Morocco Guide
Marrakesh
Accommodation
1 
Hôtel Aday 111 Derb Sidi Bouloukat, Medina 
024 44 19 20 Friendly budget hotel, well kept, clean and pleasantly decorated. The rooms, grouped around a central patio, are small and most have only inward-facing windows. Shower facilities are shared (5dh), with hot water round the clock. Single rooms are half the price of doubles, making them a very good deal for lone travellers, and you can sleep on the roof for 30dh. Price: 100-150dh
2 Hôtel Arsete el Bilk Rue Bani Marine, Medina 024 44 31 13 An attractive alternative to the nearby Gazelle and Ichbilia, with well-kept little rooms, all en suite. Rates include breakfast and dinner. Price: 200-300dh
3 Hôtel CTM Pl Djemaa el Fna, Medina 024 44 23 25 Rooms are a decent size and clean but drab, and there's no hot water in the shared bathrooms, though en-suite rooms have hot showers. The hotel is above the old bus station (hence its name), now used as a car park, and handy if you're driving. Breakfast (included in the room rate) is served on the roof terrace, which overlooks the square, as do rooms 28–32, though that does of course make them noisy. Price: 100-150dh
4 Hôtel Challah 14 Rue de la Recette, Medina & 
024 44 29 77 A good-value budget hotel with nice, fresh rooms around a large formal patio with orange trees and a fountain, though the bathroom facilities are shared (hot showers 10dh), and the roof terrace is nothing to write home about. Price: 150-200dh
5 Hôtel Essaouira 3 Derb Sidi Bouloukat, Medina 024 44 38 05 One of the most popular cheapies in Marrakesh – and with good reason. It's a well-run, safe place, with thirty rooms, hot showers for 5dh, a laundry service, baggage deposit and rooftop café. Price: 100-150dh
6 Hôtel la Gazelle 12 Rue Bani Marine, Medina 024 44 11 12 
hotel_lagazelle@hotmail.com Well-kept hotel on a street with foodstalls and small grill cafés, with rooms around a covered patio – windows of downstairs rooms open onto the patio, those upstairs open to the outside. Some rooms have bathrooms, and there's a discount on the room price after three nights. Price: 150-200dh
7 Hôtel Ichbilia 1 Rue Bani Marine, Medina 024 38 15 30 Near the Mabrouk cinema, and well placed for shops, banks and cafés, with comfortable rooms off a covered gallery, some with private bathroom. Sometimes referred to as Hotel Sevilla (Ichbilia is the Arabic for Seville). Price: 150-200dh
8 Hôtel Medina 1 Derb Sidi Bouloukat, Medina 024 44 29 97 Clean, friendly and pretty good value, with an English-speaking proprietor and hot shared showers (5dh). In summer there's also the option of a cheaper (30dh) bed on the roof. Price: 100-150dh
9 Hôtel Nissam 76 Derb Sidi Bouloukat, Medina 024 38 60 81 A cheerful little place, with bright rooms around a pretty courtyard, ample enough to allow light into the rooms even though the windows all face inward. Bathroom facilities are shared but there's hot water 24/7. Price: 100-150dh
10 Dar les Cigognes 108 Rue de Berrima, Medina 024 38 27 40 
www.lescigognes.com A luxury boutique hotel run by a Swiss– American couple in two converted Medina houses. It's done up in traditional fashion around the patio, but with modern decor in the rooms and suites. There's a library, a hammam, a Jacuzzi, a salon and a terrace where you can see storks nesting on the walls of the royal palace opposite (hence the name, which means "house of the storks"). Prices include breakfast. Price: From 1500dh
11 Dar Salam 162 Derb Ben Fayda off Rue el Gza near Bab Doukkala, Medina 024 38 31 10 www.dar-salam.com A Moroccan family home which takes in guests, this is a true maison d'hôte as opposed to a riad, a place to relax and put your feet up rather than admire the decor. The food is similarly unpretentious – tasty home-style Moroccan cooking, like your mum would make if she were Marrakshi. Price: 300-500dh
