I no longer knew where to book especially when reading the different reviews of the 100s of hotel in Marrakech and i ended up booking the hotel Akabar at the last minute and I have absolutely no regrets.

My criterions were as follow: A clean and value for money hotel not far from the famous souks. I wanted a hotel where to sleep only and to drop my luggage as I had no intention to spend a week holidays indoor, I wanted to discover the city of Marrakech.

My room (207) was spacious enough for 1 person and could have easily accommodate a second one. The cleaning was done everyday, bed made everyday, towels changed everyday too, so in terms of cleanliness, I was pretty happy (and I am a very hard person to please when it comes to hygiene). The windows are not soundproof from the noise outside (my room was facing the street and a building on construction) but I had brought earplugs so no real issue there for me!

The TV was working perfectly and I could enjoy French and English programs (bilingual does help and not only for the TV) . For the remote control, ask at the reception. At first i thought that it was not working but there is a little trick there (Sorry, cannot remember which one!)

As for the pool, it is not a european standard pool but it can be nice if you want to refresh yorself especially during summer time!

I believe the reason I put on weight there is due to the breakfast buffet. I enjoyed every single of them even if the orange juice was not made of real oranges. There were a great choice French and Moroccan patisserie, viennoiserie that would appeal to anyone.

The Hotel is situated 10 - 15 minutes away from Jana El Fna place which is very good. To avoid the traffic when going to Jana El Fna, you can cut through the fantastic, refreshing and quiet Cyber Parc. If you feel exhausted by long walks from the souks, you can take a cab for 10 dirham or even less (a review of your negotiation skills is highly recommended in Marrakech and not only for taxis!)

From the receptionists, cleaning ladies, waiters, waitress, owner, the all team, they made my stay more than enjoyable! I would never thanks the Akabar's team for their warm welcome. I will definitely go back and I have already recommended the hotel to my family and friends and now to you who read the comments.

In Morocco be aware that local "star ratings" are almost always inflated at least 1 star above European or US standards.

We stayed 1 night on the 3rd floor of the Hotel Akabar - supposedly a 3 star hotel - in the Hivernage hotel area of Marrakech (the new town) and while the hotel is quiet and clean and everything worked OK; it is definitely NOT a 3 star hotel by European or US standards.

This said, it is a good and new 2 star hotel - with working elevator; plumbing and TV. The room was small - no good place to open luggage but the bed - and there was no heat was on (in January that was a problem as Marrakech has cool nights!) but the staff was OK; the breakfast buffet was very satisfactory and the price = 60 Euros a night - was good for a clean, refurbished room with elevator etc. etc.

I would recommend Hotel Akabar for a short (2 night) stay for budget conscious tourists but my wife & I much preferred the 4 star Atlas Asni Hotel or a Riad closer to the Medina/Souks.