Laid-back, soulful, totally authentic, Essaouira is like nowhere else in Morocco - and Le Jardin des Douars, is a secluded garden gem
Imagine waking in a botanical garden to the heady scent of thyme, Moroccan roses and lantana. Then after a dip in the jade outdoor, heated swimming pool, it’s time for breakfast on the terrace (crepes, fruit, Moroccan bread, eggs), washed down with sharp black coffee and freshly squeezed orange juice.
Essaouira’s Le Jardin des Douars, an independent hotel set in 7.5 acres of lush tropical planting, is one of Morocco’s best-kept secrets.
Run by Grégoire Aubron, the hotel’s motto is ‘Beauty. Authenticity. Kindness.’ The Moroccan staff (who speak French and English) are endlessly kind.
Le Jardin des Douars is a destination hotel offering individually designed bedrooms (19), suites (6) and luxury private villas with their own outdoor heated pools (6). Built in the traditional Moroccan style, with curvy adobe-style walls, and situated in the Essaouira hills overlooking the Ksob River, it’s a secluded gem. Everything is designed to make life just that bit easier.
Most bedrooms have their own private terrace or in some cases two, while the villas are set in their own grounds, with a maid and gardener. All feature Moroccan and African furnishings – Berber rugs, carved wooden furniture, traditional zelig tiling and sculptures from Morocco and across western Africa; along with wi-fi, hidden mini bars with local and international products, and coffee- and tea-making facilities. Guests will also find cosy locally designed bathrobes and Moroccan slippers.
Essaouira (just three hours by plane from London), has an arty, laid-back vibe – and a guaranteed 320 days of sunshine a year – which means it’s much loved by the jet-set. Mick Jagger and Julia Roberts holiday here. There’s miles of sandy beach and some very stylish bars and restaurants. The late 18th-century fortress town – now UNESCO World Heritage listed – is where Orson Welles shot his 1952 film of Othello, with scenes set in the streets and alleyways of the medina.
Jimi Hendrix visited Essaouira during its hippie heyday. More recently it doubled as the Game of Thrones fictional city of Astapor.
It’s sometimes described as a ‘boho’ destination. And Essaouira can certainly claim to be undiscovered and crowd-free, compared to other Moroccan destinations including Marrakech. Ryanair offers year-round twice weekly flights that connect London to this unique port town on Morocco’s Atlantic Coast.
Dining is taken seriously at Le Jardin des Douars with three dining areas including a vibrant open-plan restaurant (where you can order chicken tagine with olives, orange reduction and saffron; or fusion dishes such as Slightly seared squid, chimichurri sauce, black rice and grilled lemon); a ‘couples’ dining room for greater privacy; and alfresco dining on the terrace. On Sundays there’s an extensive barbecue lunch (including fresh seafood grilled to order).
There are two outdoor heated swimming pools, one for families; one adults-only. The gardens are set with Moroccan and African furniture, and there’s a new outdoor bar featuring a creative light installation and lounge area serving drinks and light meals throughout the day, and, of course, sunset drinks as the stars come out.
You can book into the hotel with family or friends or even solo. Clusters of chairs and sun loungers let you read in private, sunbathe communally, or play boules on the pétanque pitch.
If you’re staying in one of the villas, and don’t feel like going out in the evening, the chef will cook supper for you – a traditional tagine and couscous, say, or abundant salads, followed by oranges with cinnamon. Prices for a villa (which sleeps 9 – 14) start at £550 a day which is very reasonable if you take a group of friends our family.
The hotel has its own candle-lit, eucalyptus-scented hammam and spa, another grown-up pleasure, where qualified therapists perform the traditional hammam ritual, and body and face spa treatments using heavenly argan oil. The hills surrounding Essaouira are studded with argan trees and the region is famous for its precious oil, used worldwide in beauty products and spa treatments.
What makes this hotel truly unique is its lush botanical gardens with tropical planting, giant cacti and succulents. Keen gardeners will spot the phoenix canariensis and butia capitata (palm trees), callisternon linearis (evergreen shrubs) and sabal pamettos (New World palms). And wandering the grounds you’ll encounter the resident tortoises, frogs and chameleons.
If guests can tear themselves away from Le Jardin des Douars, then a shuttle service offers expeditions to Essaouira’s main beach and its world-famous medina, both 15 minutes from Le Jardin des Douars.
Essaouira’s walled medina is much less daunting than the labyrinthine souks of Marrakesh. In the grid of streets radiating from the main town square near the waterfront, you’ll find street food stalls and shops selling babouche slippers, spices, rugs, leather goods and bags. There’s an art quarter (Ensemble d’Artisanat) specialising in naive paintings and a jewellery souk. Look out for bookshop Galérie AIDA, run by Joseph Sebag, loved by architects and designers.
If your tastes are more modern, the lanes towards the edges of the city ramparts are home to chic concept stores such as L’Atelier (homeware) and fashion store Histoire de Filles, with its floaty dresses and Moroccan Hipster T-shirts.
Close to the medina is the famous port. Essaouira’s outdoor wet fish stalls are a lively option for lunch. You select your choice of freshly-caught fish, which is then cooked on the grill and served with salad and bread.
Guests can head to the beach to relax or book a camel ride. Because of its Atlantic setting, Essaouira is known as the ‘Wind City of Africa’ so it attracts the surfer and kite-flying crowd. Beginners are welcome and there are several surf schools along the beach.
After years of building relationships with the very best people in Essaouira, Le Jardin des Douars can tailor active experiences for guests. For cooking classes in the Medina head to L’Atelier (must be booked in advance). For quad biking book with Palma Quad and for camel and horse riding on the beach, book with Equievasion. For surfing and kitesurfing book, with the Ion Club. And golf fans are warmly welcomed at Golf de Mogador, designed by Gary Player. Or the hotel can arrange a fascinating walking tour to see the Argan trees and production of the oil by a local female co-operative.
Le Jardin des Douars offers a wonderful backdrop for alfresco lunches, allowing you to flip between swimming pool and table. But if guests fancy lunch elsewhere, then the hotel recommends Villa Beldi, La Mouette et les Dromadaires or the Mellow Beach House. Non hotel residents can also dine at the hotel.
The all-day Océan Vagabond, refurbished in 2023 (a Miami-style brasserie with panoramic views over the bay) is also one of the coolest and most affordable places to dine whilst watching the waves and camels.
In the evening everyone meets for coffee and cocktails at Taros cafe, housed in a 19th-century mansion on Place Moulay Hassan or The Roof Top.
And the medina itself is home to many restaurants (worth booking in advance) including Dar Baba, La Table de Madada (where the 1950s decor is North African meets Mad Men) and Triskala. Fans of brunch should book the Mandala Society.
Thanks to its newly fashionable status, boutique hotels are springing up around the medina. But after a day bartering in the hot Moroccan sun, it’s wonderful to return to Le Jardin des Douars’s cool garden paradise.
Laid-back, soulful, totally authentic, Essaouira is like nowhere else in Morocco. If you want a taste of exotic north Africa within a three-hour flight from the UK, this is the place to be.
jardindesdouars.com
B&B priced from around £140 per room, per night or £550 per villa, per night
Le Jardin des Douars Video: https://youtu.be/psQBdneUxp4
