Hotel Review: Riad Turquoise in Marrakech, Morocco

The husband and I began our eight-day anniversary trip with a two-night stay at the Riad Turquoise. If you’ve read my Morocco Travel Tips post, you’ll know that I prefer staying at a riad while visiting Morocco versus a hotel.  Riads offer the comforts of a hotel that’s shrouded  in Moroccan tradition.

After our flight from New York, we were anxious to get to our room and relax. Our driver, which we scheduled through the Riad’s manager, was waiting for us as we exited immigration. The driver was friendly, and happy to tell us about Marrakech, and pointed out landmarks. One thing he didn’t have to point out was the wall of the old Medina. Large and rugged, with an archway for everything from cars, people, motorcycles, donkeys and bikes to navigate through, what we saw was the gateway to the chaos and magic of Marrakech that we were about to experience.

The ride to the Riad Turquoise from the airport was no more than 15-20 minutes. After entering the Medina, our van drove through narrow “streets” that were akin to alleyways, to finally stop at the mouth of the street where the Riad Turquoise was.  As with most riad locations in the old Medina, the narrow streets inhibit door-to-door service; therefore, we had to walk about two minutes from the van to the riad.

Moroccan Mint Tea and a great book!

 

A light knock on the traditional Moroccan door of the Riad
Turquoise resulted in a quick, warm welcome by the riad’s manager, Georges and the beautiful scent of amber. We were then shown to a beautiful sitting area on the main floor where we were offered, in genuine Moroccan fashion, good ole Moroccan Mint Tea and pastries. While we sipped our tea and ate the delicious pastries, Georges provided us with a map of the Marrakech and the Medina, and explained to us how to get to the different main attractions from where we were like the Jemaa El Fna Square, Palace El Badi right next door. It wasn’t until later that we realized that any of the maps given to us from here on out were pretty much useless.

 

After our review of the map, Georges showed us to the Grise Junior Suite, a private room located on the terrace of the Riad Turquoise.  Our room was on the larger side in comparison to rooms at other riads. It was beautifully decorated in shades of deep gray and black with red accents.  We loved the décor, and got a little inspiration for our bedroom. It was the romantic opening to the trip that we needed. Plus, being on the terrace with a sitting area, and jacuzzi made our few nights there even more special.

The gift basket we received.

 

One of the concerns people have when staying at a riad is whether or not there is running hot water. The water at the Riad Turquoise was hot and plentiful. We didn’t have any issues. One thing we did come across that might be a problem to some was that the television wasn’t working. It didn’t bother us because we were on vacation, and we were in Marrakech to explore. Plus, sometimes it’s good to detox a little from the junk on television.

The bathroom

Speaking of exploring, the Riad Turquoise is just a 10-minute walk to Jemaa El Fna Square, and about a 5-minute walk to a pretty good restaurant called Le Tanjia, where we had our second helping of Moroccan Whiskey. There’s a cool video on my Instagram.

Breakfast

Riad’s have one thing in common, and that’s breakfast. Out of the many riad’s we stayed during our trip, Riad Turquoise had the best breakfast. It was plentiful, and full of delicious, carb-filled foods. The fresh squeezed orange juice was amazing, and the coffee made me forget I even liked commercialized coffee brands.  The best part of it all was sitting on the terrace, and enjoying it privately with views of the medina, and over good conversation.

Terrace seating area

We loved our stay in the Gris Junior Suite at the Riad Turquoise. We plan to spend at least one night there during our next Morocco trip.