After a long workweek and Friday night on the square, a girl living in a tourist town sometimes needs a quiet, country retreat. Palmeraie Village Residence, 20 minutes from the Medina, is family friendly and Girls’ –Weekend- great. On my daily ride to work through the Palmeraie region, I see palm groves, saddled camels, and dirt bikers popping wheelies. On my Saturday ride to play I enter lush gardens, villas, and guests lounging under umbrellas.
Though called “The Beverly Hills of Marrakech” never in California did I find a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment for $144 per night (a bill which included 2 poolside buffet breakfasts and was split between a friend and me). Both bedrooms and the living room opened to a huge terrace with a table and four chairs perched above the fountain in the lake and the twin pools. Owned by the same company as the Village is Palmeraie Palace, a 5-star hotel with eclectic restaurants and a spa on the property. Taking advantage of the free shuttle, we went to the Palace grounds to eat at Toro Loco, a Spanish restaurant that becomes a salsa club late night. Discovering an oasis of sunshine-by-day and salsa-by-night, this Southern girl could not have been happier.
