The home of Mallorcan designer and long-time Marrakech resident, Elsa Bauza, Riad UP is a minimalist medina haven with six chic rooms, a cosy, brick-lined living room, a porticoed patio with a generous pool and multiple terraces offering sneaky peaks of the Koutoubia minaret.
Located five minutes’ walk southeast of the Djemaa el-Fna, down a quiet derb in the bustling Kennaria neighbourhood. Nearby you’ll find the Dar Si Said Museum, the Bahia and Badii Palaces, the Kasbah and a good selection of restaurants. Pick-up taxis at the Djemaa el-Fna or Place Douar Graoua.
Until recently, Riad UP was designer Elsa Bauza’s home as well as a home-from-home for travellers, which is no doubt why this place feels so personal. The minimalist contemporary style reflects Elsa’s Mallorcan background and smartly showcases Moroccan crafts and textures. Warm bejmat tiles crisscross the courtyard and are echoed in the exposed brick wall and fireplace in the main salon with its eye-catching imperial purple sofas.
The architecture, too, conjures a feeling of spaciousness in what is a relatively modest-sized riad. A smart portico along one side of the patio creates a shaded outdoor salon and screens a section of the L-shaped pool, while two staircases snake up to the terraces ensuring guests can move freely around the house and are never on top of one another. Upstairs, there’s a ssubtle change of pace, with rough pisé walls and raffia sunloungers lending the rooftop the feel of a casual retreat in contrast to the urban townhouse below.
Although no longer living in the riad, Elsa lives nearby and is at the riad every day along with her staff of five who deliver a personal and friendly service. That said there are no bellhops here, just lots of good Marrakech advice, great recommendations and friendly conversation. The pool in the patio is large for a riad, but isn’t heated.
The house is organised in two wings, which ensures that bedrooms are secluded and quiet. Of the six rooms there are three doubles, two junior suites and one large suite, the Douiria. In all of them the décor is simple, minimal and contemporary, favouring the same earthy tones and warm textures as the rest of the house. Beds sit on raised platforms and are dressed in thick woollen, Berber blankets in cream and chocolate, while thick-pile rugs tickle your toes underfoot.
The Alcove room and Douiria also come with fireplaces and bathtubs in the sleek butter coloured bathrooms, which are finished in polished tadelakt plaster and are furnished with Les Sens de Marrakech products and orange-blossom scented soap.
Breakfast on the terrace is a parade of wholesome goodies, from mountain honey and Moroccan pancakes to homemade yogurt and chilled fruit. Dinner is also worth staying in for, although it must be ordered in the morning. In particular, Fatti’s couscous earns high praise. In summer you can dine out in the pretty patio beneath the banana tree; in winter, hunker down in the salon beside a roaring fire.
There is one ground floor room (not specially adapted), and the main salon and eating areas are on the ground floor.
Although there are no specific child-friendly features (stairs are unguarded and so is the pool), this riad with its spacious proportions and personalised service is popular with families with children over six years old. Extra beds cost €20 (£18) per night.
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