I realise that I am probably in a minority of people who commit their negative impressions of the Medina and main square of Marrakech to a review, but I am going to anyway on the basis that perhaps more travellers will be better informed when they go to this place.

The Djemaa el Fna is one of the busiest trading squares in Africa, and is essentially the place that you will probably end up spending a lot of your time in if you take a trip to Marrakech. There is a day and night market, the day is mostly orange juice and dried fruit sellers, the night is the food market with lots of acts such as snake charmers, monkey ... keepers? etc etc.

Here are my impressions:

Greed - Everyone wants something from you. Literally, everyone that you meet or interact with would like some of your money. Sometimes for a product or service, sometimes for nothing at all . Another reviewer has put it more eloquently than I could here http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g293734-d324126-r130611838-Medina_of_Marrakech-Marrakech_Marrakech_Tensift_El_Haouz_Region.html#REVIEWS but I will do my best to add what I can.

Young men - will offer you directions or some sort of advice, and even if you politely decline, will demand (Yes, demand) money from you. If you give them something, hoping that they will go away and leave you alone, they will look at it in contempt, and say that it is 'nothing ... baby money' and wait for more. There is a very sinister undertone, this on it's own, once it has happened a few times, is enough to ruin your experience. I would not go back to Marrakech ever again, mainly for this reason. If the 'tourist police' (Where they were I do not know) do not deal with this problem, I don't think Marrakech has a very good future as a tourist destination of choice.

The thing to note here as well is the fact that the people who give you the most trouble, are not the most needy. They are well dressed young men, not the really poor blind and lame beggars who abound throughout the city.

There was one particular instance when my girlfriend and I were walking back to our Riad, and we were offered directions to it (It was only a few hundred metres away) by two young guys. I stupidly said ok, just to get them off our backs, and when we got to the door, they demanded 200 Dirhams (About £15) each for the help (Hourly rate in Marrakech is about 12 Dirhams per hour) Then, the two became 5, as three more materialised out of nowhere and also started asking for money .... I said no to all of these, and gave 20 Dirhams to the first two. One looked at it in disgust, and (as I had come to expect) told me that this was nothing, and that I should pay more. It was a very uncomfortable situation, and my girlfriend and I stood there, surrounded in a deserted alley, hoping that someone would come to the door soon, before these guys stopped asking 'nicely'.

The kids - Lots of little children who will follow you about and ask for cash ... perhaps for a trinket or toy that they are selling. I am sure that there are more sinister adults behind them, making them go and beg, but to give them cash just makes it worse, as more and more will seemingly see that you are a soft touch and come to you asking for more. They are very persistent and you have to say 'no thanks' about 8 or 9 times on average before they will give up.

The taxis - Insanely greedy, and outside of the friendly barter system that everyone seems to think is the norm in Marrakech. Example - we got lost (Big mistake, but totally inevitable in a city that must have only about 3 or 4 street signs in total in it!) trying to get to Kosy Bar ... hailed a taxi and asked how much to get to Kosy Bar (A very well known bar near the Place de Ferblantiers)

£50 Dirhams, was the answer. Way too much, but he, maybe its miles away. Got in, and drove aimlessly for 5 minutes, until the driver turned to us and said ..... "Kosy bar? What is Kosy Bar??' Turns out that it was only a few yards from where we were standing when we got into the cab.

Con Men (And women)

Ah the hubbub of the square. Largely made up of the following -

Henna tattoo women - who will aggressively grab any girl's hand and try to start working on it before being given consent to do so. Will offer a 'free sample' and then immediately demand money from you for it. Avoid them.

Various animal keepers - snakes and monkeys etc. Will catch you unawares and drape a snake around your shoulders, ar plonk a monkey in your arms. Will then immediately demand an outrageous sum of money from you for this.

People dressed as Berbers .... wait to see you get your camera out to take a picture. Will grab the camera, and take pictures of you that you didn't ask for. Our one started by saying ... 'don't worry, it's free!!" and then aggressively demanded 100 Dirhams for his time. Gave him 20 dhs, about the equivalent of an hour or more work for 30 seconds, and he looked at it in disgust, and said that it was nothing. When it was pointed out that he told us it would be free anyway, and if the money was 'nothing' then why not give it back, he went off muttering what I can only assume were unpleasant things in Arabic under his breath.

The souks -

Actually not as bad as the main square, surprisingly. Yes, everyone wants your business and will ask for it, and yes, you will need to haggle, but I think because of the number of police that are in plain clothes in the Souks now, to make the shopkeepers less aggressive with tourists, this was the most enjoyable part of the medina.

