This Boutique Hotel on the Edge of Essaouira Is a Riot of Colour

At the very tip of Essaouira’s historic Medina, where the city dissolves into the vast Atlantic, one finds Salut Maroc!, a riot of colour against the wind-worn stone of Morocco’s westernmost edge. A former merchant’s house turned consulate, this 18th-century riad is now a boutique hotel that pulses with a contemporary take on Moroccan design. From its handcrafted interiors to its rooftop views, everything at Salut Maroc! feels like a bold conversation between tradition and reinvention.

Essaouira has always been shaped by the elements—the wind, the salt, the tides—and Salut Maroc! embraces that energy. The building itself, set against the old city walls and cannons still guarding the shore, is part of the fabric of this place. Inside, the atmosphere shifts. The cool stone and timeworn façade give way to a world of color and pattern, a space where Islamic geometric motifs, antique furnishings, and contemporary artistry collide. The effect is mesmerizing, creating a kaleidoscope of textures that feel at once deeply Moroccan and strikingly modern.

With only eleven rooms and suites, the hotel feels intimate, almost personal, as if each space has a story waiting to be discovered. The Fez Room, inspired by the rooftops and mosques of its namesake city, is wrapped in zellige tilework, with its copper bathtub glinting beneath soft lantern light. By contrast, the Berber Room, steeped in tribal influences, is something else entirely—a space dedicated to the legend of Aisha, the Berber bride. A tale of beauty, loss, and vengeance unfolds in the form of bold wall art and rich textiles, making the room feel like a living piece of folklore.

The rooftop is where Essaouira’s rhythms come back into focus. Here, overlooking the Atlantic, the hotel’s restaurant serves locally caught seafood and Moroccan specialties, the menu as carefully curated as the space itself. Beef fillet carpaccio with truffle oil, seafood paella brimming with tiger prawns and calamari, a lime and coconut cheesecake with pineapple coulis—each dish is precise but not fussy, made to be enjoyed slowly in the lingering glow of a Moroccan sunset.

The bar is an extension of this philosophy. Elaichi, a cocktail infused with gin, cardamom, pear juice, and pistachio syrup, is a signature favorite, served alongside classics like the Mai Tai and Cosmopolitan.

The beauty of Salut Maroc! doesn’t just lie in the way it looks, but in the way it feels. The hotel sits at the city’s furthest edge, enclosed by Place Moulay Hassan, the historic ramparts, and the Atlantic beyond, making it feel almost like an island of its own. From the rooftop, the view stretches past the bronze cannons lining the walls, over the waves that have shaped this city for centuries.