The Selman has rapidly established itself as one of Marrakech’s finest palaces since it opened a good ten years ago. The company’s reputation is built on its never-ending swimming pool, its meticulous decor and its beautiful stables . An essential aspect of its success is also the presence of a Chenot spa offering detox cures. Pascal Languillon, director of Luxe Wellness Club, has tested it for you. His story below shows that it’s a place where you can easily combine business with pleasure : lose (or gain) weight and perfect your tan!
All the charm of Morocco in a magical setting
You’ve all heard of the Mamounia, the Royal Mansour… Et si le Selman était en fait la petite perle secrète de Marrakech ? Cet hôtel plus intimiste de seulement 55 chambres est moins connu internationalement, mais il mérite pourtant largement le voyage. As an expert in luxury detox cures, I also felt it was my duty tofinally try out the Chenot du Selman cure, especially as it has been a great success with our customers.
Close to the airport, south of the Medina, the Selman Marrakech offers guests a true voyage into the oriental world. Set in 6 hectares of lush natural surroundings, the hotel reflects the soul and culture of Morocco, in a wonderful setting with the snow-capped Atlas Mountains as a backdrop. As soon as I arrived, the intoxicating scent of Oud immediately immersed me in the very special atmosphere that makes Morocco so charming.
Owner Abdeslam Bennani Smires built the Selman around his passion for horses, and asked renowned architect and decorator Jacques Garcia to design the hotel and stables to house a fifteen purebred Arabians. I’m not particularly used to visiting stables, and I was impressed by these, which are as beautiful as they smell.
There are regular demonstrations of Arabian thoroughbreds in the evenings, and a Sunday brunch that is said to be extraordinary. Personally, I think the presence of these superb horses is a real asset to the hotel, especially if you know how to ride (which I don’t). Watching them in their paddock at breakfast is so soothing.
Jacques Garcia gave the hotel the look of an Arabo-Moorish palace, and mixed a very rich decorative style with numerous chandeliers and thick fabrics, with lots of Moroccan craftsmanship too. The interior is dark, however, dominated by black hues, but this lends the whole a slightly enigmatic quality that’s not at all unpleasant.
I might as well say it straight away: while the inside of the hotel is magnificent, it’s above all the outside that blew me away, and in particular its magnificent 80-meter-long swimming pool, a true marvel that I ranked directly in my mind as one of the most beautiful hotel pools in the world. What a pleasure it is to swim in its heated waters (even in winter) and do endless laps. The blue-green pool floor is beautiful, and the poolside loungers invite you to relax completely…
It’s also worth noting that the staff are very attentive. The welcome at reception and at the spa was always very warm, and that means a lot to me. The concierge service is amazingly responsive. I had indeed misplaced a screw in my sunglasses, and two hours later I was able to retrieve my repaired glasses after the hotel had sent a cab to the optician’s while I was lounging at the spa…
Last but not least, the Selman offers a top-quality Kid’s Club for a great family vacation.
Spacious rooms with a hushed ambience
I set down my suitcases in a 70 m² Prestige Room that perfectly blends traditional materials such as wood, leather and copper with hints of warm colors. I loved the night lighting and the special atmosphere created by Jacques Garcia.
The room features a lounge area and a private terrace with a breathtaking view of the pool, palm trees and Atlas Mountains in the distance. Comfortable beds and sofas, refined details, television hidden in a mirror… There’s no doubt about it: this is a discreetly luxurious 5-star hotel!
The bathrooms are not huge, but have separate bathtubs and showers. The courtesy products in the bathroom give off an excellent scent of Neroli.
Local art from the owner’s collection is scattered throughout the hotel. Superb villas with private swimming pools are also available at reasonable rates.
Chenot spa: a detox cure under the sun
Selman Marrakech boasts the only Chenot spa on the African continent to date. For those who want to follow a detox program, it’s important to understand the difference with the Chenot Palace Weggis in Switzerland. There are no doctors here, no high-tech diagnostics, and the biolight diet is probably not as sophisticated as the gourmet cuisine on offer in the Alps. In a way, it’s a slightly lighter detox. However, it is a cure that has the advantage of being carried out under palm trees and that also produces results, as clients lose 3 to 4 kgs in a week on average!
