It became apparent halfway through the trip when talking to a couple who stayed at one of the larger hotels in the new town, that we were very, very lucky. The difference between their stories and ours was unbelievable.

We booked the holiday relatively last minute, and as a cheap one at the height of the school summer holiday (it was this or a week in a 1* Faliraki...romance prevailed.) We arrived at the end of Ramadan, off-season and with 40 degree heat. As such, the hotel was completely empty: besides one night, we were the only guests. For many places this would be an excuse to ease up on standards--(and we wouldn't have minded!) but not here...

From the woman who scrubbed the riad from top to bottom every morning...to breakfast being fetched within a minute of opening our bedroom door every day (and whether at 730am or 1130am)....to a towel being brought within seconds of my first dip in the pool...to randomly passing the owner, who despite being off-duty and with friends ran over to double-check we were ok and reconfirm the next day's transport....to our arrival where despite the sunset cannon booming and our hosts obvious hunger we were given a lengthy tour of the hotel...this was a level of service beyond anything you'd reasonably expect.

Everyone we spoke to (in our mangled French--take a phrase book!) or saw in the Riad was genuine. No pretences, just really, actually, truly nice people.

The photos of the Riad live up to that standard in life. The place is quietly beautiful (and as mentioned before very, very clean). Our bedroom cool. Toiletries replaced every day. And breakfast more than filling enough for a morning's marching in the souks.

As a piece of advice, it is well worth the airport pick-up on arriving. The Riad is hidden--which may be disconcerting to people new to Marrakech. However, the walk to Jemaa el-Fnaa (15min stroll) is really simple and after the first trip you shouldn't need to look at a map for the journey again.

This is a great base from which to discover Marrakech and the surrounding area from. If you come with an open mind, looking for an oasis in somewhere a bit different, then you will definitely be more than happy.

(Apologies for the delay writing this, Rabahsadia. But don't worry, as we've now told a lot of people about you!)