Best hostels in Marrakech

Marrakech splits into two accommodation worlds separated by a short taxi ride and several centuries of city planning. The medina — the old walled city around Jemaa el-Fnaa — is where riads hide behind heavy wooden doors on streets too narrow for cars, and where the call to prayer from Ben Youssef Mosque sets the rhythm of the morning. West of the ramparts, Gueliz is the French-colonial new town: wide boulevards, café terraces along Avenue Mohammed V, and apartment blocks with working elevators and reliable hot water. Budget travelers will find the medina's riad conversions clustered near the shrines of Sidi Bel Abbasi and Imam Jazuli, while Gueliz scatters its options along the grid between Place du 16 Novembre and the railway station. The choice is not better or worse — it is whether you want to wake to rooftop light over terracotta or to traffic on a paved boulevard. Both neighborhoods keep you well under a hundred dollars a night for a clean bed, and regular buses connect the two along Avenue Mohammed V.

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   Marrakech

   Historic walled medina, central Marrakech

   Riad courtyards hidden behind unmarked doors on lanes too narrow for anything but a handcart.

   Light drifts through the latticed riad windows near the shrines of Imam Jazuli and Sidi Bel Abbasi before the souks open, and Riad Sun of Kech holds a 9.1 at about $56 a night from a doorway on these quieter northern lanes. Skip the overpriced riad-hotels lining the main drag south to Jemaa el-Fnaa; the locals know the streets north of the square offer the same terracotta rooftops without the hawker traffic. The medina rewards travelers who want to navigate by minaret and fountain rather than street sign — alleys dead-end, GPS fails, and the reward for getting lost is a courtyard you would never have found on purpose. This is the neighborhood for someone who treats the accommodation as part of the experience, not just a bed. Bab Doukkala gate sits at the western edge and connects to Gueliz by bus; the taxi rank at Jemaa el-Fnaa handles everything else.

   1. Budget

      Riad Sun of Kech

      Very friendly and helpful staff, Hamza and Jamal. Location is excellent if you want to be near to Imam Jazuli and Sidi Bel Abbasi shrines. But otherwise if you want to be close medina market then t

      9.1 rating ~$56/night
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   Gueliz, Marrakech

   Ville nouvelle along Avenue Mohammed V, western Marrakech

   Walkable French-colonial grid of patisseries, pharmacies, and apartment stays with a sidewalk out front.

   The cafés along Avenue Mohammed V hum through the afternoon in Gueliz, and the New luxury Apartemnt Modern Gueliz Marrakech holds a 9.7 at about $64 a night from the Al Ismailia residence nearby. Don't bother with the generic package-tour hotels clustered near the station; this stretch of the ville nouvelle puts you on a grid of patisseries, pharmacies, and late-closing restaurants that function like any walkable European quarter — except the tagine is better. Place du 16 Novembre anchors the eastern end, the railway station sits at the western fringe, and regular buses run a straight line back to the medina. Gueliz suits the traveler who wants a front door that opens onto a sidewalk, not a labyrinth.

   1. Budget

      New luxury Apartemnt Modern Gueliz Marrakech

      We had a fantastic stay at Mohamed's apartment in the Al Ismailia residence. The apartment is beautiful, impeccably clean, and so well-equipped it felt like a true home away from home. Mohamed is a wo

      9.7 rating ~$64/night
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   Gueliz

   Western Gueliz grid near the railway station, Marrakech

   No-frills rooms with honest square footage, positioned for onward travel to Essaouira or Fez.

   At about $63 a night the Hotel Almas anchors the budget end of Gueliz with an 8.3 and rooms spacious enough to spread a suitcase flat. Skip the lobby-bar places charging double for a minibar you will not open; this stretch of Gueliz, closer to the Rue de la Liberté grid, trades polish for honest square footage and functioning air conditioning. The neighborhood thins out after dark — restaurants pull in their chairs early, and the avenue quiets to taxi traffic and the occasional motorbike. That suits anyone who treats accommodation as a clean bed between day trips to the Atlas foothills or the Palmeraie. The railway station and the CTM bus terminal are both reachable on foot, making this the staging post for travelers heading onward to Essaouira or Fez rather than settling into Marrakech itself.

   1. Budget

      Hotel Almas

      The room was very spacious and I was able to stay comfortably. However, the shower drain was not good and the water overflowed in 1 minute, which was a bit of a hassle.

      8.3 rating ~$63/night
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This is an early version of the Marrakech list. We add picks as we test more places.