Marrakech on a budget

Best hostels

Marrakech sorts itself into concentric rings for the budget traveler. The medina neighborhoods, Kennaria, Douar Graoua, Sidi Youb, and Lalla Hiya, pack riads into alleys where a wrong turn is half the fun and nightly rates cluster between $39 and $78. Outside the walls, the Ville Nouvelle grid of Gueliz trades labyrinth for wide sidewalks, apartment rentals, and chain pharmacies. The transitional belt, Bab Doukkala and Hay Andalaous, straddles both worlds: close enough to hear the Jemaa el-Fnaa drumming, far enough for a quiet rooftop. At the southern edge, Mechouar Kasbah keeps the palace district quiet after dark. Budget beds concentrate heaviest in Gueliz and the northern medina; the deeper you walk into the souks, the smaller the riads get and the harder they are to find with luggage. Every area below sits within taxi range of Marrakech Menara Airport, and the red petit taxis run flat-fare routes between the medina gates and the Ville Nouvelle.