Hammam in Marrakech: the ritual, the addresses and 2026 prices

In short

• The ritual: heat, black soap, kessa glove scrub, rhassoul, rinse, argan oil. One to one and a half hours.
• Neighborhood hammam: 10 to 30 MAD, bring your own kit, men and women separate.
• Hammam house in the Medina: 400 to 900 MAD for the full ritual with massage, by reservation.
• Palace spa: 1,300 MAD for the 60-minute traditional hammam at La Mamounia, up to 2,200 MAD for long rituals.
• At home: our villas host masseuses and therapists, 400 to 700 MAD an hour.

The hammam is to Morocco what the bath is to Japan: a weekly, social ritual that precedes feasts and weddings. For the traveller it is the simplest way to wash off the Medina dust and understand a part of Moroccan life. Here is how it goes, and where to go depending on your budget.

The ritual, step by step

1. Heat

You start with ten to fifteen minutes in the hot room, at 40 or 45 degrees and saturated with steam, to open the pores. In traditional hammams, three rooms of rising temperature follow one another.

2. Black soap

Black soap, or beldi, is a paste of black olives and olive oil, sometimes with eucalyptus. You coat your body and leave it for ten minutes.

3. The kessa scrub

The rough kessa glove removes dead skin in rolls. This is the surprising step: you come out red, smooth and lighter. In a neighborhood hammam an attendant (the kessala) does it for a few dozen dirhams.

4. Rhassoul

A volcanic clay from the Atlas, mixed with rose or orange-blossom water, applied as a mask on body and hair. It tightens the pores and softens the skin.

5. Rinse and rest

Rinse with cool water, then rest in a warm room with mint tea. Hammam houses add a 30 to 60-minute argan oil massage.

Level 1: the neighborhood hammam

Every Medina quarter has its public hammam, often next to the mosque and the bread oven. Entry 10 to 30 MAD, scrub by the kessala 50 to 100 MAD including tip. Separate hours: usually men in the morning and evening, women in the afternoon. Bring a bucket or rent one, black soap and a kessa glove (20 MAD in the souk), towel, flip-flops, spare swimwear or underwear. You wash in swimwear or briefs, never naked. The most authentic experience, and the least comfortable: slippery floors, no lockers, little English spoken. Go with a local, or ask your riad housekeeper which one she uses.

Level 2: the Medina hammam houses

Riads turned into baths, with marble and tadelakt rooms, individual or couples' cabins, reservation required. The right compromise for a first time. 2026 prices seen:

• Hammam de la Rose, Dar el Bacha: 400 to 600 MAD. The "relaxation bouquet" at 500 MAD includes a eucalyptus black-soap hammam, coffee scrub and foot or face massage.
• Les Bains de Marrakech, Kasbah: 400 to 900 MAD for the hammam and massage session in a restored riad, the most refined of the category. Outdoor pool under the arcades.
• Hammam Mouassine: the oldest working hammam in the Medina (16th century), modernised, with tourist packages around 300 to 500 MAD.
• Hammam Ziani, Riad Zitoun: packages from 200 to 450 MAD, simpler, good value.

Prices include the kit and tea. Allow a 10% tip for the therapist.

Level 3: the palace spas

For a whole afternoon, indoor pool, gardens and grand-hotel service.

• La Mamounia: 60-minute traditional hammam at 1,300 MAD, neroli-infused black soap, kessa and rhassoul wrap. Spa access included. Long rituals up to 2,200 MAD.
• Royal Mansour: rituals from 1,500 MAD in the city's most spectacular spa, white latticework over three levels.
• The hotel spas of Hivernage and the Palmeraie (Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, Amanjena): 1,200 to 2,000 MAD, often open to non-residents by reservation.

At home, in your villa

Our villas in the Palmeraie and on the Ourika road often have a private hammam; look for the "hammam" amenity on the listings. We bring in masseuses and therapists: one-hour relaxing or invigorating massage 400 to 700 MAD per person, black-soap scrub in your hammam 300 to 500 MAD, yoga or pilates session 600 to 900 MAD for the group. Ask in your booking request or to your advisor during the stay.

Products to bring back

In the spice souk or at a herbalist: black soap (20 to 40 MAD per 250 g), kessa glove (10 to 20 MAD), rhassoul in slabs or powder (20 to 40 MAD), cosmetic argan oil (100 to 200 MAD per 100 ml at a cooperative, beware of prices that are too low), orange-blossom water. The women's argan cooperatives on the Essaouira road guarantee quality.

Tips

• No hammam right after a meal, nor after prolonged sun exposure.
• Drink water before and after.
• Remove jewellery; it suffers from steam and rhassoul.
• Pregnant women avoid the hottest room.
• Book hammam houses the day before, palace spas three days ahead in high season.