Riu Palace Tikida Taghazout

An all-inclusive the size of a village

The Riu Palace Tikida Taghazout opened in October 2019 at the heart of Taghazout Bay, a resort created under the Plan Azur, the Moroccan state's programme to develop beach tourism. It is the sixth hotel in Morocco run by the partnership between the Spanish chain RIU and the Moroccan Tikida group, which also run the Riu Palace Tikida Agadir and the Riu Tikida Beach.

With 504 rooms on 18 hectares, including almost 45,000 m² of terraces and gardens, it is a very different format from the neighbouring Fairmont, which has 146 rooms, suites and villas. The all-inclusive plan runs 24 hours a day: meals, snacks, local and international drinks, including premium spirits, and a minibar restocked daily. The hotel is fully accessible to guests with reduced mobility.

Eight pools and a reserved beach

The hotel is right on the beach, with an area reserved for guests and free loungers and parasols. But life mostly happens around the pools, under the palm trees: eight outdoor pools, including two adults-only infinity pools facing the beach, a children's pool, and a heated pool in the spa area, the right choice from November to March.

The Tikida Spa offers beauty treatments, massages and a hammam, with a sauna, steam room and jacuzzi. The gym is for guests aged 18 and over; the RIU Fit programme covers stretching, strength training, cardio and water activities.

Children by age group

The RIU Land club splits children into two groups, ages 4 to 7 and 8 to 12. Teenagers have their own space, Riu4U. For parents, the entertainment team runs daily activities, and the stage at the Terrasse des Épices hosts shows and live music several nights a week.

Four restaurants and their bars

Times are local:

• Le Tara, the main buffet, with live cooking and two themed nights a week: breakfast 7.30 to 10.30 am, dinner 6.30 to 10 pm;
• Krystal, à la carte fine dining, meat, fish and seafood: dinner in two sittings, 7–8.30 pm and 9–10.30 pm;
• Le Musk, Moroccan à la carte, with the same sittings;
• Bâbor, a buffet by day (late breakfast 10.30 am to noon, lunch 12.30 to 3.30 pm, afternoon snacks 3.45 to 5.30 pm), and an à la carte steakhouse in the evening, in two sittings, 6.30–8.30 pm or 8.30–10.30 pm.

For drinks: the Amazonien swim-up bar; the Jungle lobby bar, with its terraces; Le Bouba and Wave by the pools; the Terrasse des Épices, the lounge bar with a stage; and the Capuchino café for cakes.

Which room to choose

All double rooms are 46 m²; the price rises with the view, from the standard room to the side sea view and then the sea view. Families have two connecting rooms of 92 m², with a partial or full sea view.

The Junior Suite Swim-Up (90 m²) is for adults only: its terrace leads straight into one of the large pools. The hotel had five at opening, so this is the category to book early for a couple without children.

Sabaro's view

Who it suits: families with children aged 4 to 12, teenagers included; couples who want a beach all-inclusive, ideally in a Junior Suite Swim-Up.

Strengths: a kids' club split by age and a teens' space; eight pools, two of them adults-only; a fully accessible hotel; golf 3 km away; a Booking.com score of 7.9/10 from more than 2,300 reviews.

Good to know: this is a very large, lively hotel; Taghazout village and its surf schools are 2.5 km away, Agadir 15 km; à la carte dinners are served in sittings.