Morocco: Club Val d’Anfa Hotel in Casablanca

At least the hotel was a 2 minute walk from the beach.

We spent our last two days in Morocco at Club Val d’Anfa Hotel, located in the La Corniche / Aïn Diab section of Casablanca. The hotel sits at the corner of Boulevard Ocean and Boulevard Corniche, and backs up to the beach. You can even see the ocean from some of the hotel’s rooms.

Its proximity to the beach, however, means that it’s pretty far from the center of the city. Taxis are cheap, but if your plan is to hit the Habous or visit the Hassan II Mosque, you are better off staying somewhere else.

The room was clean, and nicely outfitted with twin beds, a minibar and satellite television. All rooms also come with free WiFi, and it’s pretty reliable. Some of the bed linens were old and worn, but the beds were quite comfortable.

The hotel itself was in the midst of being renovated. Contractors were working on the hallway outside of our room. We were there on the weekend, so work noise was minimal. Unfortunately that’s not the only source of noise at Club Val d’Anfa Hotel. The neighborhood surrounding the hotel features lots of nightclubs, bars and restaurants. It’s also very close to a major intersection. Saturday night, we heard lots of honking horns and loud bus motors, even though we were on the third floor and our windows were closed.

It got better — or should I say worse? Our room was also over a Moroccan restaurant that featured a roughly 45-minute belly dance performance. Ordinarily, this would not be a problem. But according to S., the music was so loud Saturday night that the room was vibrating (I managed to sleep through it thanks to some Tylenol PM and a serious cold).

The worst part is that when S. went down to talk to the front desk about the noise, they shrugged it off, telling her it would be over in 30 minutes. Now while I don’t expect the hotel to shut down the restaurant because we wanted to sleep (it was about 10 or 11 pm local time when the music started), I do expect better soundproofing and/or a room that isn’t directly over a restaurant that plays music loud enough to make your bed thump.

Given the location and the noise, I’d suggest passing on a stay at Club Val d’Anfa.