12 Hôtel Ali Rue Moulay Ismail, Medina 024 44 49 79 hotelali@hotmail.com A popular hotel with en-suite rooms (heated in winter, a/c in summer), and dorm beds. Breakfast is included in the price, and there's a restaurant with all-you-can-eat buffet suppers, served on the rooftop terrace in summer. The hotel is used by groups heading to the High Atlas, so it's a good source of trekking (and other) information; it also changes money, and can arrange car, minibus or 4x4 rental. Consequently, at times it has the air of a transport terminal. Booking ahead is advisable, but so is checking your room before taking it (some are a bit whiffy). Prices include breakfast. Price: hotel 200-300dhPrice: hostel 60dh
13 Hôtel de Foucauld Av el Mouahidine, facing Pl de Foucauld, Medina 024 44 08 06 024 44 13 44 Rooms are a little sombre and some are a bit on the small side, but they're decent enough, with a/c, heating and constant hot water (with a choice of tub or shower). There's a roof terrace with views of the Koutoubia, and a restaurant with buffet suppers. The friendly staff can arrange tours, help with local information, and put you onto guides for High Atlas trekking. Prices include breakfast, and supper too in high season, when half-board is compulsory. Price: 500-800dh
14 Hôtel Gallia 30 Rue de la Recette, Medina 024 44 59 13 www.ilove-marrakesh.com/hotelgallia Beautifully kept hotel in a restored Medina mansion with immaculate en-suite rooms off two tiled courtyards, one with fountain, palm tree and caged birds. There's central heating in winter and a/c in summer. A long-term favourite and highly recommended. Book online, at least a month ahead if possible. Breakfast included. Price: 500-800dh
15 Hôtel Islane 279 Av Mohammed V, Medina 024 44 00 81 024 44 00 85 A very central location, only a short walk from the Djemaa el Fna, facing the Koutoubia. The rooms are quite airy (though they have horrible laminated floors), and the views compensate for the traffic noise from rooms at the front. There is also a rooftop restaurant with great Koutoubia views. Breakfast included. Price: 300-500dh
16 Hôtel La Mamounia Av Bab Jdid, Medina 024 44 44 09 www.mamounia.com Marrakesh's most famous hotel, in palatial grounds, with full facilities, including a hammam and sauna, a pool (of course), several bars and restaurants, and a casino, plus 1920s Art Deco touches by Jacques Majorelle (of Majorelle Garden fame). Despite the history, the fame and all the trimmings, standards of service do not always match the price. Price: From 1500dh
17 Hôtel Sherazade 3 Derb Djama, Rue Riad Zitoun el Kedim, Medina 024 42 93 05 www.hotelsherazade.com Before riads took off big time, this place was already on the scene, an old merchant's house, prettily done up, that gets rave reviews from our readers. Besides a lovely roof terrace, the hotel offers a wide variety of well-maintained rooms at different prices, not all en suite. Run very professionally by a German-Moroccan couple, it's extremely popular, so book well ahead. Price: 200-300dh
18 Les Jardins de la Medina 21 Derb Chtouka, Kasbah 024 38 18 51 www.lesjardinsdelamedina.com A beautiful old palace transformed into a luxury hotel, its rooms set around an extensive patio garden with hammocks slung between the trees and a decent-sized pool. What the hotel really plugs, however, is its hammam-cum-beauty-salon where you can get manicured, pedicured, scrubbed and massaged till you glow. Price: From 1500dh
19 Jnane Mogador Hôtel Derb Sidi Bouloukat by 116 Rue Riad Zitoun el Kedim, Medina 024 42 63 23 www.jnanemogador.com Set in a beautifully restored old house, with charming rooms around a lovely fountain patio, its own hammam, and a roof terrace where you can have breakfast, or tea and cake. It's run by the same management as the Essaouira, rather more upmarket, but still great value. Price: 300-500dh
20 La Maison Arabe 1 Derb Assebbe Bab Doukkala, behind the Doukkala mosque, Medina 024 38 70 10 www.lamaisonarabe.com Though not as famous as the Mamounia, this is Marrakesh's classiest hotel, boasting high standards of service in a gorgeous nineteenth-century mansion restored with fine traditional workmanship. The furnishings are sumptuous, as is the food (this was a restaurant before it was a hotel, and it even offers cookery classes –1600dh 1–2 people, 500–600dh per person for small groups). There are two beautifully kept patios and a selection of rooms and suites, all with TV, minibar, a/c and heating, some with private terrace and Jacuzzi. There is no pool on the premises, but a free shuttle bus can take you to the hotel's private pool nearby. Price: From 1500dh
