Club Med Marrakech La Palmeraie

“4th time around!!”

At this point, it’s basically our second home—the one we actually like showing up to. The kids and I have our routine down cool: we know exactly what to do, when to do it, and when to pretend we’re not secretly plotting our next nap. It’s safe, clean, friendly, and best of all, no one asks why we’r… more

At this point, it’s basically our second home—the one we actually like showing up to. The kids and I have our routine down cool: we know exactly what to do, when to do it, and when to pretend we’re not secretly plotting our next nap. It’s safe, clean, friendly, and best of all, no one asks why we’re wearing swimwear to breakfast. We try new sports (some we’re good at, most we’re dramatically bad at), get slightly better at the others, and join the entertainment only when our energy levels—and our inhibitions—are high enough. And then, of course, we cry like dramatic movie characters when we leave. Club Med Marrakech is our little heaven, with a side of poolside chaos. Here’s the truth: guests (the GMs) get out what they put in. Come open-minded, ready to try weird new activities, and don’t take yourself too seriously—or at least pretend not to—and you will LOVE it. The miserable guests? They’ll leave exactly as miserable as they arrived, probably complaining about the sunshine and the heat. And yes, I did hear people complaining... Just to mention a few stars (because they were all fantastic): Maria and Solila at the boutique, Achraf and Dalex at Tennis, Francois at Golf, Barracuda at Archery, All the lovely people at the restaurant taking super good care of us and the lovely man at the pool who found loungers for us. See you all soon Inch'Allah

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“A Glass Half Empty at Club Med Palmeraie, Marrakesh”

Where should I start with my time at the Palmeraie? At the top, without a doubt: the restaurant "The Palmeraie" stands at the very peak of the experience. The food, from dawn to dusk, ranks among the best from Fes to Marrakesh. At every meal—breakfast, lunch, or dinner—the diverse choices, the vari… more

Where should I start with my time at the Palmeraie? At the top, without a doubt: the restaurant "The Palmeraie" stands at the very peak of the experience. The food, from dawn to dusk, ranks among the best from Fes to Marrakesh. At every meal—breakfast, lunch, or dinner—the diverse choices, the variety of cuisines, and the sheer abundance are always there to dazzle the GM. The cherry on top is the attitude of the chefs and service staff: cheerful and accommodating. I'm especially thankful to and admiring of Mr. Mounir, who is tirelessly welcoming, caring, and genuinely delighted to play the convivial host. Kudos to the chefs, the staff, and the leadership at the Palmeraie restaurant. Sadly, from this high point, Club Med Palmeraie takes a rather steep nosedive. I arrived on a Thursday and, being a tennis fan, rushed straight to the tennis facility—only to be met with the wall of Marrakesh. Thursday is tournament day, I was told, so no other activity is scheduled. Nothing. Nada. Not even a "Can we sign you up for tomorrow's class?" No "What's your level?" No "Can we help you find a partner on the app?" No "Would you like to borrow some balls to practice your serve?" All this while I counted six completely empty courts. The next day, I was lucky—or felt lucky—to be "allowed" to join the advanced class at 9 AM. I say "felt lucky" because I had the distinct impression that a no was always possible, for some unforeseen reason. The lessons consist of the GO launching balls at participants, who return them however they can. There are minimal to no instructions or corrections of any kind from the monitors. The same goes for the private lessons, as far as I could observe. A special thanks to Julie, one of the GMs, who asked for new balls—otherwise we'd have had to make do with sad, worn-out ones. So, fellow tennis fans: adjust your expectations accordingly. The only real fun I had was with Ange Marie, whose motto was "You're on vacation—it's not for resting." His machine-gun style of launching balls made us work hard. My other notable activity was golf. I enjoyed the first session with Mr. Lahssen. Enthusiastic as I am—and since vacation is not for resting—I tried to join both the morning and afternoon sessions the next day. It was whispered in my ear that I could attend one or the other, but not both. After the famous white outdoor dinner, I came down with a mild case of diarrhea. Fortunately, I had brought some Smecta and took it immediately. The next morning, I went to the infirmerie for advice and medicine. Three of us sat waiting outside for our turn. After the first patient went in and came out, the rest of us waited to be called, as we assumed we would be. After a long while, the woman who had arrived after me simply walked in, was attended to, and came out. I went in next. The medical staffer sat barely three meters from where we'd been waiting, said not a single word, and had simply let us sit there. An exemplary a-hole. I remain puzzled by such an extreme anti-guest attitude. Beyond the wonderful food at the Palmeraie, we splurged on a premium dinner of aged local steak and lobster at the Layali. The steak was good and the lobster was good too, but the starters were a debacle—clearly prepared well in advance. The coquille Saint-Jacques was the worst offender: no taste at all, like bland Jell-O. For a dinner of over 200 euros, I'd urge friends to think carefully. After a week at Club Med Palmeraie, I left with the glass half empty. I hold on to fond memories of the gorgeous food at the Palmeraie restaurant and my fun encounters with the twin photographers, Ahmed and Simon—or whatever their names are, since they introduced themselves differently every other day. I hope I earned the nickname they gave me: خاطر, "Khatar."

