As this is the first time I have been on this site i ust say I am quite surprised at the negative comments about the ryad mogador Essaouira. Perhaps I should have checked it out before i made my booking but then again I probably would not have booked it! In contrast to some of the reviews i found this riad to be well run and efficient, I can understand that they may not encourage a drinking culture but hey if I wanted that I’d go somewhere else. I found the staff to be polite and courteous and although a little understaffed it did not detract from our enjoyment. For a relaxing break in a beautiful part of Morocco this riad really dots the i’s and crosses the t’s. We booked through luxury-riads.com which was the cheapest price we saw anywhere for theb same accommodation and the firm also arranged the airport transfer for us which was handy. I would recommend this riad to young party goers but I would have no hesitation in suggesting it as a n option for older people and young families. All in all very good value.

Okay, all foreigners are not Satan for wanting to enjoy a nice cold refreshing alcoholic beverage poolside. As an American living in Morocco for the past year and a half, I’ve never felt so shamed by a lack of cross-cultural tolerance.
I live in a small village in morocco where I abide by all the cultural standards, dressing conservatively and being respectful of the culture and religion. When I go to Essaouira this is a vacation spot, not only a vacation spot but I think one of Morocco’s most beautiful destinations.
Having a cold beer/cocktail poolside was one desire shared by my girlfriends and me. NOT AT RIAD MOGADOR!!! As the higher than thou man behind the bar shouted at my friend. “In your room!! In your room!!” My friend hustled her cold beverages back to the room.
Like I mentioned I’ve been in Morocco for over a year and I’ve managed to learn one of the ancient Berber dialects and pick up some Moroccan Arabic for when I travel. Is learning how to say “hello” so difficult? Okay fine I’ll even except a nice friendly, “Bonjour” NO ONE at reception could even manage to great us when walking through or entering the hotel.
We learned half way into our trip (because I finally asked) how much we should be paying for the local petit taxis (the day price 6 durham and 7 dhs for night rates), we were getting ripped off every night! It would have been very helpful to get this correct information from our hotel at the beginning of our stay. Since Riad Mogador is located as far away from the center of town as possible. It was even more appreciated (insert thick thick sarcasm here) when we learned that for the hotel to call a taxi for us to go the small distance to the buss station we will have to pay 20 durhams for the taxi because they called. Ridiculous!
I’ve done a fair bit of traveling and I’m very aware that Americans, generally speaking of course do have high standards when it comes to service, in service industry, hotels, restaurants, etc. I’ve been here long enough that my standard has gone down significantly but simple little courtesies are still nice.
The included breakfast was terrible not to mention a mad house, food not that great but it’s even more difficult to try the terrible food when there are no plates, cups, silverware, etc. The poor restaurant staff were trying to keep up but they were understaffed.
The room was nice (by Moroccan standard). So it needed a paint job and the bathroom was probably infested with black mold but NO bed bugs!
My really only one positive thing to say…the cleaning staff was amazing, our rooms were cleaned daily (not very ‘green’ yes I know but our one luxury…) and one day I forgot my wallet out on the table and one little Moroccan lady could have been a very happy women, but nothing was touched and they were very friendly. Maybe the cleaning ladies could do a little training with the front desk staff.
Riad Mogador is a conservative Islamic families ideal destination. We were woken up with all the fun the children were having in the pool every morning, so if you’re Moroccan with children and don’t want to see a beer bottle by the pool this very well may be your most favorite hotel. Please say hi to my favorite Barista at the bar, you’ll know the one, he’s probably still crying from having to open a fanta for us…cause he knew we were mixing it with VODKA!!!

We booked for a two-night stay. We rejected first room allocated because it was dingy and then were offered another that had cracked tiles, peeling paint and down-at-heel appearance. But main problem was being so out-of-town it was always a taxi there and back. No taxi rank in the vicinity of the hotel so it meant hanging around at the nearest roundabout to catch an empty taxi. A process that could take at least 15 minutes. Staff not helpful. All rather a dismal experience. But recognised it was our mistake - we were there for the experience of the medina and not for the beach/surfing life for which this hotel is superbly located.

Hotel " Ryad Mogador" is a moderate hotel. I mean , the architecture of the hotel is really interesting, and if you really want to stay in a real moroccon environment, this is what you want. The swimming pool is big enough. The breakfast and dinner are buffet style, and they have some options here. However the rooms are not perfect, they are a bit small for a 4 star hotel. The location is not bad, but you need about 10-15 minutes to get to the city center. However if you need a real leisure and calm environment this is a perfect hotel for you.