Elite Traveler Fall 2024

Found at the infamous location of 27 Avenue des Forces Armées Royales, the hotel is not technically new — it opened in 1952 as the fi rst fi ve-star hotel in the White City and was the hotel of choice for Moroccan royalty. After eight years of careful restoration (it was deconstructed and reconstructed fl oor by fl oor), a number of the original details have been kept the same — notably the building’s facade. Inside, the decor is gloriously Art Deco, from the elevators with their half-moon dials to the bar that remains in the same spot as it did in the 1950s. The grand lobby has custom artwork with a geometric interpretation of Casablanca, an ‘ecosystem’ paludarium with 1,000 fi sh from the Amazon River and Asia that nods to Casablanca’s history as the fi rst port of Morocco, and a Bohemian crystal chandelier with 149 fi re fl ies — one for each room within the hotel.

Royal Mansour Casablanca CASABLANCA, MOROCCO

When your big sister, the Royal Mansour Marrakech, is renowned the world over for being one of the most lavish, the most impressive, the most intriguing hotels (a subterranean labyrinth of corridors for sta ff so they don’t disturb guests? You bet!), it’s safe to say that it’s a pretty big shadow to be in. Royal Mansour’s second outpost in Morocco, however, does not hide in the shadows trying to emulate Big Sis. Rather, it has its own slick, city polished vibe with the same solid-gold service that you expect from the RM.