Riad Fès stands inside the medina of Fez, in a 14th-century house that once belonged to one of the city's leading families. Its owners were among the first to restore the old riads here, and they have run it as a hotel for some 20 years. The house is arranged around a series of courtyards, each with its own character. The Andalusian patio frames a pool with arcades and a fountain, the classic patio has carved cedar doors, zellige tilework and a huge chiselled brass chandelier, and the baroque patio is planted with ferns and fig trees like a winter garden. A garden of orange trees and palms surrounds a Carrara marble fountain, and a second pool by the French designer Christophe Pillet sits against a living green wall. Gayza, the restaurant, joins French technique to Fassi cooking, with dishes such as quail pastilla. The rooftop terrace looks across the medina to the surrounding hills, and at sunset the call to prayer drifts up from the mosques below. There is a spa and hammam, and the hotel runs a shuttle to the Royal Golf Club of Fez.
- Rooms
- 26 rooms and suites
Insider tip Go up to the rooftop terrace before dusk: the view runs across the whole medina to the hills, and the call to prayer carries across the rooftops as the light goes.
Why I choose it A Moroccan-owned riad with real architectural confidence and a proper restaurant, right inside the medina. It gives clients the old city on the doorstep and full hotel service behind the door.