21 Villa des Orangers 6 Rue Sidi Mimoun, off Pl Youssef Ben Tachfine, Medina 024 38 46 38 www.villadesorangers.com Owned by the French firm Relais et Châteaux, this luxury establishment is officially a hotel, and not family-run, but it's a riad in the true sense of the word: an old house around a garden patio – two in fact – with orange trees and lots of lovely carved stucco. There's a range of rooms and suites, many with their own private terrace. The 3200dh price includes breakfast and light lunch. Price: From 1500dh
22 Bordj Dar Lamane 11 Derb el Koudia (Derb Kabbadj), off Pl Ben Salah, Medina 024 37 85 41 Easy to find from Pl Ben Salah (the arch leading to it has a sign painted over it), this is a Moroccan-owned riad in an interesting part of the Medina, far enough from the Djemaa el Fna to avoid the tourist throng, but near enough to be there in ten minutes when you want to be. The decor is based on traditional features such as painted woodwork, and there's a lovely flower-filled roof terrace. English is spoken. Price: 800-1500dh
23 Dar el Assafir 24 bis Arset el Hamed, Medina 024 38 73 77 www.riadelassafir.com Located in a rather atypical part of the Medina, behind the town hall, this is a late nineteenth-century colonial mansion done out in colonial rather than traditional style. It's quite spacious, with two patios and a nice pool, singing birds in a little aviary and Belle Époque-style rooms with orientalist ornaments. Price: From 1500dh
24 Dar Mouassine 148 Derb Essnane, off Rue Sidi el Yumani, Medina 024 44 52 87 www.darmouassine.com The rooms are done out in classic Moroccan decor, the salon and the patio less so, though the latter has a fountain and banana trees. There are well-chosen and interesting prints on the walls, all rooms have CD players, and the better ones have painted wooden ceilings. Price: 800-1500dh
25 Riad Bayti 35 Derb Saka, Bab el Mellah, Medina 024 38 01 80 www.riad-bayti.com A great old house, formerly owned by a family of Jewish wine merchants in the Mellah, with that quarter's distinctive high ceilings and wide verandah giving a spacious feel. Run by a dynamic young French couple with warm modern decor that perfectly complements the classic architecture and the smell of spices wafting in from the market below. Their mint tea gets high ratings too; their lukewarm showers don't. They also offer safe childcare facilities. Price: 800-1500dh
26 Riad Blanc 25 Riad Zitoun el Djedid, Medina 024 38 27 60 www.riadblanc.com An old Medina house located between Maison Tiskiwin and Dar Si Said, and restored with just enough stucco, carved cedar and zellij to be classic without going over the top. The rooms similarly manage to be stylish without looking over-designed. There's a plunge pool in the patio, a Jacuzzi on the roof, and an in-house hammam. Price: 800-1500dh
27 Riad el Ouarda 5 Derb Taht Sour Lakbir, near the Zaouia of Sidi Bel Abbes, Medina 024 38 57 14 www.riadelouarda.com A stylish riad in a seventeenth-century house with lots of original features, including oodles of stucco, painted wooden doors and ceilings, zellij floors and lots of kellims. The rooms are warm but uncluttered, and the terrace has great views over Sidi Bel Abbes and the Medina. Price: 800-1500dh
28 Riad Jonan 35 Derb Bzou, off Rue de la Kasbah, Medina 024 38 64 48 www.riadjonan.com Cosy British-run riad in the Kasbah with understated decor, lots of brick and terracotta tiles, Thai food and a very relaxed atmosphere. Due to expand into the house next door with a pool (covered and heated in winter) and rooftop Jacuzzi. Price: 800-1500dh
29 Riad Kaïss 65 Derb Jedid, off Rue Riad Zitoun el Kedim, Medina 024 44 01 41 www.riadkaiss.com A luxury riad in a nineteenth-century house done out in quite an interesting contemporary Moroccan style – the light, modern decor seamlessly incorporates traditional features such as windows with stained glass in vivid primary colours. Rooms mostly surround a large open courtyard with orange trees, a fountain and recesses with divans to lounge on. There's also a large, cool salon, an in-house hammam, and a multi-level roof terrace with pavilions and a pool. Price: From 1500dh
