Yves Saint Laurent, Marrakech

I must admit that in my previous jaunts to Marrakech, I wrote off Jardin Majorelle as something of a tourist trap.

It’s on every Marrakech To Do List and the queue?

Good god, the queue.

It makes Disney Land look positively deserted.

So I’ve avoided it. But this year all that changed. As you see, there’s been a development. The YSL Museum has finally opened, and along with it, a shortcut.

When you arrive at the garden, keep going. Walk right to the end of the queue and keep on walking. Soon you’ll reach the stunningly beautiful YSL Museum, which is so new… no one knows it’s there! (Other than your fellow Londoner readers.) Ask for a combined ticket to the museum and the gardens. You can either go right into the museum then, or head into the gardens.

Which is what we did, to make the most of the last of the afternoon sun.

Once you’re inside, you’ll see why it’s on everyone’s list.

It truly is remarkably beautiful.

Lush greenery growing up through pink sand, contrasting spectacularly with the cobalt blue and bright yellows of the architecture.

Palms and towering bamboo make cathedral like paths through the jungle.

Viaducts and fountains feed them all, and fill the space with the sound of trickling water.

It’s the perfect place to find a little shade in the heat of the day.

Yellow dress

Bamboo bag // Pink slides

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It took French painter Jacques Majorelle (1886-1962) forty years to create the garden, in 1937 he painted the buildings a blue that is now known around the world as “Majorelle blue”.

“Strong, deep, intense, it accentuates the green of the leaves and makes them sing.”

Hidden in the depths of the gardens, you’ll find a little café hiding beneath the orange trees.

Sip on a little mint tea, maybe order an ice-cream.

Pistachio, mango and orange blossom.

Which only seems fitting, given the surroundings.

Once you’ve explored every inch of the gardens and the Berber museum hidden within, make your way down the cobbled street, to The YSL Museum.

Which is every bit as chic as you might imagine!

Heartbreakingly there are no photos allowed inside, which is a shame because it houses an extraordinary exhibition. Filled with some of YSL’s most impressive work.

An entire hall, plunged into darkness with nothing to illuminate it (you can’t see the floor beneath your feet) but spotlights shining on garments from the archive.

Each lit like a spectacular sculpture in its own right.

You could lose yourself for hours, pouring over every fold, dart and sequin.

There’s jewellery and photography, notebooks and sketches. Every fashion lover’s dream.

And to top it all off?

A pool to sit beside and sip enormous virgin mojitos.

Quite simply the chicest museum you will ever visit.

And well worth a trip.