6 Gorgeous Morocco AirBnB Riads

After deciding last minute to finally travel solo to Morocco, I scurried about frantically trying to figure out how to plan my route. I’m not going to lie, I was a bit worried about going there alone due to the numerous negative things I heard about people who had been before, and also frustrated that I couldn’t figure out how to find those Instagram-worthy Riads everyone posts photos from. (Spoiler alert: they’re usually fancy hotels).

At first I signed up for a tour, but after reading the itinerary more carefully and cringing at the amount of packed, rushed days it had, I cancelled it…two days before I arrived.

Then it dawned on me! If Riads are traditional Moroccan homes, there must be some on AirBnB! Holy crap was I right!

Not only did I find some amazing places, but I discovered a way to safely travel solo in Morocco! 

If you’ve never used AirBnB before, first of all, please use my code, because you get a discount, and I get travel credit, which I clearly need: www.airbnb.com/c/alyssar68

Second of all, I’ve stayed at A LOT of AIrBnB’s all over the world and typically always have an awesome experience. It takes a bit more effort to coordinate with hosts sometimes, but that’s not always a bad thing! In fact, that’s what made my solo travel trip to Morocco so easy — the AirBnB hosts helped arrange transportation, guides, and some even showed me around!

So without further ado, here are the awesome AirBnB’s I stayed at while traveling solo in Morocco! Note: they are in the order that I stayed at them in, not the order of favorites!

1. The Queen’s Room Riad in Meknes

Name: The Queens Room Meknes Riad

Cost: $30

City: Meknes

My first AirBnb experience in Morocco had me grinning like the Cheshire Cat and reveling in my genius-ness for coming up with this idea. The Riad was absolutely stunning, and probably the most bougie, ornate place I’ve seen.

The owner went above and beyond to decorate the home like a traditional wealthy Riad would be, hence the name of the room I stayed in: The Queen’s Room. You can rent out the rooms on the top floor individually, or you can rent out the entire family area downstairs as well.

Extra perks were that it included a traditional Moroccan breakfast with fresh fruit and tea, which the awesome super host and house manager shared with me.

Speaking of the host, I have to give a massive shout out to Imad! This young man is not only the nicest person ever, but beyond helpful and respectful as well. Imad personally came to the bus station to meet me (a gesture I GREATLY appreciated since it was my first time taking the bus), taught me how much taxi’s should be and which ones to take, then walked around the Medina with me all day!

2. The Real Life Palace in Fes

Name: Room in a Palace

Cost: $27-30

City: Fes

When I say “real life Palace” I literally mean, this is a real life Palace in Fes. It was built in 1906 for the Prime Minister, and was actually the first home in Morocco to have electricity! I know all of this because the host, Tayeb, is the great-grandson of said Prime Minister, and told me everything!

The palace has 100 rooms, but only 6 have been renovated so far for guests. Let me say that again…this palace is so massive that there are 100 rooms…94 of which haven’t even been touched yet AKA need me to go exploring in them.

But, as much as I tried to convince Tayeb to let me see what was behind the grand doors of what I was sure was a ballroom, he reiterated that it probably wasn’t safe…or maybe it’s because it’s haunted!

Just kidding…if you saw my Instagram stories of me freaking out because of the wind trying to unlock my door and crazy cat freaking out outside of my room (out of all 100 rooms), you know what I’m talking about. If you didn’t, well, maybe you should be following me on Instagram!

Anyway. you can tell the Prime Minister was a super wealthy dude, because the walls, floors, columns, fountains, even the bathrooms are all covered in traditional Morrocan hand-cut mosaic tiles. Also, the ceiling in some of the main rooms and along the outdoor hallways are all made of hand carved Oak!

The palace sits perched atop a hill that overlooks Fes (bonus points) and is somewhat walking distance to a small Medina. To get to the main Medina or to the popular sites like the famous Tannery, the pottery workshop, and the King’s Gate, you’d have to take a cab.

Speaking of which…unlike my first AirBnB host who advised me never to pay more than $2 for a cab…this place arranged one for $8, and the same one took me around town and charged me $30. I didn’t complain since I had no idea how to get to the address (and because I travel for a living), but just so you know, the cab should cost a lot less!

3. The Medina House in Chefchaouen

Name: Traditional House in the Heart of Chefchaouen

Cost: $50-60

City: Chefchaouen

Chefchaouen, also known as the “Blue City” is not easy to get to, but it’s definitely worth trying to. This stunning little town nestled amidst the Riff Mountains gets its appeal because the majority of its buildings are painted various shades of blue.