30 Riad Malika 29–36 Derb Arset Aouzal, Medina 024 38 54 51 www.riadmalika.com Sumptuous decor – modern but with colonial and 1930s touches – bedecks this very stylish riad owned by architect and interior designer Jean-Luc Lemée. There's loads of checkered tiling, a lovely pool, a warm salon and plush bedroom furnishings. It's very popular and needs booking well ahead; if it's full, Jean-Luc runs another, almost equally good riad – Dar Doukkala – very nearby at 83 Rue Bab Doukkala. Price: From 1500dh
31 Riad Omar 22 Rue Bab Agnaou, Medina 024 44 56 60 www.riadomar.com Reasonably priced riad located just off the Djemaa el Fna. It used to be a hotel rather than a private home, but it's been well done out and the room decor is light but attractive. Nonethless, the real appeal of this riad is price and location rather than chic-ness or luxury. It is also child-friendly, with family rooms and babysitting services available. Price: 500-800dh
32 Riad Sahara Nour 118 Derb Dekkak, Medina 024 37 65 70 www.riadsaharanour-marrakech.com More than just a riad, this is a centre for art, self-development and relaxation. Art workshops in music, dance, painting and calligraphy are held here, with the emphasis on a cross-fertilization of European, African and Middle-Eastern ideas; self-development programmes are available including those in meditation and relaxation techniques. Guests who wish to hold artistic happenings are encouraged. However, you don't need to take part in these activities in order to stay here; you can enjoy the calm atmosphere on the patio, shaded by orange, loquat and pomegranate trees. Price: 500-800dh
33 Riad 72 72 Derb Arset Aouzal, Medina 024 38 76 29 www.riad72.com A very sleek and stylish riad, with just four rooms, sparse but extremely tasteful modern decor, palms and banana trees in the courtyard and its own hammam (but no pool). The catering is Moroccan. Rates include breakfast and afternoon tea. Price: From 1500dh
34 Riad Sindibad 413 Arset Ben Brahim, just inside Bab Yacout, Medina 024 38 13 10 www.riad-sindibad.com Thoughtfully done up by its French owners, with Moroccan touches, the feel here remains predominantly European. The rooms, set around an intimate patio with a small pool, are comfortable and en suite, and there's a Jacuzzi and hammam on the roof terrace. The location is a bit of a way from the main Medina sights however. Price: 800-1500dh
35 Riad Zinoun 31 Derb Ben Amrane, off Rue Riad Zitoun el Kedim, Medina 024 42 67 93 www.riadzinoun.com A friendly little riad, run by a French– Moroccan couple. Not the most chic of its kind in the Medina, but very pleasant and set around a patio (covered in winter, open in summer) in a nicely refurbished old house. Price: 500-800dh
36 Riyad al Moussika 17 Derb Cherkaoui, off Rue Douar Graoua, Medina 024 38 90 67 www.riyad-al-moussika.com A gem of a riad, formerly owned by Thami el Glaoui, with absolutely gorgeous decor, all designed to exact specifications in traditional Moroccan style by its Italian owner. The resulting combination of Moroccan tradition and Italian flair is harmonious and beautiful – like a traditional Marrakshi mansion, but better. The walls are decked with contemporary paintings by local artists, and the owner's son, a cordon bleu chef, takes care of the catering – in fact, the riad claims to have the finest cuisine in town. Price: From 1500dh
37 Hôtel Agdal 1 Bd Mohammed Zerktouni, Guéliz 024 43 36 70 www.hotelagdal.com One of the better Guéliz hotels, with a pool, bar and restaurant; well situated for the restaurants and cafés around Pl Abdelmoumen Ben Ali. Rooms are smallish but have a/c, satellite TV and balcony. Price: 500-800dh
38 Hôtel Farouk 66 Av Hassan II, Guéliz 024 43 19 89 hotelfarouk@hotmail.com Owned by the same family as the Ali in the Medina, and housed in a rather eccentric building, with all sorts of branches and extensions, it offers a variety of rooms – have a look at a few before choosing – all with hot showers. Staff are friendly and welcoming, and there's an excellent restaurant. Breakfast included. Price: 150-200dh
