Nicks Reviewed November 07, 2009
Positive: Really friendly and helpful staff. All facilities very clean.
Negative: Transports to the city center.
I was pleasently surprised with the hotel. Reviewed March 09, 2009
I have no hesitation recommending the hotel, just be aware you are a little distance from the centre
Positive: The staff were very helpful at check in, the room was very clean and furnished to a good standard. The food was above average for buffet in my opinion and the staff very friendly and attentive. The pool area and gym are great and staff appeared to be constantly cleaning everywhere. I found if you made a little effort to speak even a tiny ammount of french all the staff were very helpful. I am english speaking with just a little french.
Negative: There is no name in English or french above the hotel, if you go out on the balcony be careful if you close the patio door you cannot open the door from the outside!.
Outside: There is a supermarket just next door and the train station is just a two minute walk away, you are a little way from the centre alright its about a 25 minute walk to the Medina, but taxis and buses are pretty cheap to and from most places. There are some gardens and a local suburban area near by.
Neil Shelby Long Reviewed February 13, 2009
Positive: The staff are very friendly and helpful. There was nothing they wouldn't do to make the stay enjoyable. The hotel is very spacious and they have pretty much every facility you would want. As stated, there is no alcohol served in the hotel, but as this is a Muslim country, that's to be expected. In Marrakech, Arabic is the first language and French is the second. Knowing a small amount of French will only enhance your stay. If you'd like to use the spa / hammam facilities, book a day or two in advance. They sometimes have very good price promotions for these facilities so look for flyers around the reception / tea room area. If you can get a room overlooking the pool area towards the restaurant end, you'll be treated to the most spectacular sunrise over the Atlas mountains. That alone is worth the stay. I'll have no hesitation to book this hotel again.
Outside: Put on your walking shoes and take a leisurely stroll towards the city centre. Heading right from the hotel entrance along Ave Hassan II, you'll find the main train station and the magnificent Royal Theatre. Entrance to the theatre is free to look around the lobby area and admire the architecture. Across from the train station is Soukara bar and cafe. Good for people watching in the early evening. Carry on down Ave Hassan II and you'll reach Place du 16 Novembre. Don't even try to work out how the drivers and scooter riders negotiate this giant 'roundabout'. I must have watched for 15 minutes and still couldn't see a logical driving system. There is a lovely little park here, Jardin Harti, which is a nice stop to rest your feet at. Be aware though, this is where you'll start to encounter panhandlers. Diagonally across from the park is an area that has been designed to represent any European chic city centre. Don't be put off by this though, as here you'll find Cafe 16. If you're in the mood for a refreshing drink and an out of this world taste experience, just go and see their selection of cakes and desserts. Put on your designer shades, sit back, relax and watch the world go by.
Anonymous Reviewed January 16, 2009
Positive: Brand new hotel. Friendly and helpful staff. Lovely swimming pool and poolside area. Half Board excellent value although some dishes could have been hotter.
Negative: Beds too hard!! No hotel information available in the rooms eg. mealtimes, telephone numbers etc. Balcony doors that lock on closing and with no re-entry handle so don't close it whilst on balcony or you're stuck there until somebody finds you!
Outside: Not a lot - the reason we wouldn't reccommend it! All main sights and attractions a long walk or exhorbitant (if you don't win the haggling game!) taxi ride away.
Anonymous Reviewed February 17, 2009
Negative: The water at the shower gave us continious problems
The "Halal Price" Crew Reviewed March 21, 2010
The Ryad Mogador Guilez does arrange excursions but charge per individual person. You can save yourself quite a bit of money getting a cab - but make sure you get a cab driver that speaks english. The majority of people speak French / Arabic and few speak english. The driver we had could speak Fluent French, Spanish, Arabic and a little english. Don't be fooled by the Gym / Sauna that the hotel has as it is not free - they charge approx 350dh for the day at the gym and the sauna has a package deal at the moment 380dh. Normally 100dh just to go Sauna/Hammam for one session, 220dh for a 20/30 minute massage. It's alot cheaper to go out and see other saunas as they will charge you less (around the 200dh mark - for 1 hour massage)
Positive: Most staff members spoke english, were friendly and overall the hotel it was clean. !0 minute drive from the hotel. Going rate for cab to Souks (market place) is 20 dirhams but many will ask for 30 or 50. After 3 days of being their and catching a small metered cab - we were given 9 dirhams back as the meter showed 11 dirhams. The hotel is traditional and modern at the same time.
