Marrakech & a Toddler...?! Post Reply

[Aliw]

Hi all

I am planning a surprise trip to Marrakech for my husband's 40th birthday present and am looking to travel in early Jan 2013. Has anyone been with a toddler and if so, have you any recommendations, particularly in terms of where to stay? I would prefer a riad but there don't seem to be many that are a) reasonably priced and b) accept children so any help would be appreicated!

Any other ideas in terms of places that a 2.5yr old boy would love would also be great!

Thanks in advance

[erinisle22]

I stayed here with my husband when we were in Marrakech - it was pre-kids but the booking website suggests that it accepts kids.

This is a beautiful riad - food was great. It is probably about a 20 min walk from the Medina though, and the alleyway to the nearest main road is a little dark and scary but once you are there, it is AMAZING.

http://www.tablethotels.com/Dar-Warda-H ... rocco/6685

[juliantenniscoach]

Riad Kiass is a great place but..................I'm not convinced that a Riad a great place for a 2yr old. There are plenty of good hotels from which you can access the Souk from. You should be able to then find suitable childcare whilst you explore the markets with your husband.

[erinisle22]

That is a good point juliantenniscoach - all the riads I have seen have pools in the centre and fountains and lots of expensive books and nicknacks about - I wouldn't feel super comfortable that my son wouldn't trash the place so I wouldn't be enjoying it in the same way that I did pre-kids, being on edge about what my scamp might do next.

They also have this aura of calm about them - which is amazing because Marrakech is soooo busy, such a shock to the senses, so in your face - and it is great to have an oasis to be able to return to after a day at the Souk or something. But again, I think my scamp would shatter that for the other guests.

It is an amazing place...but I don't suppose you could call in some childcare for the weekend for your son?!

[hjm]

I agree with the previous posters that a riad might not be the best option with a young child.

We went to Marrakech last October when my daughter was 2 and we stayed here http://www.maison27.com/. It was as lovely as it looks in the pictures and we got an amazing deal - £125 per night for the whole place. It's because the owner (Brian) has a strange charging policy whereby he charges different amounts depending on how many people stay, even though you get the whole place whether there's 1 or 6 of you. It looks like the price has now gone up to £135, but he didn't charge us for our daughter so I imagine you would pay £135 a night.

The positives are that it's a beautiful villa, you get a private pool and full time maid/cook all included in the price and you can get to the medina relatively easily.

On the downside, it's about 30 minutes from the medina. However, there is a free bus running from the villas to the medina a few times a day. It's also pretty much in the middle of nowhere, so there's nowhere to go for dinner in the evening (although you do have your own private cook so that might not be an issue for you).

It depends what you're looking for really but it was a gorgeous place and a bargain price.

One word of warning if you haven't been to Marrakech before. The souks are quite crazy and we had our daughter with us in her pushchair. There are motorbikes going up and down inside the souks and she got a bit freaked out a couple of times. It was fine, but probably a bit overwhelming if you're 2 years old.