Perfectly located, at the easy-to-find edge of the Kasbah, this nine-roomed hotel is a welcome antidote for urbanites bored with slick, all-white minimalism. From the moment a hushed, whispered welcome greets you at Riad Mehdi's dark, dark entrance, it is clear that this is somewhere devoted to relaxation and calm. Deep red rugs lead visitors from a reception area and its billowing amber-coloured tulle, carved dark-wood ceiling and cabinets of orange blossom unguents, to a covered central courtyard of white loungers, where sybarites lie waiting for their next pampering in the spa which comprises almost half of the property, Les Bains du Marrakech.
Thanks to the stylish take on traditional indigenous decor, there is never any doubt that you're in Morocco, and Mehdi enjoys the kind of laid-back luxe you would find in hip hangouts such as China White. The more demanding tourists will also rejoice at the kind of service usually associated with resorts in South East Asia - there is an army of staff of the barely-seen and hardly-heard variety. When hotel guests check in, they are even handed a map and list of recommended restaurants, demonstrating a refreshing level of care in a city known to be a little more laissez faire.
There are no stuffy dining room or formal communal areas, just a tadelakt lounge-bar furbished in deep orange and browns fabrics and cushions, as well as copper-chased and wrought iron wires and antiqued wooden pieces. On Sleeper's afternoon visit, it was peopled by a group of young French women in bathrobes, sitting in the half-light fresh from their scrub and steam in the hammam, puffing away on cigarettes and sipping wine - this is clearly holistic living, Morocco style. In the bedrooms, modern-day trimmings would be incongruous, and pretty hand-crafted brass fittings in the bathrooms, make up for the lack of hi-tech distractions.
The internal rooms, while charming, are windowless. This has mixed reactions among guests; some feel it keeps the hurly-burly and prayer calls of the medina out of earshot at bedtime, others lament the lack of fresh circulating air. The four suites overlooking the pool and small garden are a different story.
Spacious and lavish, they boast the likes of four-poster beds and sunken tiled round baths. It may be right in the heart of a 1000-year-old metropolis, but the orange blossom-infused Riad Mehdi, is as soothing as retreats come.
