Here we are, building of the Samanah Country Club, prestigious residential complex, has just started near Marrakech. Of note, this luxury program was officially launched during the signature in Rabat (for an amount of 2.4 billion dirhams) between the Moroccan government and the French group Alain Crenn.

An ideal site
Located 8 km south of the international Marrakech airport (on the road to Amizmiz), Samanah is not lacking in assets. First strong point of the project, its proximity (only 10 min by car) from the “Pearl of the South”: the imperial city of Marrakech, the Red City, thus named because its ochre ramparts. Enjoying an exceptionally mild climate, the capital of the Moroccan South fascinates through its animation, its perfumes and its colours. Impossible to get bored here! The charm of its riads, souks, narrow streets, restaurants, gardens, Medina palace … is effective day and night. In addition to its premium location and its outstanding view on the majestic Atlas Mountains, the Samanah estate will extend over… 285 hectares! The complex will include more than 580 villas (all with private swimming pool) located around an 18 holes golf course of international class. The complementing infrastructures are of the same vein: three 5 stars hotels (540 rooms), a convention centre, a kid’s club and a large plaza for tourist animation. Let’s not forget shops, restaurants, play rooms, beauty salons, spa, night club and tennis.

A course of international class
Second strong point of the program: its golf course. Conceived by Nicklaus Design, this long course (6 700 m, par 72) is selective but without useless traps. Stretching itself over almost 100 hectares, it will be adapted to all levels: demanding for the experienced golfers and pleasant for least experienced ones. A design philosophy already applied by the Jack Nicklaus’ offices to more than 250 courses, several of which appear among the best in the world. Equipped with a “hard line” watering system, USGA greens… The course squarely aims at the level required by the American PGA. At the ecological front, the step taken for this “desert golf” is remarkable. In addition to aesthetics, the various vegetable species were selected on very precise criteria: their strong heat resistance and their weak water absorption to survive. Two reasons for this: a maximal consumption of 1.5 million m3 per annum limited by contract and the duty with respect to the Moroccan people to limit water consumption.

A good real estate investment
In terms of location, Samanah represents a major asset. It is quite simply the first private golf resort in Morocco. A specificity synonymous with higher real estate value (compared to a property located close to a “traditional” golf). The prices currently proposed are very attractive. In short, with appreciation projections between 20 and 50% at delivery time, the economic situation seems favourable for bargain hunters…

Villas at the edge of the course
At the menu of the real estate offering: villas and riads. These various homes are located throughout the course and around the chip & putt (lighted by night!). On the architectural front, the “kasbahs” style (fortified villages of the south-Moroccan oases) is the rule. Explanations by the architect Alain Lelieur: “The Moroccan traditional house is always isolated from the outside. Its interiors are distributed by an open sky patio which floods light to the various rooms. Inspired by this model, the Samanah Country Club villas bring luxury and comfort.” To this “ground architecture” is added a harmonious interior decoration. Entrusted to Sybille de Margerie, the arrangement of the villas resorts to volumes, colours and materials typical and modern at the same time: carved woods, damask fabrics, terra cotta and mosaics… Putting forward the art of Moroccan living , in other words this extreme refinement inherited from the Hispano- Moorish civilization, the interior architecture mixes contemporary tendencies and ancestral wellbeing (only for the fixed elements of decoration, the choice of furnishing being reserved to the purchaser). Exterior spaces, living places on their own right, were conceived in the same vein. For proof, patios arranged at the ground floor, around the swimming pool, on the second floor and on the roofs to profit from the view of the Atlas.

Complete services
For services, the Alain Crenn Group called upon specialized companies. Objective: propose to the owners a turn-key solution: maintenance of the swimming pools and of the privative parks, personal services, management, concierge, administrative assistance, personnel availability… In the form of contractual subscriptions, these services will make it possible to claim a top-of-the-range positioning for the resort. Finally, last but not least available service: seasonal rental management. An office specialized in this activity will be available in the residential complex. Its function: make it possible for the owners to rent their villa in order to make their investment more profitable. Delivery of Samanah Country Club? During 2008 (for the first section).