area including the souk
– The peaks of the highest Atlas Mountains form a stunning backdrop at Kasbah Angour
– Netflix’s hit series Legends starring Steve Coogan and Tom Burke was filmed here
Only half an hour’s drive from fashionable Marrakech, with its medina, restaurants and galleries, Kasbah Angour offers a window onto another world. With a spectacular location perched on a hilltop in the foothills of the High Atlas Mountains, guests enjoy superb panoramic views. At Kasbah Angour, guests encounter peace and calm.
The overall feel is luxurious but authentic. The four-star hotel was built in the style of a traditional Amazigh castle, by local craftsmen using traditional Moroccan materials. Authentic Berber design is lovingly referenced in the cedarwood doors, hand-made clay tiles and red sandstone paving, plus locally made furniture.
The main hotel building, with its three red sandstone towers, is surrounded by 12 acres of ornamental gardens with roses, fig, olive and pomegranate trees, and native mountain species. There’s an azure-blue swimming pool set with sleek sun loungers and decorated with hand-made clay ‘bejmat” tiles.
Each of the hotel’s 27 bedrooms and suites has a special view of the Atlas Mountains and is decorated with colourful Moroccan crafts, including Berber rugs and ornate mirrors. Several have a private terrace overlooking the garden. Modern touches throughout the property include underfloor heating, air conditioning, excellent wi-fi/internet and a choice of baths with shower or walk-in showers.
This is authentic Berber country where local farmers still use their donkeys to plough mountain fields and sow wheat for bread making. It’s like being transported centuries back in time.
The High Atlas — north Africa’s highest mountain range — stretches almost 1,000km across the middle of Morocco. The original Silk Route would have passed through here on the way to Timbuktu, transporting gold and silver from the area. To the south and east of the hotel are the peaks of the highest mountains in Morocco, including Angour, Oukaimeden and the Toubkal Massif. To the north and west, is the river Sidi Fares valley, with its olive groves and villages built from compacted earth.
The hotel’s British owner Paul Foulsham encourages his guests to immerse themselves in the area and appreciate the mountain Berber culture. And the hotel offers a series of guided walks and treks with experienced, multi-lingual mountain guides and drivers local to the area.
Walks last 3-4 hours, taking in a patchwork of bright green fields and hilltop villages (or “douars”), across streams and around peaks of burnt-orange rock and flowering cacti. You can visit an olive mill and see a donkey turning the millstone during harvest season.
The more athletic full-day walks start either from the Kasbah itself or use transport to reach a very special area higher up in the mountains. The best months for trekking are between September and May, when you’ll glimpse snow-covered summits, but the hotel is well below the snow line and winter days are sunny and warm.
You can also book a full or half-day car to see far flung mountain villages and, depending on the day, stop at a weekly souk where you can see local life and the wonderful selection of fresh local produce.
Unsurprisingly food is a highlight at Kasbah Angour. For much of the year, guests can dine outside with stunning views across the gardens to the summits of the mountains. The kitchen uses the best fresh seasonal local produce, including fruit and vegetables from the Kasbah’s own gardens to prepare Moroccan and Mediterranean dishes.
Guests can enjoy a breakfast of Berber-style eggs and traditional pancakes or fresh bread, honey, olives and figs. A lunch served on one of the terraces might be Niçoise salad (with tuna and anchovies) or a mixed grill (beef, turkey, kefta, spicy sausages) and sautéed potatoes. Dinner takes places in the Atlas Mountains Restaurant or on the terrace. The menu changes daily to reflect the best of the market, with dishes such as Moroccan harira soup, stuffed courgettes with tomato coulis, or a traditional chicken tajine with preserved lemons and olives cooked over charcoal. After a day’s hiking, you deserve dessert – including fresh fruit salad with pomegranate juice and garden mint; or apple cake with crème fraiche.
Kasbah Angour is licensed and offers a good selection of beers, fine Moroccan wines, spirits and soft drinks. Bar “Azrou” (taken from the Berber for stone) is also a wonderful dining area for resident guests where you can relax by the cosy open fireplace after your meal. There are Moroccan Berber musical evenings in the bar when local villagers play traditional folk songs.
Morocco is Africa’s second-largest wine producer and visitors can sip the famous vin gris (grey wines) and sun-soaked reds. The country is also producing a rising number of white and rosé wines. Three wines to consider at Kasbah Angour include Ferme Rouge Gris (Cinsault and Grenache), Medaillon blanc (Sauvignon blanc) and Sahari Réserve rouge (Syrah, Grenache & Carignan). The wine list at the hotel features a wider selection of local wines and a useful wine growing map of Morocco.
The hotel has an events room with a view across the pool to the mountains, which can be used as a games room, yoga studio, for meetings or as a summer dining room.
Game of Thrones and Gladiator were shot in the High Atlas. And now Netflix’s hit series Legends has filmed around the hotel, with actors and crew staying here, to enjoy modern luxury after their long days shooting. The pool and roof terrace of the hotel bar were transformed into film sets. Parts of the surrounding area were also used for filming.
The hotel has impressive green credentials. It uses 46 photovoltaic panels to produce their electricity; there is a large biomass boiler fuelled by olive pits left over from the local olive harvest (after they’ve been pressed into olive oil). Solar thermal panels assist in heating water.
The hotel welcomes non residents with two day packages. The ‘Lunch & Pool Package’ includes a three course lunch, towel, sun bed and use of pool and is available between 11am & 6pm. Priced 395 DH. The ‘Walk & Lunch Package’ includes a half day guided mountain walk followed by a three course lunch (price per person for a group of 6) from 420 DH.
Whether you prefer to hike, to practice sunrise yoga on the terrace, or to simply relax by the pool, you will sleep like a baby after all the exercise — the space and peace of Kasbah Angour is a refreshing contrast to a hedonistic weekend in Marrakech.
You could be in the Himalayas, but you’re around over a 3.5 hour flight from London. Stay at Kasbah Angour and discover the “real” Morocco.
kasbahangour.com
Douar Toufsirine, Between Tahanaout & Asni, Al Haouz
B&B is priced from around £177 per room per night
Transfers from Marrakech Airport with a local taxi cost £24 each way
Several airlines serve Marrakech from across the UK including BA, easyJet, Jet2, Ryanair, TUI, WIZZ Air