For guests following the Chenot cure, in-room mini-bars are emptied to avoid temptation, and guests follow the biolight diet described below.
The 1,200 m² wellness center is inspired by the oriental hammams of ancient Istanbul. Il est complété par deux piscines extérieures chauffées où il fait bon se prélasser après un soin, un jacuzzi extérieur, ainsi que de deux hammams et une petite salle de fitness. I found the whole thing very successful, though a little too dark for my taste. This is offset by the spa’s truly sublime outdoor space.
Beyond design, the quality of care is always the most important aspect of a spa. Here, I was able to test the hydrotherapy circuit, which consists of three phases and lasts around 60 minutes: bath with essential oils, phyto-fangotherapy wrap and hydrojet. No surprises here: the approach is very much in keeping with the Chenot method, with the added bonus of Moroccan lamps!
I also enjoyed an excellent Chenot detox massage, using glass suction cups to loosen toxins and drain the body of organic waste. During this massage, the therapist performs what is known as a body visualization, which will enable her to determine which organs need to be stimulated by an energetic massage. Indeed, the Chenot method is very much inspired by Chinese medicine, as I have often described on our site.
All Chenot detox customers take part in a fitness session, with a choice of indoor fitness, aquagym, boxing, tai chi, pilates, TRX… I was coached by Isham, who I found to be really excellent. We did a muscle strengthening session followed by a short boxing session and some stretching.
Your choice: the Chenot biolight diet … or a host of Moroccan delights!
At Selman, you’ll find three restaurants and two bars to suit all tastes. The “Le Selman” restaurant serves international cuisine, “Le Pavillon” offers an open-air lunch overlooking the stables and paddocks, while “L’Assyl” serves exceptional Moroccan cuisine. And of course, there’s Chenot’s detox cuisine, which you can enjoy wherever you please.
This is one of the Selman Marrakech’s strengths: its ability to satisfy all tastes and needs. It’s important to understand that while some customers follow the Chenot cure, others stay at the hotel purely for leisure. The advantage over stricter establishments is that here, the lady can follow the detox program while the gentleman can eat as much as he likes, or vice versa. I was both Madame and Monsieur as I sampled both Moroccan and detox cuisine!
The Biolight Menu is a diet adapted by Dr Henri Chenot and his wife Dominique that will help you detoxify, lose weight and, above all, improve your health. much better digestion by making your body alkaline and not acidic, for a neutral PH. This is the program proposed as part of the Chenot detox. The dishes I tasted were good and light, without any major surprises.
I spent a magical evening at the Assyl restaurant with its 1001 Nights decor: delicious chicken pastilla, chicken tajine with preserved lemon… the great classics of Moroccan cuisine are there. However, it’s the delicious lobster tagine that will remain my best taste memory of this trip.
I was also impressed by the breakfast, both in terms of the quality of the food and the beauty of the setting and atmosphere created around the Andalusian pavilion. At the edge of the ponds, under a resplendent light, we observe the vegetation, the horses and the musician who plays so well… Breakfast has never been so pleasant!
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Our feeling
A huge favorite is the Selman Marrakech, with its warm, intimate atmosphere and irresistible charm. The cuisine is delicious, the Chenot spa offers top-quality treatments for a gentle detox, and to top it all off, the hotel boasts arguably the most beautiful swimming pool in Africa… What more could you ask for?
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Rates : From around 650 euros per night in low season for accommodation. For a Chenot cure, you can expect to pay 435 euros per day per person, excluding accommodation. Enjoy an exclusive benefit with Luxe Wellness Club: a Hammam Escale by Maroc Maroc per person, worth 1,500 MAD.
Call us for the USA on +1 (646) 980 6652 or for the UK on +44 20 4577 3258
