La Mamounia, the iconic Marrakech palace hotel, has been named Morocco’s top hotel in Condé Nast Traveler’s 2026 Readers’ Choice Awards. The palace ranked first among hotels in Morocco with a score of 99.65 out of 100, according to the US edition of Condé Nast Traveler. It also ranked 14th worldwide. The British edition placed La Mamounia first in North Africa, with a score of 99.31.
The results come less than three weeks after La Mamounia received three MICHELIN Keys, the highest distinction in the MICHELIN Guide’s hotel selection. The 2026 selection recognized 31 hotels in Morocco, with La Mamounia and Kasbah Tamadot receiving three Keys. Condé Nast Traveler’s awards are based on votes from its readers. Nearly 800,000 readers took part in this year’s global survey.
La Mamounia’s reputation goes well beyond its recent rankings. The hotel opened in 1923 on the site of a 13-hectare garden that dates back to the 18th century. The hotel was designed by French architects Henri Prost and Antoine Marchisio, combining Moroccan architectural traditions with Art Deco influences. Its interiors feature zellige, carved plaster, Moroccan craftsmanship and Amazigh textiles.
Over the decades, the palace became closely associated with the international cultural and political elite. Winston Churchill was a regular winter visitor and painted Marrakech from the hotel’s balconies. The hotel later named its Churchill Bar after him. Other prominent visitors have included Franklin Roosevelt, Charles de Gaulle, Charlie Chaplin, Marcello Mastroianni, Francis Ford Coppola and Yves Saint Laurent.
The hotel has also been part of Marrakech’s film history. Several scenes of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Man Who Knew Too Much were filmed there in the 1950s. La Mamounia has undergone several renovations while keeping its traditional identity. A major redesign led by French designer Jacques Garcia between 2006 and 2009 placed greater emphasis on its Moroccan and Arabo-Andalusian heritage.
Another renovation was completed in 2020, followed by additional work for the hotel’s centenary in 2023. Its appeal today extends beyond accommodation, with restaurants, bars, gardens, and a large spa forming part of the experience. The hotel’s culinary offering includes restaurants associated with chefs such as Simone Zanoni and Jean-Georges Vongerichten.
La Mamounia said the latest awards are less important to the hotel than the loyalty of its guests. According to the hotel, around 30% of its guests return, in some cases across several generations. Pierre Jochem, General Manager of La Mamounia, emphasized that the distinctions encourage the hotel to keep moving forward with the same standards of excellence and care for its guests.
Key points
- La Mamounia ranked first in Morocco and 14th worldwide in Condé Nast Traveler’s 2026 Readers’ Choice Awards.
- The hotel received three MICHELIN Keys, the highest distinction in the MICHELIN Guide’s hotel selection.
- La Mamounia has been recognized in several other rankings, including Travel + Leisure and Robb Report’s 2026 list of the “50 Greatest Luxury Hotels on Earth.”
