Sofitel Marrakech Palais Imperial

"eview Today is February 23rd, and my wife daughter and I have been at the hotel for two nights and unfortunately have two nights remaining. I never write reviews, but have trusted so many TripAdvisor reviews in the past and therefore I wanted to pay it forward. Also, all of my complaints have already been discussed with the manger, however I have yet to receive a response either positive or negative. We were excited to begin our Marrakech experience in our 2 bedroom suite. The additional space was going to be a godsend after spending the last 7 days traveling around Morocco and staying in lovely accommodations, but not necessarily always the most spacious to our little family. However, our negative experience at the Sofitel began upon entering the room. The second bedroom’s window was not closed, and the noise from the street prompted us to look. Upon inspection, it wasn’t shut all the way and unfortunately could not be without a call to maintenance. A quick call and a few minutes later, they arrive and tell me they have fixed the problem. However, upon inspection the window was in fact not closed and a trip to reception to complain followed. I was assured that they will resolve the window while we dined in the restaurant. Our reservation was not for an hour and allowed us time to get ready. This is where things really went off the rails. The toilet room smelled of urine and a pile of pubic hair lay in the corner, the shower smells of raw sewage and the tub filled with hairs. What else wasn’t cleaned we wonder. Another trip to reception, again told they will address the window and clean our room while we are at dinner. Dinner, well they served food. What was described at check in as French-Moroccan fusion with everything Al a carte, in fact was not. It was $240 buffet for a family of 3 of inedible warm slop best served at your high school cafeteria. The highlight was the baguettes which were excellent. The low point was getting yelled at by several waiters when attempting and failing to order a Coke for my daughter and a glass of wine for my wife. The Coke never arrived. The icing on the cake was when i complained to the manager about the quality of food and service i was told it was our taste in food and not the food itself. This is our second trip to Morocco eating only Moroccan food at places the locals eat and never once had a bad meal (had something’s that were not our taste) and never bad service. This was an exciting first few hours at the hotel. Only to find that our room was not cleaned or fixed. However, they would send someone right away. Well they came they saw and as i anticipated the window was in fact broken. They were able to find another room, that it happens the window also won’t close (and i was told it is closed, it’s a different type of window) we settled as it wasn’t going to get any better and happy to say appeared clean. This is when we went to pack up our suitcases to have them moved, that the duty manager was sure to scold me for breaking the window. In his words the window wasn’t broken when he did his check earlier in the day. After showing him the pictures and videos of the noise with a time stamp shortly after checking in he relented , and would note it in his report to the manager who would be expecting me in the morning to discuss the issues and a resolution. No apology or recognition he was wrong. The morning came, and I went to see the manager. Unsurprisingly, it was the first she heard of it and will be back to me with a resolution. Also unsurprisingly more than 24 hours later, i have yet to hear anything. A couple of additional notes: Unlike anywhere else we have stayed in Morocco, unless with speak fluent French or Arabic expect to be treated as an inconvenience. The room service staff has screamed at me twice while ordering breakfast, and for dinner last night left items in the kitchen. While eventually resolved just insult to injury at this point. Further, service around the pool for us poor at best, though at least they eventually show up with your order. In short, I’m looking forward to checking out and moving into our next location and hotel. Then Sofitel is not on the level of The Fairmont, the Ritz or the various Riads we have stayed at during this trip and our prior to Morocco. If management reads this review please reach out. I’m still here and would welcome updating this review to provide a resolution."

"hmmm, book this hotel for its perfect location, safety, cleanliness and accommodation. Just don't expect great staff service. As soon as we entered the lobby, we were welcomed to sit and were provided cookies and moroccan tea. We gave them our passport. This is nice I thought. We waited about 30 minutes to be checked in however. Everytime we looked at the desk, there were a million things going on. It gave the old "hurry up and wait" effect. After 40 minutes, it felt as chaotic as the old city. Once we were in our suite, we could relax. The room was clean and beautiful. The grounds and pool: gorgeous! Perfect location just a 20 minute stroll to the Medina. I loved that we could get away from the bustle but still get to all of the city highlights in less than 15 minutes on foot or taxi. In the evening we couldn't find the concierge. Hard to find people at the desk. I called the front desk several times and the phone just rings. When leaving the hotel, the door man asked where we were going and told us a couple of additional places followed by asking us for a tip. I've NEVER been asked for a tip by hotel staff before. It made us feel like we couldn't ask any of the staff a question if we had no cash to pay for a tipped response. Breakfast buffet was a nightmare. There were just 2 people making coffee for hundreds of people. Drip coffee or a coffee machine would have been better. It was as chaotic as the souks. We got our coffee after we already had food. It was cold since it sat on their crowded counter while the server ran around the whole place. He didn't bring us cream or sugar which we asked for and by the the time we could get his attention we were ready to escape back to our room. We knew at that point that we would not eat lunch or dinner in their restaurants. I recommend Breakfast at Las Terrazas de Andalucia which is a block away from hotel, has excellent food, service, and ambiance for half the price. Check out had an equally chaotic process."

"Super location 10 minute walk to the Medina . This hotel is beautiful with lovely pool area very peaceful. The staff are amazing and the level of service is fantastic. Would highly recommend this hotel for anyone traveling to Marrakech as you can escape the madness of the Medina and relax in luxury"