39 Hôtel Fashion 45 Av Hassan II, Guéliz 024 42 37 07 fashionhotel@menara.ma. Terracotta-tiled rooms and bathrooms, nicely carved black-painted wooden furnishings, reliable hot showers with a strong jet (a rarity in Marrakesh), and large windows grace the rooms at this promising new three-star. Breakfast is included but not exactly copious. Price: 500-800dh
40 Hôtel Franco-Belge 62 Bd Mohammed Zerktouni, Guéliz 024 44 84 72 Decent but rather drab ground-floor rooms, some with shower, around a courtyard in what claims to be the oldest hotel in Guéliz, with hot water mornings only. Price: 100-150dh
41 Hôtel du Pacha 33 Rue de la Liberté, Guéliz 024 43 13 27 024 43 13 26 A 1930s-built hotel with large if rather drab rooms, most around a central courtyard, with a/c and satellite TV. There's a good restaurant, but no pool. Breakfast included. Price: 300-500dh
42 Hôtel Toulousain 44 Rue Tariq Ben Ziad, Guéliz 024 43 00 33 www.geocities.com/hotel_toulousain This excellent budget hotel was originally owned by a Frenchman from Toulouse (hence the name), and has a secure car park and a variety of rooms, some with shower, some with shower and toilet, some with shared facilities. Price: 150-200dh
43 Hôtel des Voyageurs 40 Bd Mohammed Zerktouni, Guéliz 024 44 72 18 This long-established budget hotel has rather an old-fashioned feel, but it's well kept, with spacious if rather sombre rooms and a pleasant little garden. Price: 100-150dh
44 Ibis Moussafir Hotel Av Hassan II/Pl de la Gare, Guéliz 024 43 59 29 www.ibishotel.com Tasteful chain hotel located right by the train station, not the most exciting accommodation in town, but good value, with efficient service, a swimming pool, a restaurant, a bar in the lobby and good buffet breakfasts included in the rate, though you're better off taking lunch and supper elsewhere. Price: 500-800dh
45 Hôtel Atlas Medina Av Moulay el Hassan, Hivernage 024 33 99 99 www.hotelsatlas.com The Atlas chain's top offering in Marrakesh set in five hectares of gardens and plugged mostly for its spa facilities, which incorporate traditional Moroccan treatments. The lobby is very stylish, with Art Deco-style touches and Berber motifs; the rooms are quite plush, with a warmer feel, though still incorporating the same styles. Three rooms are adapted for wheelchair users. Price: From 1500dh
46 Hôtel Le Grand Imilchil Av Echouhada, Hivernage 024 44 76 53 hotel_imilchil@maroc.zzn.com This well-run three-star is an oasis of tranquillity in a location near Place de la Liberté that's handy for both the Medina and the Ville Nouvelle. The swimming pool may be small but service is punctilious and the hotel is good value for the price. Price: 500-800dh
47 Hôtel Ryad Mogador Menara Av Mohammed VI (Av de France), Hivernage 024 33 93 30 www.ryadmogador.com Five-star (though really more like a four-star) whose facilities include a health club and three restaurants but, alcohol is banned from the premises. The lobby is done out in classic style, with painted ceilings, chandeliers and a very Moroccan feel, and the receptionists wear traditional garb. Rooms, on the other hand, are modern, light and airy. There's a babysitting service, and four rooms are adapted for wheelchair users. Price: From 1500dh
48 Hôtel Sofitel Marrakech Rue Harroun Errachid, Hivernage 024 42 56 00 www.sofitel.com Quite a classy five-star incorporating classical elements into the design of both its exterior and its grand rooms, all done out in royal red. It also has 61 suites, and four rooms adapted for wheelchair users, plus two restaurants, two bars and a fitness centre with a sauna, Jacuzzi and hammam. Price: From 1500dh
49 Le Meridien N'Fis Av Mohammed VI (Av de France), Hivernage 024 33 94 00 www.lemeridien.com The rooms here are nothing special, but are equipped with satellite TV, a/c and heating. The public areas are quite tastefully decorated however, and the hotel boasts its own pool, hammam, sauna, fitness centre and crêche, plus five restaurants. Two rooms are adapted for wheelchair users. Price: From 1500dh
