For those who seek a warm welcoming riad in the centre of the city, with clean rooms and an excellent view from the roofterras: Riad Dar Maia is your choice! Owner Maria and manager Imane take care of the place with love for it's customers and personell and this is what you feel once you've entered the narrow door in one of the mazes of the medina of Marrakech. The rooms are simple but have a great atmosphere and the showers are always warm. The Price: around 240 MAD per night which is a very good price!

We stayed here in September 2012 in the 'white room'. The room was clean, pleasant and had everything we required - what was nice about the room was it had a Moroccan vibe without having too many nicknacks (unlike some accommodation in Marrakech). The ensuite was very simple - a toilet and shower behind a curtain in a wet room. There was a beautiful copper sink in the bedroom. The staff were friendly and we were greeted by mint tea and a staff member with fluent English who advised us of the best places to visit and some of the pitfalls. The breakfast was served on the roof terrace and was simple and tasty. This place has an excellent location, being both genuinely quiet day and night, but near businesses (where you can experience the atmosphere of Marrakech) and the main attractions / places to visit. There are several places to relax outside the room in the beautiful courtyard and roof terrace. It is lovely to sit on the roof terrace at night and take in the view of the city. We also liked the tortoise. Dar Maia offered excellent value for money.

We stayed in Dar Maia in June2012. Booked 2 rooms upstairs, 1 for us and the other one for the kids. Room was clean, the decor-simple and nice. We luv the beautiful courtyard and the kids loves their pet turtle 'Emmanuella'. The place is very near to Djemaa El Fna and other tourist spots in Marrakech, only about 5 mins walk from the Riad. Imane-the manager has been very helpful, she arranged for a taxi driver to fetch us at the train station. She speaks good English and very friendly too!. The way out to Djemaa El Fna cud be very confusing for the first timer but after a short familiarization trip by Yassin-the staff at Dar Maia, it was a breeze. It was a wonderful stay here plus the price is good for budget travelers like us.

My friend and I stayed in the blue room at this riad in late December 2011 and after being led through a maze of streets (and worried that we couldn't find our way back after we left!), we were welcomed into this friendly, clean, and quiet riad. The three staff members that we met were all amazingly helpful and friendly, though at the time only one spoke english. If you have rudimentary french, you'll do just fine. The room is on the second floor with windows that overlooked the courtyard and we didn't have any issues with noise from the other guests. However, be warned that there is a curtain instead of a door to the bathroom so unless you're really comfortable with your travel partner, you may need to respectfully leave the room at certain points of the day! Good thing there's a roof deck, which is also a nice quiet place to have breakfast (simple but delicious!) and to rest between exploring the medina. There are no views as the surrouding buildings are all about the same height. The location is great because it is between Djema el-Fna and the sites to the south (Badi Palace, Saadian Tombs, etc) which allows for a stopover during sight seeing. We had arranged for a driver to pick us up and when the driver reached the furthest point he could go, a second person was waiting to help us with our bags and to lead us by foot to the riad.

Overall we felt very well cared for without feeling smothered and I would definitely recommend this riad!