- Morocco Holidays
- Agadir
- Sofitel Agadir Royal Bay Resort
This hotel is located in a superb palm-fringed bay, on a magnificent beach of fine golden sand. The white city of Agadir is the oasis of the south, where an exceptional alliance reigns between the Arab, Berber and Tuareg cultures. The hotel is a genuine jewel of the Atlantic coast. Its architecture, refined interiors and its riad inspired by the Caravanserai form a harmonious combination. For evening entertainment there is a casino and a disco on hand. Themed dinners are offered as part of the evening entertainment. This hotel offers guests the option of combining business with pleasure and provides all the advantages of a large business centre. This hotel is an ideal venue for land-based and water sports.
We’ve had a generally enjoyable stay at the Sofitel Royal Bay Agadir. There’s quite a lot to like about the hotel, but also several things that, particularly for a hotel at this level and price point, really need addressing. The good The hotel is nicely presented and has a very chilled, relaxed atmosphere. It certainly isn’t rowdy, which was a big positive for us. The pool area is large with plenty of sunbeds, and the staff have generally been very friendly and welcoming. Our room was cleaned every day, and we particularly liked the nightly turndown service. Coming back to find slippers placed by the bed and camomile tea ready for a good night’s sleep was a lovely touch and gave the hotel that little bit of extra luxury. Where it falls short Although attractive, parts of the hotel are starting to feel dated and in need of maintenance. Some of that maintenance was quite literally happening around us! On one occasion, somebody was painting our sunbed and the base of our sunshade while we were actually lying there. Nothing quite says relaxing afternoon by the pool like the smell of fresh paint! More concerning is the condition of the swimming pool. Tiles are coming away in numerous places, leaving loose/sharp pieces on the bottom and large areas of exposed, rough grout. This isn’t simply cosmetic and really does need addressing. Entertainment There was generally live entertainment in the evening, which was better than we’d perhaps expected. Typically, there would be a singer, followed by dancers, and then the singer would return afterwards. The whole thing probably lasted around an hour in total. It was pleasant enough and gave you something to watch while having an evening drink, although it wasn’t really a full evening’s entertainment. Some more variety from night to night would have been welcome. Our room was noisy Unfortunately, our room was in a very noisy location. Sound travelled considerably through the corridors and between floors—we could hear music, people playing pool and pretty much everything else going on above and below us. To be fair, things generally quietened down at around 11:30pm, so it wasn’t an all-night problem, but it is worth bearing in mind if you’re an early sleeper or particularly sensitive to noise. Food and breakfast We stayed bed and breakfast. The breakfast selection was OK overall, with a reasonable range to choose from, and the freshly cooked omelettes were particularly good. That said, I did have some concerns about hygiene around the uncovered food. Birds were literally sitting on the bread and cakes and pecking away at them. It might look fairly harmless, but what goes into a bird inevitably has to come out somewhere too! Personally, I avoided those sections of the buffet after seeing that. There was also the option of having an evening meal at the hotel for around £40 per person, excluding drinks, which we thought was very expensive. We chose to eat out instead and found we could have two-course meals plus drinks for the two of us for around half the price of just the hotel meals. Given the choice and the number of places to eat elsewhere, eating out represented far better value for us. Gluten-free food needs some serious thought My wife is gluten intolerant, and unfortunately this was one of the more disappointing aspects of our stay. There is a small gluten-free selection, which initially sounds positive. However, there isn’t a separate toaster or adequate separation to prevent cross-contamination, which rather defeats the purpose. We tried explaining our concerns to staff but didn’t really feel they listened to or understood the issue. If you’re going to advertise gluten-free food, there needs to be a proper process behind it—not simply gluten-free products placed alongside everything else. Very expensive food and drinks More generally, be prepared for very high prices once you’re in the resort. A can of Coke was around £4. You receive one complimentary bottle of water per person each day, but additional water is chargeable. As another example, one chicken wrap, a crumble-type dessert and two Cokes cost us approximately £32. We expected hotel/resort prices, but even allowing for that, we felt food and drinks were extremely expensive for what you actually received. Pool towels Initially, getting beach/pool towels in the morning was surprisingly difficult because the pool staff didn’t appear until mid-morning. We raised this with management and, credit where it’s due, they acted on the feedback. By around day four the situation had noticeably improved. It was good to see that when an issue was raised, something was actually done about it. Overall There’s a lot we like about the Sofitel Royal Bay. It’s clean, attractive and relaxing, with friendly staff, a lovely big pool area and some genuinely thoughtful touches such as the evening turndown service. However, there are also issues that stop it feeling as polished as it should for a hotel at this level. The deteriorating pool is probably the biggest concern, along with maintenance taking place immediately around guests, noise, the arrangements for gluten-free food and cross-contamination, hygiene around uncovered breakfast food, and very high food and drink prices. We enjoyed the chilled atmosphere and there are certainly plenty of positives. With more attention to maintenance and some of the practical details, though, this could be a considerably better hotel and a much stronger luxury experience.
