Riyad Sheherazade Hotel

Welcome to Riad Sheherazade, a beautiful place to stay which offers the best cuisine in Fes.

Once a palace and now a palatial guest house it's often graced by ministers, musicians, World Bank presidents and even the odd Head of State.

Everywhere you go, you're dwarfed by Sheherezade's grand - sometimes cavernous - proportions. You could play football in the patio, and the Royal and Sheherazade suites are larger than most European apartments. The architecture is monumental in scale and matched by exquisite soft furnishings: the finest French silk devore coverlets on every bed and the softest blankets to soothe the weary brows of the great and the good.

The pièce de resistance is the patio with its 150-year-old palms towering over a turquoise pool. At night they're backlit to romantic effect while diners are serenaded by a quartet of Andalusia musicians. To cap it all off, the Riad is run by the eccentric Abdelhai Ben Ghazi, a passionate musician and one of the founders of the Festival of Sacred Music.

Of course the Sheherezade has its own Hammam (Turkish-style bathhouse) but there's an even better one at Riad Maison Bleue. Given the whole Arabian nights theme, we recommend the 1001 Nights treatment. This comprises a blast of steam, a mud masque and an evil scrub down, followed by a manicure with honey, a pedicure in orange blossom water, a relaxing massage and a facial.

Curious Fact Unsurprisingly - given Abdelhai's involvement in the Festival of Sacred Music - the Sheherazade accommodates most of the musicians and singers. Every night during the festival they receive some 200 people for dinner on the roof terrace.