50 The Red House Bd el Yarmouk, opposite the city wall, Hivernage 024 43 70 40 www.theredhouse-marrakech.com A beautiful nineteenth-century mansion (also called Dar el Ahmar) full of fine stucco and zellij work downstairs, where the restaurant offers gourmet Moroccan cuisine. Accommodation consists of eight luxurious suites – extremely chic and palatial – though European imperial rather than classic Moroccan in style. Price: From 1500dh
51 Dar Zemora 72 Rue el Aandalib, Palmery 024 32 82 00 www.darzemora.com A luxury villa stylishly done out with a mix of traditional and modern features, a nice garden with a heated pool, a masseur on call, and a view of the Atlas from the roof terrace. All rooms have CD players, but not TV (except by special request). To find it take the next left (Rue Qortoba) off the Route de Fes after the Circuit de la Palmeraie, then the first right (Rue el Yassamin), fork left after 300m and it's 300m round the bend on the right. Price: From 1500dh
52 Les Deux Tours Douar Abiad, Circuit de la Palmeraie, Palmery 024 32 95 25 to 27 www.les-deuxtours.com The deux tours (two towers) of the name flank the gateway to this cluster of luxury villas, designed by locally renowned architect Charles Boccara and located in rather a raggedy patch of the palmery, not signposted (take a turn-off to the east about halfway along the Route de la Palmeraie, signposted "Villa des Trois Golfs", then continue for about 400m, ignoring any further signs to the Trois Golfs). It's a beautiful, tranquil spot, with four rooms to each villa, all built in traditional Moroccan brick and done out in restful earth colours, each villa with its own little garden. There's a hammam, swimming pool, restaurant and bar as well as extensive shared gardens to wander or relax in. Price: From 1500dh
53 Hôtel Kenzi Semiramis Triangle d'Or, off Av Mohammed Abdelkrim el Khattabi (Route de Casablanca), BP 595, Semlalia 024 43 13 77 www.kenzi-hotels.com A five-star hotel, part of the Kenzi chain which specializes in sports holidays – this hotel specializes in golf, running a shuttle service to the Amelkis golf course. Expensive, but there are sometimes promotional rates. Price: From 1500dh
54 Hôtel Palmeraie Golf Palace Circuit de la Palmeraie, off the Route de Casablanca, Palmery 024 30 10 10 www.pgp.co.ma Large five-star, some way out of town, set among wooded countryside with five swimming pools, plus squash and tennis courts, riding stables and, most importantly, its own eighteen-hole golf course. A favourite with Morocco's last king, Hassan II, though most tourists find it rather corporate and impersonal. Price: From 1500dh
55 Hôtel Tichka Triangle d'Or, off Av Mohammed Abdelkrim el Khattabi (Route de Casablanca), BP 894, Semlalia 024 44 87 10 tichkasalam @menara.ma. State-of-the-art four-star hotel, with fine architecture and internal decor by American designer Bill Willis, including columns in the form of palm trees and, most notably, the use of a super-smooth, beautifully coloured plaster glaze called tadelakt, which was traditionally used in hammams to waterproof the walls, and whose use here by Willis made it massively trendy in Moroccan interior design. Price: 800-1500dh
56 Camping Caravanning Ferdaous 13km from the city centre on the Casablanca road (N9, formerly P7) 024 30 40 90 024 30 23 11 Good facilities and fine for an overnight stay if using a car or campervan, but not really convenient as a base for exploring Marrakesh on foot.
57 Relais de Marrakech 10km from the city centre on the Casablanca road, opposite Grand Stade football ground 064 71 73 28 www.lerelaisdemarrakech.com Upmarket campsite, with a pool, and also permanent "nomadic" tents – choice of standard, superior or deluxe doubles – as well as the option of pitching your own, or parking a campervan. Price: 200-300dh
58 Youth Hostel Rue el Jahid, Guéliz 024 44 77 13 Friendly, quiet and sparkling clean, with a small garden. Useful first-night standby if you arrive late by train, just five minutes' walk from the station (8–9am & 2–10pm: HI cardholders given priority), with dorm beds and double rooms, prices including breakfast. Price: hostel 60dhPrice: hotel 150-200dh