High In Morocco

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give!” These words by Winston Churchill are sure to ring a bell as you experience a heady combination of sustainability and luxury at Kasbah du Toubkal in Morocco.

- Kanupriya Pachisia

Forty miles south of cosmopolitan Marrakech, the tarmac shrinks to a stony footpath at Imlil, Morocco. From here begins the walk to an inebriating contact with luxuries that co-exist with a respect for the environment. Tucked into the sawcutting peaks of the Toubkal National Park, in view of the highest mountain, the Kasbah du Toubkal is a magnificent mountain retreat that has completely transformed the village of Imlil.

With views framed by rugged peaks and villages that pass through walnut groves and terraced barley fields, you might clearly not pay much attention to your immediate surroundings, “but the plate you eat off, the stool you sit on, the beautiful rug beneath your feet and the straw hat on your head, nothing got there by chance!”

Mike McHugo, owner of the Kasbah tells us, “As there is no road access, everything had to be carried up by mule or man. It meant that re-building took longer but also resulted in a more authentic outcome.”

A British-Berber partnership transformed this crumbling home of a former ruler, perched over a hilltop into a comfortable fourteen room boutique hotel. While it took a village to build it, Mike tells us that, “When building the Kasbah, right from the beginning, before any plan was drawn or any stone was laid, we said that we would only work with the environment and in the best interest of the people of the Imlil Valley. It made it much harder and more expensive but we refused to compromise.