Marrakech - Which area to stay?

Old Oct 12th, 2016, 12:27 PM
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Marrakech - Which area to stay?

Hi - We are a couple in our mid-thirties and we are spending 5 nights in Marrakech. We want to relax and enjoy the city and in the evenings primarily focus on very good dinners/lounges/rooftop bars with sheeshah/hookah. Which area of Marrakech do you recommend we stay? Medina or Hivernege? We would like ease to good restaurants/bars and lounges.

Thank you.
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Old Oct 12th, 2016, 03:05 PM
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No question, in the medina. The newer neighborhoods are a short taxi ride away should something call to you but after many visits, I still wouldn't dream of not staying in the old city. It's why we go.
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Old Oct 13th, 2016, 06:15 AM
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What about others? e.g When I was in Istanbul I didn't stay in the old city. Most of the really good restaurants/roof top bars were on the other side of the river. So we just spent 2 days in the tourist area and the rest we enjoyed the food/drinks outside as the old city did not have the best/upscale options.

Is this similar to Marrakech or am I totally off?
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Old Oct 13th, 2016, 06:16 AM
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Or...do you recommend that we do 2 night in medina and 3 night in Hivernage?
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Old Oct 13th, 2016, 10:36 AM
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Why move at all? I assume you have never been to Marrakech before? If so, why wouldn't you want to spend your days in the medina where all of the history and culture is? Then as Mme Perdu mentions, take a short taxi ride into the newer parts of the city in the evening for dinner, hookah, bars, etc. If you stayed in new city hotels, what exactly would you be doing to spend your days? Probably not much that wouldn't involved the medina anyway.

Still the medina. Taxi to newer parts of the city at night. Very easy. Best of both worlds.
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Old Oct 13th, 2016, 10:38 AM
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For comparative purposes, there is much more history and culture to see during the day in Istanbul's new city than there is in Marrakech.
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Old Oct 16th, 2016, 03:57 PM
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Like all of the others have said. The medina. The only time we left the medina was to find a supermarket for supplies for our drive south into the desert.

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Old Oct 17th, 2016, 10:37 AM
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The only reason I considered staying outside the Medina is to enjoy the 'resort feel' of the hotels which are a better value for money. We are looking for a relaxing vacation with culture so figured visit the Medina during the day and go out in the new city at night but stay in a bigger/nicer hotel.

We'll be there over New Year's Eve so all prices are inflated.
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Old Oct 17th, 2016, 10:55 AM
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"...I considered staying outside the Medina...to enjoy the 'resort feel' of the hotels which are a better value for money."

"Better value" is in the eye of the beholder and I suspect those of us who prefer staying in the medina would disagree with your assessment. In any case, as you seem to have decided in advance, I can't help but wonder why you even asked.
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Old Oct 17th, 2016, 11:02 AM
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Ordinarily I would recommend the medina, but given your desires, definitely Hivernege. Spend your days exploring the old town, then back to your area for dinner and drinks and nightlife. (Alcohol is rarely found in the medina, at least in the kind of places you'd like to go.)
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Old Oct 17th, 2016, 11:44 AM
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Yes, "resort-feel" was new information and Fra saves the day. So stay outside and go to Medina-land in the daylight, a perfect combo. I don't recall feeling deprived in the alcohol department and generally only emerge for the supermarket across the grand taxi lot or to the Majorelle Gardens. But then I'm of the immersion persuasion.

On my first visit, on a small-group tour, we stayed just outside the medina in a package-tour highrise, nice enough but I couldn't help but wonder why anyone would choose such a place with the real thing right there. But as a friend used to say, there's no accounting for taste. Meaning, we all have our vision of what's perfect.
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