Kasbah Leila

“Warning! Terrible experience – absolutely not recommended I stayed at this hotel in the desert with a group, and it was one of the worst experiences I’ve ever had. The water coming out of the tap was brown and completely undrinkable (see photo). The hygiene standards were unacceptable – dirty rooms, moldy areas, and a terrible smell. Even worse was the behavior of the staff: several employees were clearly drunk and tried to approach the women in our group in a very inappropriate and aggressive way. Some even attempted to enter their rooms. This was not only disrespectful but also deeply unsafe. One person in our group burned her hand, and not a single staff member offered any help or showed any concern. There was a complete lack of responsibility and care. Overall, the experience was disturbing, unhygienic, and inhumane. I strongly advise against booking this hotel.”

“My experience at this desert camp was one of the most horrifying and unsafe experiences I’ve ever had while traveling. I cannot emphasize this enough: DO NOT stay at this camp. It is not safe, especially for women. The conditions are inhumane, the staff are dangerous, and the atmosphere is one of fear, manipulation, and threat. I am shocked and deeply disturbed that no one in our group ended up missing or dead. To start, the camp had limited electricity, brown running water, and shower water that caused second- and third-degree burns to one of my friends. There was no first aid kit available, and no medical assistance was offered. That alone would be enough to call this place uninhabitable. But far worse were the dangerous, inappropriate, and predatory actions of the camp workers. They repeatedly asked us for alcohol, and their behavior became disturbingly inappropriate and threatening. The men followed women around, knocked on their doors late at night claiming to be security, and made explicit comments in Arabic about wanting to hook up with drunk girls. Even worse, they turned off all lights in the main guest area of the camp, leaving only the workers’ camp illuminated—a clear and deliberate tactic to lure women toward them. When some of us wandered toward the only lights for safety, they chased us with flashlights, yelling for us to come into their area. The next night, the same exact thing happened again. When I questioned why the lights in the guest camp were off, I was told they weren’t working. Only after repeated demands did they finally admit they had purposely turned them off—and then turned them back on. It was a calculated, predatory setup, and it felt like we were being hunted. Avoid this place at all costs—and if you care about the safety of travelers, especially women, spread the word. This camp deserves to be exposed and shut down before someone ends up seriously hurt—or worse, doesn’t make it home.”

“The food, especially the breakfast, was one of the best I had in Morocco. As far as the owner tries to defend himself about alcohol I remember how he came at the breakfast with some bottles of alcohol and tried to sell to some people a bottle for 100€. I mean, if you don't want people to drink, why offer it in the first place? Also, I don't know if the owner travels outside his country, but you can bring your own alcohol to any hotel and even request glasses. I worked in the hospitaly sector and this is how is done all over the world. The rooms could have been better, expected worse since it is "in the desert." But if you look around to other places around the desert, you can find people doing a better job. They better be better than this one. I am not really sure. Do you have the moment you wanted to sell alcohol also on camera? Personally, I haven't drunk any, but the manager should offer better instructions to his man. Also, why did your man drink at their job? I thought muslims never drink alcohol or they are not allowed. Is that also a problem for the students? Nobody will request his money back. The review is for any other future clients to see how people were treated here. On the other hand, I don't think they ever used a vacuum cleaner inside since that kind of dust dosen't go with the brush only. As far as the room were constructed, it was really hot in the day and very cold in the night even though they were made out of clay, I guess. We even had a hole in the roof, but that was a minor issue since it never rained inside. I could have guessed that they were not preprepared to host that many people since they didn't have running water, and when they did it was it was not safe to wash your hands. We had to flush the toilet with a 5L empty gallon since the toilet was not working. My humble question is why you would build so many houses with electricity, plumbing, and water if it can not function at the same time? About the pool, no one dared to enter it since it looked how it looked. The guys that wore reponsible for the camal ride only drove us for 9 minutes in the dunes and left us there and never came for us back, and we had to walk back to the "hotel". I think the place could have looked a lot worse and have an even lower standard of living, and I wouldn't have minded since it is " in the desert or very close to it. But they brand themselves as a luxury place, and the manager/owner is delusional and treats his clients badly. It looked more likely that we stayed there for free since how we go treated.

“Wish I could leave a 0 star review. This "luxury camp" was anything but that. The facilities included a lack of electricity, no running water, an indescribably dirty "pool" and workers who enjoy harassing any female visitors. Not only were the facilities less than inadequate (definitely no where near advertised), but we also did not even have enough beds for our group - even though we were assured beforehand that there was plenty of accommodation for everyone. Instead, the "staff" brought out some cushions wrapped in plastic- what a joke. The females in our group were severely harassed by the workers at the camp, the lunch was incredibly expensive for less than nothing- there is no access to other food, and there was not even a basic first aid kit. Furthermore, there was a camel ride offered for a fee which resulted in us being left stranded in the desert during a sandstorm (they said they were leaving and would come back for us but just never did :))))). To make matters even worse, I received second and third-degree burns from the shower water that I will now be permanently scarred from- oh joy. And they were kind enough to provide me literally no medical care or even some gauze or ibuprofen- literally nothing! (will attach photos but they are kind of gross so be aware). Oh and I couldn't even wash my hand with clean water to get some relief from my severe burns because the only water that worked (occasionally) was brown! I wouldn't wish my worst enemy to stay at this "establishment". And for context, I am a frequent hiker, backpacker, and traveler. I have traveled in several underdeveloped countries and have never had such a horrible experience in my life. Good luck to anyone planning to stay here, stay safe!”

“What an awful experience! The electricity and water came and went the whole time, so we never knew if we would be able to turn the lights on, flush the toilet or wash our hands at any given moment. The water was off for nearly the whole day on our second day. Something was wrong with the shower in one of the rooms and a girl from our group got really badly burnt, it blistered and everything. The hotel staff responded to her review by calling her a liar and accusing her of being drunk. This is very deceitful of them - I saw her wounds myself and she took pictures. They took us on a camel ride out into the desert, where the riders tried to pressure us into buying things. When we didn't, they left us there and we had to walk back. Some of the hotel workers harassed us for our alcohol. I was warned against this by my tour guide because drinking is not very common in Morocco and thus alcohol can really affect the locals, more so than people who are used to drinking. However, this information was not communicated to everyone, so some on our tour capitulated and shared their drinks. The workers then got quite intoxicated and were inappropriate towards some of the women in our group. The hotel has made some very untrue responses to other reviews from my group - stating that we were drinking when this wasn't allowed. However, I went as part of a group tour and we were specifically told that we could bring our own alcohol. We were consuming it moderately out in the open, no one said anything about this not being allowed. The only people who were getting messy drunk were the hotel employees. All in all, this was a terrible experience and I wanted to warn other travellers from staying here.”

“What can I say, I felt so welcomed into this beautiful desert family. Amazing food and the location is 💯 I got the opportunity to play local music with them and I learned Arabic+Berber so fast. Amazing vibes and cool people. So much love. I hope to come back for a longer time next time”