Negative: Lame/Poor service - Iron took over an hour to come to us when we asked for one. Wake up call for 4am was given at 4:25am and the staff member started disputing the time we asked for a wake up call. Wi-fi signal was total crap - you have to be in reception/entrance to get signal of on the 1st floor. We were inbetween the 2 and were struggling for a signal. Incompetent staff, security keys were not triggered/active when we got there, so we initially went to the 4th floor and then were locked out and had to go back downstairs to have them activated Poor management in the kitchen and on the breakfast lounge, had to wait over 20 mins to get a scrambled egg replaced - asked for omlette and was given a srambled/poached style egg withnothing in it - could have just eaten the scrambled egg, no difference
Outside: There's the train station near by and a brilliant place to eat on the first floor top left (not the pasta place in the far left) - food is awesome. We tried the famous Tagine dish (beef - with cheese) in a street called Bezginny, the food wasn't presented in a nice and we were put off totally. Try the soups in any place in Marrakech - very nice, normally vegetable. Tried Soup and Tagine (chicken) at Jem al Efna - again soup was v.nice - couldn't say the same about the tagine dish. Catch an excursion cab to the L'ourika Valley/Atlas Mountains - 1hr 20 min drive - but well worth it. Approx 400dh
I was pleasently surprised with the hotel. Reviewed March 09, 2009
I have no hesitation recommending the hotel, just be aware you are a little distance from the centre
Positive: The staff were very helpful at check in, the room was very clean and furnished to a good standard. The food was above average for buffet in my opinion and the staff very friendly and attentive. The pool area and gym are great and staff appeared to be constantly cleaning everywhere. I found if you made a little effort to speak even a tiny ammount of french all the staff were very helpful. I am english speaking with just a little french.
Negative: There is no name in English or french above the hotel, if you go out on the balcony be careful if you close the patio door you cannot open the door from the outside!.
Outside: There is a supermarket just next door and the train station is just a two minute walk away, you are a little from the centre alright its about a 25 minute walk to the Medina, but taxis and buses are pretty cheap to and from most places. There are some gardens and a local suburban area near by.
The "Halal Price" Crew Reviewed March 21, 2010
The Ryad Mogador Guilez does arrange excursions but charge per individual person. You can save yourself quite a bit of money getting a cab - but make sure you get a cab driver that speaks english. The majority of people speak French / Arabic and few speak english. The driver we had could speak Fluent French, Spanish, Arabic and a little english. Don't be fooled by the Gym / Sauna that the hotel has as it is not free - they charge approx 350dh for the day at the gym and the sauna has a package deal at the moment 380dh. Normally 100dh just to go Sauna/Hammam for one session, 220dh for a 20/30 minute massage. It's alot cheaper to go out and see other saunas as they will charge you less (around the 200dh mark - for 1 hour massage)
Positive: Most staff members spoke english, were friendly and overall the hotel it was clean. !0 minute drive from the hotel. Going rate for cab to Souks (market place) is 20 dirhams but many will ask for 30 or 50. After 3 days of being their and catching a small metered cab - we were given 9 dirhams back as the meter showed 11 dirhams. The hotel is traditional and modern at the same time.
Negative: Lame/Poor service - Iron took over an hour to come to us when we asked for one. Wake up call for 4am was given at 4:25am and the staff member started disputing the time we asked for a wake up call. Wi-fi signal was total crap - you have to be in reception/entrance to get signal of on the 1st floor. We were inbetween the 2 and were struggling for a signal. Incompetent staff, security keys were not triggered/active when we got there, so we initially went to the 4th floor and then were locked out and had to go back downstairs to have them activated Poor management in the kitchen and on the breakfast lounge, had to wait over 20 mins to get a scrambled egg replaced - asked for omlette and was given a srambled/poached style egg withnothing in it - could have just eaten the scrambled egg, no difference
Outside: There's the train station near by and a brilliant place to eat on the first floor top left (not the pasta place in the far left) - food is awesome. We tried the famous Tagine dish (beef - with cheese) in a street called Bezginny, the food wasn't presented in a nice way and we were put off totally. Try the soups in any place in Marrakech - very nice, normally vegetable. Tried Soup and Tagine (chicken) at Jem al Efna - again soup was v.nice - couldn't say the same about the tagine dish. Catch an excursion cab to the L'ourika Valley/Atlas Mountains - 1hr 20 min drive - but well worth it. Approx 400dh