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“We had a great time...but”

Overall, we had a great week as a family. The resort is spacious, some great pools and nice guests. Room a decent size with a comfy bed and nice hot shower. We really enjoyed the Family Oasis pool for most of the day. Usually plenty of beds and no hogging them. The operations team vary massivel… more

Overall, we had a great week as a family. The resort is spacious, some great pools and nice guests. Room a decent size with a comfy bed and nice hot shower. We really enjoyed the Family Oasis pool for most of the day. Usually plenty of beds and no hogging them. The operations team vary massively. I can't remember the name of the lovely guy in charge of cleanliness - he is always around. Checking everything is OK for you. Exemplar member of the team. Thomas in Petit club is amazing with unsettled children. But there were a few things that really let this place down :-( - room not as described - it said we had a terrace, but it was a small patio with sun loungers on gravel and not contained (so couldn't let 2 year old out there. - people smoking at the side of the family pool (despite no smoking listed on the gate). Raised with the lifeguard who told me they were allowed to! - restaurant. Where to start! Food was never ready when it opened (often 30 mins later which with a small kid isn't great). Service appalling. Ask 3+ times for water/wine. Birds sitting on the bread and pastries pecking at them. Waiters arguing loudly in front of guests. We dreaded mealtimes in the end. And started to go for dinner at 7.30pm even though it opened at 7pm to make sure there was food out. I wouldn't even rate it as 1 star. The food was good, when it was there. This is more of a for info. This is a French speaking resort. My little one went to Petit club, but there weren't any other English speaking kids in there, so he didn't want to stay. Most of the resort workers only speak French. Just thought that might be useful to be aware of before you go. It does mean lots of pleasant French guests :-)

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“A bit like Centerparcs in Morocco?!”

Just back from 5 days Club Med Marrakech. Great resort, really easy sun holiday for families (3hr flight, 20 mins from airport and no time difference). We found everything clean and were pleasantly surprised by the buffet food. Was worried about the wine etc, but the Moroccan Rose wine was rather… more

Just back from 5 days Club Med Marrakech. Great resort, really easy sun holiday for families (3hr flight, 20 mins from airport and no time difference). We found everything clean and were pleasantly surprised by the buffet food. Was worried about the wine etc, but the Moroccan Rose wine was rather lovely. Need to remember that Club Med is French, so the guests when we were there were 98% french. The family pool was great. As was the camel ride (pay extra). Only couple of things letting it down were: 1. The Service. Which was a little non-existent! We've never done all inclusive before, so didnt know what to expect ...but at dinner, it wasnt exactly easy to get drinks order...and the choice was basically wine, water or nothing. Coffee, at all meals, was from a Nestle machine. No milk. (I found this particularly shocking at breakfast since Moroccan coffee is incredible) 2. Kids Club. Found this impossible to book. And everything (everything) in French. We gave up. Kids went to the pool. 3. The random "white party". I used the app. I generally take note of things. We walked to dinner on our last night...with all of these guests dressed in white walking somewhere else altogether. Got to the main restaurant. Closed. Apparently, it was the "garden party". How did we not know this??? Got sent to the golf course for said party. Was all very elaborate, but zero provision for children. We had a 6yo, 4yo, 18 month old. No high chair. No children's drinks, We were seated MILES from the buffet. Was a nightmare. 4. Allergies !!! I have a lactose allergy. Nothing was labelled. Nothing!!! there was one plate at breakfast with "gluten free" bread and some alternative milks - but at lunch and dinner there was NO food labelling. Kitchen staff spoke little english. Ended up auite unwell. 5. Dont book an airport transfer! Paid £80 each way. Arriving this was great. Lovely driver who told us about the city as he drove us. Going home - was booked for 10am. At 10.05am had frantic calls from reception (have you tried going anywhere with 3 children under 6 years old?!!), and at 10.10am was told that the "bus" had departed because the other guests were angry and we had to make our own way. A bus??? For £80!!!! We got in a cab, took us 10 minutes and paid 25 euros. Otheriwse it was a fun stay. Our alternative was going to Centerparcs for the week, but this had much better weather ! ;)

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