Issue link: https://www.balharbourdigital.com/i/1507768
HE ONLY INTENDED TO BU Y A FEW BOLTS of fabric in Tangier— stripey, like the ones his friend the ar t dealer Peter Hinwood had showcased at his own home. But fashion designer Jasper Conran came away from a visit seven years a go with a much heftier purchase than some cot ton canvas: a house. And not just any house, but the former home of Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé. And so, earlier this year, Jasper—son of the late design legend Terence Conran—welcomed the first guests to his reimagined Villa Mabrouka, a sister spot to L'Hôtel, the five-room, high-end Marrakech guesthouse that he already owned. The Tangier proper t y had been up for sale to help fund Fondation Jardin Majorelle, the foundation established in the wake of Bergé's death, and Conran was smit ten the moment he toured it. To him, the villa embodied the eclectic spirit of the por t cit y. "Tangier is a place that has a foot in both Europe and the Arab world. It 's a heady mix, a nd a g reat combinat ion. I cou ld inst a nt ly see what it cou ld be," Conran says now of his putative project . "I wanted this to be like a 1920s hotel in Deauville, France." Five years of g ut renovations later, work that included building nine new suites and a rooftop terrace — not to mention updating its plumbing and utilities —it 's ready for the world to visit again. His enthusiasm for the North African enclave right now isn't unique. "Something has just clicked with Morocco. Ever y thing seems to be materializing, and there's so much demand," says Marrakech-based travel specialist Alex Wix, whose for te is five-star trips here. "Ever y hotel is full, and so are the flights." Look at other new boutique proper- t ies, like the nine-room Olinto, in the count r yside just south of Marrakech: it's a kindred spirit to Conran's Villa Mabrouka in both style and substance, a high-design home reimagined by the Italian prince Fabrizio Ruspoli di Poggio Suasa, who lives next door. VOYAGE A glimpse of Marrakech's Old City, as seen from the Royal Mansour. The devastating earthquake hit Morocco as this issue was going to press. Now more than ever a love letter to Morocco feels bittersweet, but important: after devastation and natural disasters, it's tempting to shy away from a place, but tourism dollars can help it rebuild—and it won't rebound without us. P H OTO BY I S A AC I C H O U BAL HARBOUR 213