Marrakech musters fantasies of ancient walkways, sand in the wind, piles of gold, silk and tagines filled with richly spiced food.
That’s the dream, but what’s the reality?
I was impressed when I stayed for seven nights at the Tui Blue Medina Gardens resort, which is on the doorstep of the intoxicating delights of the ancient Moroccan city, but cocoons guests from the noise.
Plus, it’s alluringly low-cost.
The (mostly immaculate) Medina Gardens boasts an indoor, outdoor and rooftop bar (at extra cost), a well-equipped gym, a spa, a swimming pool and activities such as yoga, shuffleboard and competitive games of petanque each afternoon.
Marrakech, where every building must be a startling shade of terracotta
Sophie Foster checked into the Tui Blue Medina Gardens (above) – on the doorstep of Marrakech’s delights
Sophie’s standard room had a double bed, television, hot drinks station and fridge, a separate toilet and a shower and double vanity sink separated from the bed by a divider
It also features a spacious garden where you can pluck the fruit from the branches of orange and lemon trees.
Plus, there’s a colony of tortoises (group noun: a creep) living in the lush grass.
This was a highlight.
My standard room came with a double bed, television, hot drinks station and fridge.
There was also a separate toilet plus a shower and sink separated from the bed by a divider.
More luxurious suites in Medina Gardens have a swim-up option.
The room had a Juliet balcony but the view wasn’t great – you could see the Koutoubia Mosque minaret, but also an ugly restaurant roof below.
The Tui resort features a spacious garden where you can pluck the fruit from the branches of orange and lemon trees
Sophie booked a seven-night stay at Tui Blue Medina Gardens. Sophie said the view from her room ‘wasn’t great’- because it included ‘an ugly restaurant roof’
Under the roof, however, the situation was more positive, with the surprisingly good food at the all-inclusive buffet one of the resort’s most memorable plus points. Tagines of traditional local fare were served each night alongside international food – and there were speciality nights, too.
We dined on kebabs one evening while, on another, reams of fresh seafood. The desserts, however, were generally disappointing.
The a la carte restaurant, the Culinarium, was enjoyable, offering table service meals.
A word of warning on the alcohol front – line your stomach because Tui’s bar staff are generous with the measures (and some drinks tasted like paint stripper).
The Bikini Martini is a palatable safe choice.
Continental choices were on offer at breakfast, with a chef cooking eggs to order and a variation of the classic fry-up (pork sausages, for instance, are not on menus in Muslim Morocco).
Sophie reveals that the hotel cocoons guests from the city noise. Above – the rooftop bar
LEFT: The a la carte restaurant, the Culinarium. RIGHT: The terrace of a luxury swim-up junior suite at Medina Gardens
The hotel is a 10-minute walk from Jemaa el-Fna Square (above)
At night, a pulsating crowd of entertainers takes over at Jemaa el-Fna Square
Sophie reveals that Jemaa el-Fna Square is filled with dancers, musicians, singers, storytellers and gamblers at night
The main selling point of Tui’s Medina Gardens? The central location.
It’s well-placed for walks to Bahia Palace, the Koutoubia Mosque and the mysterious Majorelle Garden.
And it takes just five minutes to reach the spellbinding old quarter, the Medina, and 10 to reach Jemaa el-Fna Square, located at the entrance. Here sellers and tour guides line the walls alongside – disappointingly – monkeys in cages and snakes being charmed.
At night a pulsating crowd of entertainers takes over, with dancers, musicians, singers, storytellers and gamblers calling to locals and holidaymakers alike to join in with the fun.
Like the city as a whole – hard to resist.
But when I did tire of the hubbub, I headed back to Medina Gardens to chill out with the tortoises in our walled oasis.