Hammam Al Alba is a small traditional hammam inside the Tetouan medina, on Msalla Lakdima opposite the National Theatre and a short walk from Place El Mechouar. The setting is a restored medina house with stained glass, painted zellij and a planted courtyard, arranged as two rooms: a hot bathing room and a warm massage room. The rituals use Beldi black soap, the kessa glove and rassoul clay, the sequence a Moroccan hammam has always followed.
Waarom boeken
Hammam Al Alba is a traditional Moroccan hammam inside the Tetouan medina, a UNESCO World Heritage site in northern Morocco.
It runs as a private hammam, so the room is reserved for your group rather than shared with other bathers as in a neighbourhood hammam.
The building is a restored medina house with stained glass panels, painted zellij dados and a courtyard planted with palms and strelitzia.
The ritual follows the standard Moroccan sequence of Beldi black soap, kessa glove and rassoul clay, which is what makes it a hammam rather than a spa.
The same owners run a hammam in the Asilah medina, so the two sit on one northern Morocco route.
Behandelingen
A purifying wash with Beldi black soap, the olive paste soap used across Morocco, after time in the hot room.
A deep exfoliation with the kessa, the coarse mitt that lifts off the top layer of skin.
An application of rassoul, the mineral clay quarried in the Middle Atlas, used on skin and hair.
A toning body massage in the warm room once the hot room work is done.
Facial and body treatments, plus relaxing and therapeutic massage, are offered alongside the hammam itself.
Beste tijd
A hammam works best at the end of a day walking the medina, since Tetouan's lanes are steep and the walk is long.
The cooler months suit a hot room best, which is also when Moroccans use the hammam most.
Book ahead. The rooms are private and there are only two of them, so walk ins are not the format here.
Hoe te combineren
The Tetouan medina, on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 1997, starts at the door.
Place El Mechouar and the Royal Palace are a few minutes' walk from the hammam.
Martil beach is about 10 km east, and Cabo Negro and M'diq are 15 to 25 minutes up the coast road.
Chefchaouen is roughly 60 km south through the Rif, which makes Tetouan a natural first or last night on that route.
Hammam Al Alba Tetouan is at 43 Avenue Msalla Lakdima in the Tetouan medina, opposite the National Theatre and a short walk from Place El Mechouar and the Royal Palace. The Tetouan medina has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1997.
A session at Hammam Al Alba starts in the hot room with steam and hot water to open the skin, then a wash with Beldi black soap, a deep scrub with the kessa glove and an application of rassoul clay. A toning body massage follows in the warm room. The hammam has two rooms, one hot for bathing and one warm for massage.
Yes. Hammam Al Alba in Tetouan runs as a private hammam, so the room is reserved for your group rather than shared with other bathers as it would be in a public neighbourhood hammam. Reservations are made with the hammam directly through its booking form.
Bookings at Hammam Al Alba typically include a bathrobe, slippers, towels and disposable underwear, so you do not need to bring your own. Confirm what is included when you reserve, since inclusions vary by treatment.
Yes. Hammam Al Alba runs two hammams in northern Morocco, one in the Tetouan medina and one in the Asilah medina, both inside restored medina houses. The Tetouan branch also offers a transfer service from Tangier.