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Moroccan Hotels Classification

Unclassified Morocco Hotels

Unclassified (non-classé) hotels, (mostly O and 8 in our price code box), are mainly to be found in the older, Arab-built parts of cities – the Medinas – and are almost always the cheapest accommodation options. They offer the additional advantage of being at the heart of things: where you’lI want to spend most of your time, and where all the sights and markets are concentrated. The disadvantages are that the Medinas can at first appear daunting – with their mazes of narrow lanes and blind alleys – and that the hotels themselves can be, at worst, dirty flea traps with tiny, windowless cells and half washed sheets. At their best, they’re fine: traditional “caravanserai” buildings with whitewashed rooms round a central patio.

One other minus point for unclassified Medina hotels is that they often have a prob lem with water. Most of the Medinas remain substantially unmodernized, and many cheap hotels are without hot water, with squat toi lets that are sometimes pretty disgusting. On the plus side, there is usually a hammam (Turkish bath – see box overlea~ nearby.

Unclassified hotel rates fluctuate widely, depending on their location, sometimes vary ing with season, and being more or less negotiable depending on demando The cost of a double room in high season ranges from 40dh (f250/$4.50) to 150dh ([9.50/$16.50).

Classified Morocco Hotels

Classified (classé) hotels are almost always in a town’s Ville Nouvelle – the “new” or administrative quarters, built by the French and usually set slightly apart from the old Medina quarters.

Since 1993, c1assified hotels have been allowed, regardless of star-rating, to set their own prices – and to vary them accord ing to season and depending on demando Prices and ratings should be on display at reception and behind the bedroom door, but if in doubt about value for money, don’t hesi tate to ask to see the room in question; indeed, you will normally be invited to do so.

At the bottom end of the scale – a one-star hotel (8 to O in our price cOde) – a basic double room with a washbasin will cost around [10/$17 a night, with a shower and WC around [12/$20. Moving into two- and three star hotels (price codes e to 0), you will be paying around [25/$45 for a double with shower and WC, at the top end of the scale. You get a fair bit more comfort for your money and there are a scattering of elegant, old hotels in these categories – places which used to be the grand hotel in town but have since declined. At the top end of the mid-range, the Ibis Moussafir chain (®www.ibishotel.com) offers reliable hotels always located next to rail stations – though rather characterless and almost identical in every town, they’re comfort able, efficient and good value.