Firstly, as other people in their reviews have said, although we had arranged via email (with written confirmation) to be collected from the airport, this didn't happen. We called many times before someone reluctantly agreed to come and get us which meant we waited for over and hour & half at the airport. It was around 38dgs with nothing to do at the airport ... not a good start. The taxi / driver dropped us in the main square and we weren't warned that it was a 30min walk to the Riad, with luggage, through the tiny streets. Talk about sitting ducks! The Riad is quite complicated to find and road names don't exist so if you do stay, take note of how to get around.

The Riad, as someone else has also mentioned, had a constant smell of sewage. We don't know where it came from and no-one ever explained the source of the smell or made an effort to disguise it. This alone was enough to make our stay unpleasant. The Riad is small and could do with some updating in areas. There were three of us, we had booked a 3-bed room but were led to a tiny room with one double bed and one really small seat which was supposed to be the third bed. We complained about the room but were told that the Riad was full so we couldn't move until the following night which we did to a suite which was lovely and twice the size. However, they charged us extra for this even though it was their error. Many arguments ensued and none of us were impressed with their attitude. We were then told that this suite was booked for the last night of our stay so had to move yet again!! Appaling given that we had pre-booked well in advance. The plunge pool was tiny and quite dirty with leaves and muck so none of us were brave enough to go in. We sat there one evening and all of us had scarves over our faces to block the smell of sewage so I can't say that Riad was a relaxing oasis of calm.

The female worker was lovely and worked so hard by herself. She was up before dawn to make the breakfast then spent ALL day cooking, cleaning & preparing rooms. The breakfast consisted of yoghurt, fresh orange juice, tea, breads & jams, fresh pancakes then got a little less with cooked food each day but was really nice. We didn't eat there in the evening so I can't comment on the meals.

I agree that many charges were hidden. We were given a welcome glass of mint tea on arrival but weren't told that it would be charged to the bill (am not being picky but we were on a budget and already charged extra for a bigger room even though we had booked for 3, not 2). We also weren't told, despite booking & paying a deposit by credit card, that final settlement of the bill had to be in cash, no credit cards accepted. No-one wants to walk around with that amount of cash and machines aren't close.

The roof terrace is OK but nothing special and it wasn't easy to get drinks etc during the day. The owner wasn't particularly helpful and even less so after the fiasco with the rooms. We also asked about booking trips but these were much cheaper organised elsewhere.

Marrakech is a fantastic place and don't miss going to Les Bains Spa for a truly pampering relaxing day, it was fantastic. However, if you want to escape from the hustle & bustle back at your Riad, this is not the place to do it. I wouldn't go back there if you paid me.

have just got back from staying at the Houdou with 6 friends, the place was amazing, the manager could not do enough for us and took us to some great places, lovely and clean accomadation,cannot fault it, one of the best weekends ever.

My wife and I stayed here in July 2009 on the final night of our trip to Morocco before we returned to the UK. The riad was not too difficult to find and nearly accessible by taxi (a rarity). It had a pleasant courtyard with lemon and orange trees, but a strange smell of effluence that hung around and made you wonder whether:

a - you'd stepped in poo in the medina
b - the drains were blocked up
c - the riad was next to the main sewage outpipe for the medina

The smell wasn't pleasant and it didn't go away. The redeeming quality of the riad was the presence of air conditioning in the rooms (a welcome relief from the scorching heat). The owner told us that she had only recently bought the riad and had moved from France a couple of months before. Now, not wishing to sound too critical here, but you could really tell she was new to the whole 'hospitality' industry.

On the evening we returned from a meal in the Djemaa and she was sitting up with one of the staff. We asked to put the TV on to 'zone out' for a few minutes, to which she replied 'it doesn't work'. We then asked whether we could watch a DVD (as advertised on the website). She said that wasn't possible as she didn't want us to use it and suggested we played a game with tarot cards instead. Not being into the occult, we passed on the opportunity.

When we requested a few hot drinks that evening, we might as well have requested she attach wings to the riad and fly us to the moon. To say she was reluctant to make them was an understatement.

We left the following day feeling that the Riad had been far more successful under previous ownership (as the other reviews seemed to suggest) and wondered whether she would ever get the hang of hospitality. Unfortunately she seemed all at sea and hadn't yet made the mental jump from viewing us as people in 'her' riad, to paying guests that wanted to feel like they weren't disturbing her 'me time'.

Not great. Don't bother going.

The riad is located in a central, yet not too touristy part of the medina. The walking distance to the main square is approx. 20 min. Our room was not nearly as nice as it is presented on the website, was not entirely clean and generally had a dated feeling (towels were very old and dirty, toilet seat half broken). The breakfast was nothing special (toast, eggs, jam), but the real reason for my negative review is the level of service. We never felt like we were treated like guets as the only motive of the staff was to extract as much money as possible from us. Whenever we asked for advice or assistance (i.e. taxi, restaurant recommendations), we were given ridiculous quotes and we never felt like the staff tried to help us out with local advice (instead they aimed to maximize their proceeds). Given the rich rate we paid for our room, I expect and entirely different level of service.... There are hundreds of Riads in Marrakech and I recommend to anybody planning a trip to seek accomodation elsewhere.