L'Heure Bleue Palais Essaouira
Originally built at the end of the 19th century, on the ruins of an ancient ‘fondouk’ - hostel for travelling traders - the ‘sleeping beauty’, as it was called by the locals, initially was the sumptuous residence of Caid Mbark Saidi. Later acquired by a wealthy merchant, it then served as an orphanage until the 1960s, before being left abandoned and in disrepair. At this point the Azoulay family and associates decided to restore this once noble residence and bring it back to life.
Heure Bleue Palais opened its doors in June 2004 after three years of renovation and reconstruction, now with a new vocation as a luxury hotel. Today Heure Bleue Palais is the pride of Essaouira and pure serendipity for its guests.
The 33 rooms & suites are arranged over 4 floors and overlook the verdant patio - the decor is influenced by colonial nuances from the Orient, Africa, Portugal and Britain. Heure Bleue Palais is a testimony to Essaouira’s glorious past at the crossroads of African, European and Arab civilisations. The hotel offers everything a sophisticated traveller expects of a luxury hotel, yet Heure Bleue Palais still conserves the architecture of a traditional Moroccan riad: the public areas, restaurant and rooms open onto a courtyard with an ornate fountain - in true Moroccan tradition this is the heart of the riad. The colonial style Salon Anglais invites to relax in a mellow ambiance with subtle lighting and sumptuous English decor.
