Casa Lila & Spa

We were looking forward to be in a Riad right inside the Medina. Some of the staff were very friendly and they also let us store some personal items in the fridge in the kitchen.

Unfortunately, my husband was not feeling well and spent most time in the Riad. Some staff were not very accommodating at all. Also, the room at the second floor was very loud in the morning with a lot of noise from the seagulls. Apparently because they were breeding, one staff said. We stayed for 4 nights. Breakfast is plentiful but they only do their thing. No extras like tomatoes or mushrooms with the omelette for example. Also, the spa was closed. Had been closed for a while, but their site doesn’t say that.

Très bien situé Petit déjeuner très agréable sur la terrasse

We liked staying in an original old riad and we had an amazing room maid who made us feel very welcome and chatted to us every day. We think her name was Fatima. She kept the room clean and nothing was too much trouble. The man caring for the hotel in the evening was reasonably friendly too.

We were the only people in for most of the week but we didn’t get treated as host would their guests and my husband speaks fluent French but little attempt was made at conversation apart from the room maid & the evening manager. I did try my best . Maybe the hotel is a chain. Strangely in an old Moroccan riad, our room was decorated with pop art of Che Guevara and Brigitte Bardot,rather incongruously, unless they visited Essaoira like Hendrix. The purple decor was strange too but I read that purple was a natural dye used in Essaoira. We have stayed in stunningly beautiful old riads before, with traditional Moroccan decor, but with modern touches such as a shower. To get in the bath was hilarious (no shower) I had to put the bath mat on the wide ledge, sit down on it with my legs dangling as they didn’t touch the floor, and then swing my legs over into a slippy Bath. Fortunately, I’m still fit in mid 70’s. Many elderly wouldn’t have managed. Breakfasts were a lazy affair, especially as we were the only guests. The fruit salad was apple virtually every single day!! - incomprehensible when strawberries were in season being sold cheaply by street vendors. We were given strawberries once. Whether you were asked whether you would like an egg depended on the mood of the cook. Sometimes yes, sometimes no. We had lovely round white bread everywhere in Essaoira except here! At Casa Lila we were served a big hard round brown inedible disc. The pancakes were delicious but you were only given one. Not impressed and I just can’t recommend.

Mittendrin statt nur dabei, beste Lage in der Medina. Quirliges Leben drumherum, innen drin eine Ruheoase in bezaubernden Farben. Super Personal, Frühstück auf der Dachterrasse, perfekter Aufenthalt. Wir sind mit dem Auto angereist, geparkt am Hafen für kleines Geld. Koffer wurden mit Karren zum Riad gefahren. Absolute Empfehlung.

Hammam gab es nicht, eine Info vorher wäre nett gewesen. Es gibt aber genügend professionell geführte in der Nähe.

The Riad is a lovely place where you can relax after beeing the whole day out in that nice city. The staff is just so extremely friendly and helpful .... thank you for that. And please dont miss one of the massage's .... just brilliant. We will come back to that nice place for sure.

All was fine.

Beautiful riad conveniently situated at the heart of the medina. It was super easy to find, the hosts gave us lots of recommendations and informations about the history of the city, and they were really accomodating with timings. Breakfast on the rooftop was definitely a bonus! This riad has made our stay in Essaouira very special. Thank you again!

Unfortunately the hammam was broken and we couldn't get any spa treatments as the masseuse was injured. Not that big of a deal as the city if filled with other spas and hammams, but it would have been very convenient to have everything in the same place.