Earth houses built from the soil of an old olive grove.
From approx. €270 a night.
November
Typically €280–290 a night
Climate20 °C by day, 7 °C at night · about 2 rainy days
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The walls are made of the garden they stand in.
Romain Michel-Ménière is a French-Swiss interior designer who has lived in Morocco since 2002. He worked on Kasbah Bab Ourika, Riad Mena & Beyond and Nomad before opening a place of his own in March 2017, on an old olive grove at the edge of Oumnass. His friends Karl Fournier and Olivier Marty of Studio KO helped design it; landscape designer Arnaud Casaus laid out the garden.
The lodge calls itself a love story between its owner, the village and the people who live there, and wants guests to discover Berber building, craftsmanship and customs. Marrakech is half an hour away, but the lodge is hard to find, so book a transfer.
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The walls are adobe, made from the earth of the grounds, and every one of the old olive trees was kept. The ceilings use local timber: eucalyptus, Atlas cedar, pine and wild bamboo. The terracotta floor tiles were made and fired for the lodge in a neighbouring village.
Rattan furniture, pottery and old Moroccan bridal chests share the rooms with twentieth-century design pieces, found in Morocco or handed down in the family. It is meant to feel like a family house.
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Every room has its own terrace and a fireplace; the Cabane Deluxe has a stove. Tichka and Saffran look onto the garden. Ayurt and Tigmi are larger, with a sitting area, a terrace facing the pool and a view of the Atlas. Superior III is the only suite on the first floor, and its covered terrace looks out to the mountains and the villages below them.
Families can take one of the three Deluxe lodges with an extra bed, the Family Lodge with two bedrooms and a shared bathroom, or the Cabane Deluxe: a freestanding house with a bedroom, a living room and its own garden. An adjoining annex can accommodate additional guests.
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There is no menu to choose from. A team of four, two of them cooks, prepares one set meal a day, mostly Moroccan and sometimes Mediterranean, depending on what the market has. Some of the vegetables come from the lodge’s organic garden. Every guest is asked beforehand about preferences and allergies.
The bar makes its own ginger and rosemary syrups. The cocktail list includes a Lavender Whiskey Sour and an Espresso Martini for two. The wine is organic and comes from Val d’Argan near Essaouira.
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The grounds cover several hectares and join up several old gardens, with century-old olive trees, herb beds and organic vegetable plots. Most of what has been planted since is native to the Moroccan landscape.
In the middle, among the olive trees, is the pool: 20 metres long and 7 metres wide.
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The lodge shares recommendations from previous guests; excursions are run by independent local providers. One is a weaving workshop, Art Tissage TAM, which sells towels, bath sheets and handmade clothes. For a ride by Lake Lalla Takerkoust or in the Agafay desert, a taxi collects you at around half past nine, and a guide and lunch are included. For the Ouirgane valley, the suggested loop goes out via Amizmiz and back via Asni, Tahnaout and the Kik plateau.
A tip from Berber Lodge
Lunch or dinner at Kasbah Bab Ourika is also among the suggestions, and Romain Michel-Ménière worked on the house. The kasbah stands on a hilltop above the Ourika valley, about 45 minutes from the lodge. Its restaurant welcomes outside guests for lunch and dinner, with vegetables from its own organic gardens and the markets in the valley. Ourika valley, Tnine Ourika.
Visit Kasbah Bab Ourika’s websiteResearched from the hotel’s official information, editorially checked on 6 October 2026. We do not claim to have stayed here. Prices and availability directly from the hotel.
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Desert camp · Agafay · approx. 50 min by car
A camp in a small oasis in the Agafay stone desert, running for almost 20 years. Lunch is Moroccan, served in a Berber tent facing the Atlas peaks; dinner is outdoors under an open sky, with vegetarian menus on request.
Tented camp · Agafay · approx. 50 min by car
White tents among the Agafay hills, looking out to the Atlas. Day visitors come by reservation: Moroccan salads and grilled chicken, vegetable and kefta skewers at lunch; salads and two tagines with raisin couscous at dinner.
Lakeside restaurant · Lalla Takerkoust · approx. 25 min by car
A small hotel and restaurant on the shore of Lalla Takerkoust lake, with tables under olive trees looking across the water to the Atlas. The menu is French bistro cooking – carpaccio, house terrine, Dakhla oysters, entrecôte – alongside Berber chicken couscous.
Grand café · Marrakesch-Guéliz · approx. 35 min by car
A brasserie in the 1920s post office building of the Ville Nouvelle, restored by Studio KO with its wooden staircases, shutters and ceiling fans intact. Breakfast with fresh orange juice in the morning, then Oualidia oysters, steak tartare and lemon tart on the palm-shaded terrace.
Chosen by CINCIN, not paid for. Travel times are approximate. Opening hours and menus change, so please check with the venue before you go.
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