The catch at Dar Kandi
Dar Kandi is a six-suite house, and most of its catches come with that size. None of them is a reason to pass on a riad this well made, but each one decides when you come, which suite you take and how you arrive.
On our shortlists
- Best design hotels in MarrakechSix suites in a 1915 house: tadelakt, Fes zellige and Venetian stucco
- Best value hotels in MarrakechSix suites, a rooftop pool and hammam, breakfast in every rate
- Best central hotels in MarrakechLe Jardin Secret 9 minutes, Ben Youssef 12, in the north-west Medina
- Best quiet hotels in MarrakechSix suites round a tree-filled patio on a lane in Bab Doukkala
The rooftop pool is not heated, and the only way up to it is the stairs.
The pool is on the roof, beside the loungers and umbrellas, open from 10:00 to 21:00, with the Medina roofs and the Koutoubia minaret beyond the parapet. It is a pool for a dip in the sun rather than for lengths, and it is not heated, so from December to February the water is cool even when the sun on the roof is warm. There is no lift in the house: the suites are on the patio level, the mezzanine and the first floor, and the roof terraces are one more flight up from there. Anyone who finds stairs hard will feel it every time they go up for a dip, breakfast on the small terrace or a drink at sunset.
What to do. For a winter stay, treat the pool as a place to sit in the sun and the hammam as the warm water. If stairs are a problem, ask for a patio-level suite: the Touch DéCo or the Arch.
Breakfast is the only meal included: lunch, dinner, the hammam and massages are paid and booked ahead.
Every rate includes breakfast, served from 08:30 to 11:00. Everything else in the house has a price and needs a reservation. The kitchen serves lunch from 12:30 to 14:30 and dinner from 19:30 to 21:30, for residents only, in the dining room, on the patio or on the roof. The hammam and the massage room work from 11:00 to 18:00, also paid and booked. The house rules list alcohol among the items guests may not bring in, so a bottle bought in Guéliz stays in the bag.
What to do. Book the hammam and any dinner in the riad when you confirm the room, not on arrival. On an early flight, breakfast from 08:30 may be too late: ask the night before.
Cars do not park at the riad, and the lanes of Bab Doukkala are hard to find on a first visit.
Dar Kandi stands on Derb Arset Aouzal, a paved lane five minutes' walk inside the Bab Doukkala gate. There is no car park at the riad. Drivers leave the car in a guarded car park nearby, where the staff meet guests and help carry the bags to the door. Without the transfer, the last stretch of lane can be confusing at night with luggage, and the riad's front office needs to know in advance if you are bringing a car and need a space.
What to do. Book the riad's paid airport transfer, about 11 minutes by road from Marrakech Menara, and send your flight times. If you are driving, ask the front office to reserve a parking space before you arrive.
Children must be at least 2, they pay as adults, and the smallest suite sleeps two.
The house takes children from the age of 2 only, and counts each child as an adult. A third guest in a suite costs €50 a night, and there is no babysitting. The entry Cactus Suite, 28 m², sleeps two at most, so a family of three needs one of the five larger suites, and a family of four needs two. The whole riad sleeps 17 at most, in six suites around one patio, with stairs to the first floor and the roof.
What to do. A family of three should price the Suite Touch DéCo or the Suite Arch with the €50 supplement: both are on the patio level, with a bath as well as a shower. With babies, look at a hotel with a kids' club and a garden pool.
New Year, April and May cost more, and every rate is paid in full before you arrive.
For the entry Cactus Suite with breakfast, a night in mid-January was €198 and a mid-March night from €203. Over New Year it was €265, and in April and May €245. On top of the room, the city tax of €2.50 a person a night is paid at the riad. The terms are strict: a non-refundable rate is charged in full when you book, and a refundable one can be cancelled free only until 30 days before arrival, when the whole stay is charged and can no longer be refunded.
