Riad Léna & Spa

“Authentic Riad, superb service”

The Riad is off the main road through the medina and the local builder wander past in their Donkey carts which is not what we Northern Europeans are used to. The Riad itself needs a bit of work, but that is total made up for and surpassed by the wonderful friendly service that the manager, Latif, a… more

The Riad is off the main road through the medina and the local builder wander past in their Donkey carts which is not what we Northern Europeans are used to. The Riad itself needs a bit of work, but that is total made up for and surpassed by the wonderful friendly service that the manager, Latif, and the staff provide. So all the rooms have things that need fixing, e.g. showers you have to hold because the wall holders are broken, toilet doors with no handles and towels which are obviously well worn but always clean. These things added to the authentic character of the place. The roof terrace is wonderful. However, Latif, Karin, etc could not do enough for us. They really know how to make people feel special and welcomed. Latif organised a trip to the Atlas Mountains for us with Manir and for six of us it cost a total 120€ for the whole day, that included a guide,Obama, who walked us up to the waterfall making sure that we were safe when clambering up and down rocks. Latif also recommended and booked superb restaurants for us, plus taxis to and from when appropriate. In fact, the only poor meal we had during our 6 day stay was when we didn’t ask for a recommendation. Like most places within the old city the Riad doesn’t sell alcohol, but they were happy for us to bring wine in to drink on the roof terrace. To try to respect the local customs we didn’t ask the staff to serve the wine but they did provide the glasses for us. If you want a stay that feels authentic Marrakech this is a great place to stay. We would go back.

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“Beautiful Riad in the centre of the city”

In a really good location inside medina. Easy to arrive by taxi and you can walk basically everywhere in the centre. The room was nice (just one problem that you can basically hear every voice inside riad.) There was also a small pool and a jacuzzi on the roof. Staff was very friendly. Breakfast wa… more

In a really good location inside medina. Easy to arrive by taxi and you can walk basically everywhere in the centre. The room was nice (just one problem that you can basically hear every voice inside riad.) There was also a small pool and a jacuzzi on the roof. Staff was very friendly. Breakfast was served every morning between 8-10AM and it was good!

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“First Riad Experience”

First Riad Experience and thoroughly enjoyed it! The Riad is about 3 mins walk from the taxi drop off - lots of locals will offer to show you the way, but will want a tip to do so. I offered a £1 coin which was not well received, as only notes are wanted! We used a pre booked Taxi via Booking.co… more

First Riad Experience and thoroughly enjoyed it! The Riad is about 3 mins walk from the taxi drop off - lots of locals will offer to show you the way, but will want a tip to do so. I offered a £1 coin which was not well received, as only notes are wanted! We used a pre booked Taxi via Booking.com (for around £9.50) with Caressa Group and the driver was waiting outside the airport with my name up on a board. Great transfer and our driver gave lots of tips about places to visit. The return taxi with Meet Your Driver was not as efficient (and we needed help from Kareem at the Riad to make sure it was going to turn up!) With hindsight we should have put purchased a Moroccan SIM card at the airport as call charges are extortionate with UK SIM! Changing a small amount of cash at the airport would also help for initial tips and purchases of water (lots of shops/stalls in the Medina to get water for around 5 - 10 Dirhams - depending on your bartering skills!) The Riad is located down an alley way off the main pathway, on the right hand side just before Cafe Caravane. Check in was from 3pm but we arrived on an early flight and did get in a bit earlier! There is a doorbell outside to ring for access, followed by a warm welcome from Latif and his staff. No real communication issues experienced - just learn a bit of Arabic! Latif also advised us of the best money exchange just off the Jemaa El Fna square, to the right side of the post office at Hotel Ali. Check is Moroccan style - mint tea on the top floor terrace, while you complete the necessary paperwork and pay for your stay in €, $ or GBP. Local taxes are payable, so check when you book if these are included or not. The Riad has 3 floors and around 10 rooms, I think. We booked a junior suite (room No 4). It was quite a spacious room with a double bed and a sofa area, wardrobe and cabinet for clothes. The bathroom had an open sink and shower area with a toilet with 2 doors. Hairdryer provided. We did have a few issues with our toilet which Raschid attempted to fix on a regular basis. Eventually we asked to swap rooms and were moved to Room 5 which was lovely and had shuttered windows onto the Riad courtyard. Again it has an open shower area but enclosed working toilet!! As we were 2 single female travellers we had requested 2 separate beds but that wasn’t how the room had been set up. When we asked Latif he immediately spoke to staff and they took out one part of sectional sofa and put in a single bed. The room is quite dark as it has only 2 small windows, but there are plenty of lamps. It is air conditioned and this was needed in the 42 - 46 degrees we experienced during our 7 night stay. There are a few sockets (2 pin plugs) to charge phones etc. there are no room safes, mini fridge or TV. Breakfast is served on the upper terrace from 8am. It is the same food offered every day but it tasted great - pancakes, cake, yoghurt, fresh orange juice and a choice of hot drinks, all prepared by the lovely, smiling Kareem. Rooms and the outside areas are cleaned daily by the two lovely ladies. Towels are a little on the hard side but do the job adequately. We ate our first evening meal at the Riad but it is much more expensive than nearby cafes and restaurants. We had the lamb tagline with onions and raisins and it was delicious. There is a small pool on the ground floor but sadly I couldn’t access this due to my mobility issues. However, I was assured by other travellers (mixture of nationalities) it was a lovely place to cool down. There was also a hot tub on the top terrace which I did manage to access. The Riad is about 10/15 mins stroll to Jemaa el Fna square - Latif provided us with a map but we still got lost most days! Again lots of locals will offer to help out for a fee! There are lots of lovely places to eat out but most have upstairs terraces and this can be an issue if you have mobility problems. Our favourites in the Medina were Dar El Waledin, La Terasse Ben Youssef, Kui-Zin (ground floor and air con) and in the square the Argana - air conditioned and does amazing ice creams! Local to the Riad we found a gem of a place called Limoni, only 5 mins walk away (found using offline google map directions) - had the best pizza ever in here and we were served by the most friendly waiter Youssef! It does get really busy so just do an online reservation to ensure a table (either outside under the lemon tree or in the inside room with air con!) Overall we had an amazing trip and enjoyed our Riad experience with Latif and the team! Our main tip, August temperatures can get up to around 46 degrees, so be prepared!!

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