"We stayed at Riad Africa in February 2026.
It was a short walk from the taxi drop off point to the Riad which is in the Medina. The staff were very friendly and welcoming.
We had a Superior River Room which was spacious (for 2 of us) and very comfortable and there was plenty of natural light coming in to it from the open roofed central atrium. It had everything we needed and was refreshed each day. It felt a safe base for exploring Marrakesh. Breakfast had a limited range of options, but was plentiful and staff would prepare additional items (including other coffees eg latte) if requested. The roof terrace was a popular place when the sun came out.
If you want to experience the traditional Marrakesh this is a great option. The main square, Jemaa el-Fnaa, was about a 15 minute walk through the busy but straight street.
One suggestion for improvement is to install towel hooks/rails in the bathroom.
We would recommend this Riad as a great place to stay.
While there we chose to book one of the Activities on offer.
We booked the High Atlas trip, and added to it the optional camel ride in the Agafay Desert.
This was all organised by the Hassan, the Manager of the Riad Africa. I stressed that we wanted to see Berber Villages as part of the trip. Hassan assured me that we could do this, and that our driver would alter the itinerary as required. He said the driver was in their employ so we could make these requests.
The trip promised the following:
Drive to the Ourika Valley then across the High Atlas to the Mizzane Valley and Asni. On to the Ouirgane region and the Azzaden Valley to Kasbah Africa, for a traditional Moroccan lunch. A chance to explore the nearby Berber village of Torort as well as swim at the Kasbah. After luch on to the Kik Plateau. View the Lalla Takerkoust Reservoir and beyond to the Agafay Desert. Then to the barren stone desert of Agafay, finishing at the Nkhila Tented Camp for mint tea and the chance to ride a camel.
We left at 8.30. Throughout the morning part of our journey the driver was almost constantly reading or using his phone (mainly on his lap). This included a time when we drove through thick fog. After about an hour we asked the driver if he could detour to take in a Berber Village. He said that wasn’t on his itinerary. We told the driver that Hassan had agreed we could request this. We stopped to view a village across a valley, and the driver rang Hassan. Despite this the driver remained intent on his fixed route.
We drove on to stop at a Women’s Argan Oil co-operative. This was interesting but it was clear they were only showing how it used to be done, and the prices of their products were 2 to 3 times higher than identical products in the shops in Marrakesh.
We travelled on to the Ourika Valley. We drove straight through without stopping, then through the Azzaden Valley arriving at Kasbah Africa at 10.30.
The staff at the hotel were surprised we had arrived 2 hours earlier than expected. We were now stuck. We were offered the chance to swim in the unheated pool (early February). We passed on the bracing dip!
At 10.50 we were offered drinks (turns out one bottle of water is free as part of the package), and then at 11.05 took our lunch order. To fill time the manager arranged for us to go on a trek to the local Berber Village. This turned out to be a good hike with great views of the old and new village and great views of the surrounding hills.
Lunch was really good; we sat on the veranda with views of the hills surrounding us.
We left the Kasbah at 3pm. We drove back to Asni, then out over the Kik plateau stopping for views of the Atlas Mountains and Mt Toukbal. The driver offered us the chance to walk through a Berber Village. There was no guidance on where to go or what to see, so we were limited to walking along the main road. It turned out this stop was more for the driver’s benefit so he could grab some lunch from one of the shops!
We paused for a view of the reservoir and the Agafay Desert, then drove on to Nkhila Camp. We arrived late, so the Camel Ride was shortened to 35 minutes.
We arrived back to Marrakesh around 7.15.
The trip had significant morning problems as well as positives. We enjoyed much of it but it over-promised and under-delivered.
We later discovered that a very similar trip is available on Trip Advisor for about half the price."