What to do. For lower rates outside the summer heat, come in mid-January, late November or early December, when the Medina is cool and quiet. Take travel insurance that covers cancellation, since inside 30 days the money is gone either way.
Who should skip it
Anyone who wants a pool to swim lengths in, or a warm one in January; anyone who cannot manage stairs; families with babies or toddlers; and anyone who wants a hotel to spend the whole day in, with a gym, a choice of restaurants and a bar by the pool.
Who should book it anyway
Anyone who wants the Medina from a house that feels like a private home. Six suites, each made differently in tadelakt, zellige and carved plaster, open onto a patio planted with trees around a fountain; the roof has a pool, loungers and the Koutoubia across the roofs; there is a hammam in the house; and breakfast for two is in the price from about €205 a night in March. Le Jardin Secret is 9 minutes on foot and the souks of Mouassine about the same. Book it for the house and the lane it stands on, and plan meals and the hammam ahead.
The catch elsewhere in Marrakech
- La MamouniaMedina
Breakfast is not included in the room rate, so budget for it on top of a price that already starts high
- Royal Mansour MarrakechMedina
There are only 15 Superior riads, from about €2,300 a night in March 2027; on some spring dates they sell out, and the cheapest riad left is the Premier at about €2,780
- El FennMedina
The roof terrace and its bar are open to non-residents every day from 12:00 to 23:00, drinks are first come, first served, and it fills at sunset
- La Villa des OrangersMedina
The entry Deluxe Rooms are 20 m² on the ground floor, opening onto a courtyard; a private terrace starts with the Room with Terrace, which is the same size
- Nobu Hotel MarrakechHivernage
The rooftop bar, with DJ sets after dark, stays open until 1am, and 2am on Fridays and Saturdays: light sleepers should ask for a quiet suite
- Fairmont Royal Palm MarrakechRoute d'Amizmiz
Jemaa el-Fna is a 20-minute drive: the Medina means the free shuttle at set times, a taxi or a hotel car
- Dar RhizlaneHivernage
Outside the Medina: Jemaa el-Fna is about 32 minutes on foot, so plan on taxis
- Palais NamaskarPalmeraie
The Medina is about 24 minutes away by car and nothing is walkable, so every trip into town means a taxi or a car arranged through the hotel
- Inara CampAgafay
The Agafay is a stony desert of bare hills, not golden sand dunes
Things to do from Dar Kandi
The nearest of the experiences we would book, by car from the hotel.
The hammamHammam scrub and massage, with pickup
From €55.694.6(3,700)3 min by carHotel or riad pickup
The sunrise balloonSunrise hot-air balloon flight from Marrakech, with breakfast
From €604.8(3,000)3 min by carHotel or riad pickup
The blue gardenJardin Majorelle, with a timed entry ticket
From €26.904.5(13,900)5 min by car
The cooking classMoroccan cooking class with a local chef
From €36.345(2,000)11 min by car
Questions people ask
Good questions about Dar Kandi
What are the downsides of Dar Kandi?
Dar Kandi is a six-suite house, and most of its catches come with that size. None of them is a reason to pass on a riad this well made, but each one decides when you come, which suite you take and how you arrive. The rooftop pool is not heated, and the only way up to it is the stairs. Breakfast is the only meal included: lunch, dinner, the hammam and massages are paid and booked ahead. Cars do not park at the riad, and the lanes of Bab Doukkala are hard to find on a first visit. Children must be at least 2, they pay as adults, and the smallest suite sleeps two. New Year, April and May cost more, and every rate is paid in full before you arrive.
Who should not book Dar Kandi?
Anyone who wants a pool to swim lengths in, or a warm one in January; anyone who cannot manage stairs; families with babies or toddlers; and anyone who wants a hotel to spend the whole day in, with a gym, a choice of restaurants and a bar by the pool.
Our verdict
A beautifully made six-suite riad in the Medina, with a rooftop pool, a hammam and breakfast included, at about €205 a night. Check availability for the Suite Balcony.