The drugs - I was offered 'Great Hash' at least 10 times in my time in or near the square. This was usually at the same time as having money demanded from me for nothing. Great to see so many drug dealers in a tourist area - really gives you confidence!

Well, I think that just about wraps it up .... it's a great shame too, as the real locals seem like nice people, and Marrakech is undeniably a beautiful and ancient city in its way - it is just a pity that 1% of the population seem determined to wreck the experience for anyone who comes to visit. The King of Morocco
pledged to attract I think 10 million tourists to the country to boost the tourist industry and improve the lives of Moroccan people .... he may well achieve this, but if this behaviour is allowed to continue, many of those people, including myself, will not be going back again.

the medina of marrakesh is totaly worthvisiting!
you gonna get lost but do not worry that is how you will explore the city (we did the same in medina of fez )
its the labirynth of souks offering you all type of products , thats how you can feel the marrakesh spirit
if they give you price of soemthing do not pay NEVER more than a half of the price (i recommend even 1/3 of the firts price )
its annoying at the begiing but later its only fun

The Medina should have been a great experience. Exotic local, different culture, things to buy, good food -what could go wrong? In a word - GREED!!! Oh, and add to that cheating, lying, Baksheesh, ignorance and a culture that has gone way wrong.
In a way the Medina reminded me of Montego Bay , Jamaica years ago when the cruise ships used to dock regularly. They stopped visiting Montego because it was unsafe and the residents were so overly aggressive that nobody was comfortable and no one wanted to visit and shop. We were there 6 or so years ago just after the ships stopped coming and the merchants were starving. Tourism was dead.and nothing was selling.
I see this in the future for Marrakech.
You cannot go ten feet without someone in your face being very aggressive. We were in Istanbul 10 days last May and the Grand Bazaar has some pushy salesmen but nothing compared to the souks of Marrakech..
Examples:
First day - We stopped at an orange juice trolly in Jamaa El Fna .. I had no dirhams so I went an ATM and get all shiny new 100 dirham bills. We went back to the the orange juice stand. the OJ cost 8 dirham and I gave him a 100. He gave me back 12 dirham in coins and went on to the next customer. I knew there was something wrong but it took me a while to read the coins so I ask for the rest of my change. Reluctantly he gave me back 60 dirhams. Still wrong!!! I insisted and after a long hesitation he gave me back 20 more dirham, Not a spot of embarrassment or shame on his face.
Taxis - I asked a taxi driver how much to a particular hotel.? He said 13. I wrote the number on my open palm with my finger, he says yes, 13. when we arrive he says no it's 30 not13 . What can you do, call the police??? We paid.
Candy stand - My wife wanted a taste - just a small taste of a bit of fudge from a street vender so we agreed on 3 dirham for a tiny piece. I give him a bill and he give me change that was not even close. I objected and he grabbed the change, switched the dirham coins for euros and shamelessly says that the change was correct. My God, do they think we are stupid???
That's not the worst of it. The worst is the kids, unbelievably -- the children.
When you get lost in the souks( note - when, not if, you get lost because you WILL get lost ) you will have a confused, maybe worried look on your face. In a very short time a young man in his early teens will appear and offer assistance or to show you around. When he shows you to your place he will ask a ridiculous amount of money and by implication cause a fuss is not paid. Most pay.
One kid whom I had told to get lost was so insistent he followed us home and when I offered 10 dirham just to leave, he said it wasn't enough
One of the little boys on our street to whom i gave candy announced the next day I had to buy him a soccer poster. Just Because.
A merchant close to where we were staying whom we saw every day stood in my path one day and said I should gift him the Brazil soccer shirt I wore the day before. Asked why, It was Just because, no other reason. Just Because.
And on it went.
They were otherworldly in their persistence and the conviction that they should have your money. Truth did not seem to matter. I've read about this huge cultural gulf , About the Arab / Bedouin mindset and the effect of Islam (we are the infidels) and but I thought in 2012 this would be gone. Unfortunately all the negative stereotypes came vividly to life.
So, what to do?
Get everything in writing. Negotiate every little thing first. Carry a pad of postits and write fares, prices , everything down so you don't cheated - including the teens in the souk.
Don't get intimidated. There are tourist police to protect you. Inform your intimidator that you know about the police.

Amazing place and experience, very busy with a lot going on, you have to keep your wits about you, but definitely worth a visit, just to see all the food stalls and markets and the labyrinth of side streets and souks