Ryad Mogador Agdal

Just returned from a long weekend in Marrakech. Arrived after midnight and had the hotel address printed out in large print. This worked very well in negotiating a taxi (120dh was the best we could do). Driving in the dark to hotel it seemed in the middle of nowhere. And in the light of day it was! Ordered our taxi back to the airport via the hotel reception.

We did walk to town and it is any easy walk but quite a long way, a lot longer than the hotel write up we had read. When we wanted to go back to the hotel after dinner we had a lot of fun finding a taxi and negotiating with a taxi driver who promptly took us to the wrong hotel - The Ryad Mogador. So be sure to keep a printed copy of the hotel name and address with you and learn the route quickly so you can help the taxi drivers out. We had been given a card by the hotel reception with details on to the show the taxi driver but this did not help!

We had a very large, comfortable room with a balcony and great pool view. Large bathroom with two showers, but the one in the bath was much more powerful than the spacious walk in shower!!

Breakfast was fairly basic, pastries and hot buffet but had really good omelettes freshly made and service with a smile.

Great pool and did sit in the sun one morning and enjoyed the quiet, but the water was freezing and too cold for me to stay in for more than a quick dip in the kiddy pool.

The hotel is a 'dry' hotel with no alcohol and therefore no communal bar area. There was live music in the foyer on Friday night and later that night when we felt like a coffee we found we were the only 2 people wandering about and found no sign of life at all. There were not many other guests staying in the hotel. Very quiet and we would have preferred to have been closer to the big square and the nightlife of Marrakech.

Toured the Spa and it looked great but visited the ponds at the Agadal gardens on our last morning so we could enjoy the sunshine. Would have used the spa if we had an extra day.

Overall we had a great time and the hotel is new and was really nice and the staff were really friendly. But be aware it is a new area that is being developed with nothing around and you will need to use taxis and plan your days well.

To get to the hotel from the airport should cost 100 dirhams during the day. Make sure the cab driver is aware it is the Agdal hotel and not another one owned by the Ryad Mogador group. One of the issues with going to this new hotel was that the odd cab driver didn't know where it was. During the day time we paid between 40-50 dirhams to go to the Jmaa el Fna so don’t let cab drivers charge you the extortionate 100 we paid on the first day! In my opinion the hotel isn't that far from all the main tourist sites but a cab is a necessity. The hotel provides a shuttle bus service to the square at 9am and 3pm free of charge (though this service seems to run more frequently depending on the number of guests). They will also pick you up from the square if you have a word with the receptionists.

Upon arrival you are instantly taken by the impressive entrance hall and asked to fill in a form with your details. We weren't offered tea on the day of our arrival, probably because we visited during the low season, but later during our stay we were given tea free of charge while waiting for our cab into town.

We stayed in a spacious twin bedroom which included two queen size beds, plenty of pillows, air conditioner with warm and cold air options, a digital safe, tv with only CNN being in English, hairdryer, two showers, a bathtub and a beautiful view of the pool. Basically what you would expect of a four star hotel in Europe.

Breakfast was nice and included various breads (Moroccan and French), cheeses, ham, jams, yoghurt and Moroccan tea and pancakes. Since it was the low season breakfast was brought to our table instead of a self-service buffet. So your experience might be different depending on when you visit.

The pool looked nice although was too cold for our visit in January. Heated pool provided in the spa for 100 dirhams. Gym is free and had a few treadmills, a stationary bike, a cross trainer, two weight machines, free weights among other basic exercise equipment. Didn't pay for any spa treatment but can say the spa area looked nice and the staff were friendly and could speak enough English to explain treatments and the spa system.

What has to be the best aspect of this hotel during our stay was the service provided by the receptionists. Most were fluent in English. They ordered cabs when we needed them be it within the next hour or for the next day, gave us advice on the sort of prices we should be paying, tips on the best tourist sites, restaurants, nightclubs, provided us with maps of the city, offered to make reservations, answered any questions we had. In all exceptional service.