Naturally, my genius plan was to stay right smack in the middle of it so I could get the best photos, and without even knowing it, I picked the AirBnB’s with THE best locations!

The Medina House is literally just a few meters from the famous Instagram street everyone takes photos at, and comes complete with two bedrooms, a kitchen, fireplace, and huge terrace that looks out over the Medina.

It has beautiful stained glass windows that really light up the whole place, and a location that’s relatively quiet considering its place in the market. The hosts are super nice and communicative, and made sure someone met me at a meeting point when I arrived from the bus station to show me how to get there and give me a key.

They also informed me of how much a cab should be (15 Dh) and gave me a contact for a local guide if I needed one.

4. The Best View 5 Story Riad in Chefchaouen

Name: Dar Lalla Chafia

Cost: $40-50

City: Chefchaouen

My second AirBnB in Chefchaouen was located in the more busy area of the Medina, but it had some seriously awesome perks. I actually was highly amused by this place and had a lot of fun in it!

For starters, it’s 5 stories high. But it’s not huge; it just has one single room on each floor!  The ground floor has a toilet, the second floor has the bedroom, the third has the kitchen and the bathroom with shower, the fourth is a traditional raid-style living room (a couch that lines the walls), and the fifth is a small terrace with the best view of the city that I saw!

The host was very communicative via email to coordinate getting there, and offered to come get me from my current place so I wouldn’t get lost. I was convinced I’d be able to find it though and attempted to on my own, but then realized I couldn’t call him to tell him I was there. Luckily though, local people are really nice (albeit may try to sell you hash or a tour) and called him for me to come let me in!

5. The Marrakech Medina Riad with Super Fun Host

Name: Riad Calista

Cost: $30-70

City: Marrakech

Not going to lie, I booked all of these Morocco AirBnB’s last minute, and waited until the day before to try and book my Riads in Marrakech. So the fact that they were available, and that the hosts promptly communicated with me to arrange my stay was really exceptionally awesome!

So anyway, while perusing through the Marrakech AirBnB’s, I was mostly looking for a place with a really cool courtyard pool. The first one I found was amazing, especially since the host, Hind, was so friendly! She let me check in way before the designated check-in time, and brought me Moroccan tea and snacks twice a day! She even let me borrow her hair dryer (plus offered her own brush and straightener), AND did my laundry (massive bonus points)!

The Riad itself is small but nice, with about 6 rooms, a small pool in the middle courtyard, and a nice terrace for tanning and sunset views. It’s in a super quiet area that’s about 20 minutes from the main crazy Medina, but Hind always had some awesome Moroccan mood-setting music playing or the Muslim prayer song during prayer time.

Since it’s far from the main Medina, the area is relatively safe, but still has a few souks (little shop stalls), and places to eat. For those of you who are like me and can’t haggle for shit, there’s also a massive fixed-price market one block away! There’s also a really good/trendy restaurant called Cafe Clock nearby!

6. The Marrakech Riad Plus Hammam

Name: Jardina d’Henia

Cost: $60-70

City: Marrakech

I was really excited that I found this place last minute, because I probably wouldn’t have gone to a Hammam if not. Oh I should probably mention what that is…a Hammam is a traditional Moroccan bath house where someone scrubs you down and makes your skin “like a shiny new baby” (according to my Medina guide/body guard…more on him here).

I should also mention that this was my first time getting a body scrub even though I’ve been to many countries where it’s offered, and I only felt comfortable doing it here since it was AT the place I was staying. They also offered a really good special of 350 Dh (about $35) for a 30 minute scrub and 1 hour massage… But anyway, since it was at my Riad/hotel I felt comfortable getting naked (well, just topless), scrubbed down, Argan oiled up, then running back to my room to shower.

Aside from the built-in Hammam, this Riad also has a really cool courtyard pool with a tiled mosaic on the floor of it, plus a freaking fountain, IN the pool! There’s also a restaurant which serves breakfast (included), lunch and dinner, AND!!! Also serves wine, which is a big deal since most places don’t since Morocco is a Muslim country!

So yeah! If you’re looking for an awesome, unique, and local way to experience Morocco, not to mention a safe way to travel solo here, definitely check out some of the AirBnB’s I stayed at, and even more on their site! Again, this post is in no way sponsored by AirBnB (WOMP), so if you enjoyed it, please consider signing up through my link, or using any of the other affiliate links on this post! Thank you!!!

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Interested in having me plan a trip for you? Email me at info@mylifesamovie.com with the subject “Plan My Morocco Trip”!