Casa Taos is a quirky, creative and truly special place to stay. I can say this confidently as I have been lucky enough to stay in great places in many beautiful locations all over the world. The warmth and kindness that exudes from Hicham and his staff made our stay here truly memorable. Every request satisfied, from children's meals to help searching the city for a pair of bellows! Nothing is too much trouble here. My husband, 8 year old twin boys and I loved this place, our boys running freely and safely in the beautiful garden, us lazing on hammocks and sun beds by the beautiful pool. An authentic place to stay with lovingly prepared delicious food using fresh ingredients from the garden and served so wonderfully by Mohammed, the best tea pourer in Morocco. The homemade lemonade, chocolate mousse, creme caramel and Moroccan appetisers were particularly tasty. Far enough away from the city to provide a quiet and peaceful oasis but close enough for easy access to Marrakech and all it has to offer. I recommend Casa Taos unreservedly. Thank you to you all (and a special hello to Echo and Toffee) and we hope to see you again.

My husband chose Casa Taos as with two children we wanted space to escape to and relax in after sightseeing in Marrakesh. We had no idea what to expect, but were all enchanted by Casa Taos. As others have noted, it's a c. 20 min taxi ride from The Medina, but we enjoyed the services of the same taxi driver, summoned for us by Mohammed, throughout our stay and were able to call him when in the city to arrange pick-ups and transport back to the hotel. The hotel is essentially a walled estate, consisting of several low buildings in typical Moroccan style. The guest rooms are all in the main building, with a colourful communal lounge and a quiet, shady courtyard. There are lots of discreet corners and places to sit and read or just enjoy the peace and the weather. We had two 1st Floor rooms, adjoined by an outdoor veranda with views of the snow-capped Atlas mountains. The rooms were large, colourful, comfortable and private. The focal point of Casa Taos is the pool area, adjoined by the kitchen and dining room, with additional dining facilities outside on the patio. The pool is spotless, probably one of the cleanest I've ever seen, but unfortunately a bit too cold for me in October! The temperature does drop at night so the water is quite cool, but my children enjoyed it. The area around the pool is charming; an avenue of mature palms with hammocks, lovely comfortable sunbeds and again, ample sitting areas in both shade and sun. No fighting over sunbeds here! The grounds are extensive, the hotel was designed and the land planted by the current owner's father, so it's truly a family concern. The gardens, like everything else, are beautifully and carefully kept and much of the produce used in the kitchens in grown either within the walled gardens or in the huge orchard beyond. The citrus grove includes grapefruit, oranges, satsumas, lemons, limes and a particular lemon that is preverved and its zest used in Moroccan cooking. Additionally we saw date palms, grenadines, pecan nuts, quince, aubergines, chillis, peppers and salad leaves, all growing fresh and used in the kitchen. If you love food and are interested in trying local produce and dishes, you will not be disappointed here. We ate here every night but one, it was without doubt a highlight of our trip to Marrakesh. There is no menu per se, but every night Mohammed laid before us a selection of salads, followed by a stew, tagine, cous cous and desserts all beautifully prepared, fresh, subtly flavoured with herbs, spices and orange flower, most of the produce used grown in the hotel, which supports a staff of 13 to farm the land and care for the guests. The kitchen was also able to cater for our children, with burgers, pizza, chicken etc - although by the end of the stay they were eating Lebanese food with us!
We tried Moroccan, Syrian and Lebanese dishes and were also treated to home made cakes and the best mint tea. Snacks by the pool are served at lunchtime, drinks all day and breakfast can include fresh crepes, plenty of toast (including toasted cumin bread), home made tapenade, cream cheese, honey and fresh pressed juices - different flavours every day. There is plenty to eat and all of it is excellent. Mohammed is always there, attentive and hospitable and mealtimes were a real joy, I would go back just for the food alone! It was our habit to wander round the gardens after breakfast and supper, accompanied by Ako and Dofi, the owners' two extremely soppy dogs, although they only latch onto dog-lovers so don't worry if you are not keen! At night, the paths are often dotted with frogs and apparently hedgehogs wander around too, we enjoyed the wildflife. The owners are usually around, knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. The whole experience is that of staying in the beautiful country home of a Moroccan family as a special guest, enjoying wonderful hospitality discreetly provided. We all hope to return one day and it was as fine an introduction to the country, people and food as we could have hoped for.

We arrived here after spending three days in the busy heart of Marrakesch. What we found exceeded our expectations by far. This family run Guesthouse not only offers a lovely garden and pool area to relax but also the best food we had until now in Morocco. Everything is freshly made and most of the products are from their own garden. The service is outstanding and our room (honey moon sweet) was amazing. The pool area is surrounded by a huge garden with all kind of flowers, trees and herbs. We felt like being part of the family and enjoyed our stay very much. Eco and Toffy (the 2 sweet and funny dogs) are responsible for your safety - they are doing a very good job :)

I won't witter on too much but this is an outstanding example of the modern guest house or small hotel. A place which sets standards that all of us in this industry can aspire to. Outstanding food and an instinctive understanding of what hospitality means. Hicham is well supported by Mohammed and his team.

A few pointers though.

It is a 15 - 20 minute taxi ride into the commercial centre and to the old city. This will cost about £8 each way. This suited us perfectly but be aware that you are out of the main hubbub of the city.

You should be happy to have dogs for company. They are part of Hicham's family and you are guests in their house, so they will rightly come up to you to check you are ok. We definitely were ok.

We were in Botero which is one of the more expensive rooms. We looked at the others at the end of our stay and would still probably have chosen Botero which was beautifully done. If you can't abide showers, ensure that you ask for a room which does not have a sunken bath. They realistically take an hour or so to fill, or would have if we'd tried it.

Make the most of Hicham's knowledge of local restaurants, shops and arts. His taste is pretty immaculate and his desire to look after guests is utterly impressive.

I can't recommend Casa Taos enough and we hope to head back there with children in a year or two.