Every morning me and my girlfriend would go down for breakfast and received the best service from Ilyasse and the place all over is really nice lovely with lovely views
Location: On the edge of the tourist area of Agidir, the hotel sits quietly away from the busiest areas and is a 40 minute walk or a quick taxi ride into the marine or city center. Atmosphere: The hotel doesn't appear busy (although the entire rally de maroc community and racing teams arrived for several days whilst we were here which made it very noisy and busy) and sunbeds and seating were plentiful. Very chilled out vibes and very relaxing. Pool area: towel boys nowhere to be seen for first few mornings. People complained and it did get better. Loads of bed comfy beds, never struggled to get a position we liked. We all like a nice pool and the pool area is a good size but, its literally falling apart. We had seen pictures of missing tiles before we left but its really quite bad, sharp tiles and grout underfoot throughout the majory of the pool. Very disappointing in a hotel that boasts being 'luxury'. This should be addressed urgently. We popped to the hotel next door (another sofitel hotel) and the pool was immaculate. Towels rolled up and ready on every sunbed...that's what luxury means. Rooms: spacious and clean, the housekeepers do a great job. Shower was amazing! Bidet plug didn't open so was unusable. We really liked the evening turn down service with bed prepared for sleeping, tea and slippers next to bed ready for a good sleep. Beds were comfy however, there is a duvet or something under the bottom sheet which created a big hump in the middle of the bed. Very odd and not sure what that's about? Do have to say though that our room was quite noisy. The room corridors are open so any noise from above or below is heard...that includes people playing pool or music from the main hall. Due to the rally crowd we were woken early several days and kept awake late several nights which was disappointing. Food: We were bed and breakfast and the breakfast was OK. Lots of cakes, pastries, chees fruit etc. Cooked omellettes and pancakes, fresh juices were nice. Waiting staff were nice and friendly and gave good recommendations for places to visit (thanks Ilyass). One negative about food and drink overall is the price. It's very expensive! About £4 for a coke. We ordered one chicken wrap and a dessert to share with 2 cokes...it was £32! But as we were bed and breakfast we went out every day and this is were you really notice the price difference. Locally, 2 starters, 2 mains, 4 drinks was about £40. The hotel offer and evening meal option for around £40 per head excluding drinks so it is very expensive if here for more than a couple of days. Only one waiter walking around so can be quite a wait for service around pool. All staff were polite and friendly and they all work hard. The staff are a credit and made us welcome. Overall: hotel feels a little dated, pool needs urgent attention, food although good is expensive for what it is. Atmosphere chilled and relaxed. We've enjoyed our break but not entirely what we hoped for. Feels more like a hotel for 2-3 nights rather than a week or more.
A pleasant hotel with good staff and excellent breakfasts
Our stay at Sofitel was truly unforgettable! From the moment we arrived, everything felt flawless - the hotel is pristine, well-run, and the management's hard work is evident in every detail.
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Yassine from the restaurant team. He provided impeccable service with such warmth and professionalism. His friendly attitude and careful attention made our dining moments exceptional.
A big thank you to everyone - we are leaving with wonderful memories and we will definitely recommend Sofitel to our friends and family. See you soon!
