New Update 9/3/24

Morocco during Ramadan time may well add some spice to your local experience, but certainly not spoil it. So relax and read.

Before booking your ticket to Morocco you may well have wondered what the dates of the upcoming Ramadan may be… Or not…
In the first case, you may probably have decided to postpone your trip, in the other, you might well be worrying about what you should be expecting.

In Morocco, during Ramadan, life goes on.

Life goes on nearly as usual during Ramadan.

Muslims are used to observing Ramadan fasting since the dawn of time, as they have been fasting since their early teens.
So you needn’t worry, you will be able to stroll the souks and stick to your schedule almost as planned.

The cafes for tourists in the medina of Fez and Marrakech, are open as usual . You will even find tables outside on the terrace. You may feel uncomfortable sitting there, but don’t hesitate. The restaurant is open, and ready to serve you.
Throughout Morocco, hotels and restaurants continue to serve normally for lunch and dinner, although few restaurants may be closed during the day.

Some arrangements may well be necessary

Ramadan is a month of prayer and contemplation.

You should therefore expect extra energy from the Imam of the mosque during the calls to prayer. Fifteen to twenty minutes of the muezzin singing is not uncommon at sunrise.

We therefore recommend you bring your earplugs with you, if you are a light sleeper and if your hotel is not equipped with double-glazing.

There are 300 mosques in the medina of Fez, so you riad is most probably to close to one go them..

The month of Ramadan: a month of sharing.

From a spirit of sharing, Ramadan has increasingly turned to a shared festive spirit. The modern tradition is to invite and be invited nearly every evening. The result is a never ending upscaling in terms of the quantity and refinement of the dishes served.

The fast-breaking tables overflow with delicacies. Soups, eggs, pastries, stuffed batbouts, the choice is so huge, that it is impossible to list everything. It is not uncommon to even serve sushis in the poshest homes.
Consequently, it is most likely you will not be able to taste from everything, should you even have fasted a whole day. This meal served at sunset is called “Ftour”, in other words, breakfast. That says it all about what is considered as the start of the day during Ramadan.

Later, around midnight or even 1am, dinner is being served. The table is then filled with brochettes, salads, tagines, fruits, cakes and desserts of all kinds.

All hotels and riads offer a Ftour menu. It is the opportunity of a lifetime to immerse into the deepest of Moroccan culture.
As you can see, in Morocco during Ramadan, people stay up late, very late and go to sleep full, very full…

Expect some disturbances in Morocco during Ramadan

Firstly, do not plan your visits too early. The souks and bazaars are sleeping. Before 11am you will see only closed doors, and afternoons, around 5pm, the shops close. Employees and bazar owners rush home to take a nap and prepare the “Ftour”.

In the tanneries of Fez, where work is exhausting, and all the more so with the sun and the fast, working time are reduced to a minimum. Expect them to close at about 3pm.

Shoud you have planned a visit by car with a driver, your driver will have indicated to you a timetable adapted to Ramadan time. Please be understanding and do not ask him to make long stops or unexpected last-minute hooks.

Unfortunately, in Morocco during Ramadan, you may also find yourself witnessing one or two brawls, at the end of the day. It is never really serious, although the shouting may sound quite impressive. These street fights are not an unusual experience, and are mostly linked to tiredness linked to short nights and frustration, especially for smokers.

Yet the frustration might well affect you in a certain way too…

Indeed, one thing is quite different for Ramadan tourists: they are on an alcohol-free diet.
Alcohol retailers are closed and hotels are not allowed to sell alcohol during the holy month of the Ramadan. This is an opportunity to make up for the calories in your glass of wine with a few extra gazelle horns.
But isn’t the party more fun without alcohol…?

Festive nights in Morocco during Ramadan

Later, after breaking the fast, people will then gather to play cards in homes or meet friends at the cafes, that will remain open until dawn. They will stay there throughout the night, drinking mint tea, coffee and, of course, smoking.
They talk, play cards, checkers or backgammon until the end of the night in an atmosphere of laughter and wisps of smoke.
Sometimes, shop-keepers even reopen their stalls, as the narrow streets of the medina fill with onlookers and children.

So it is very clear that Ramadan will bring a special touch to your discovery of the country.
Do not fear that your stay in Morocco during Ramadan might be spoiled, on the contrary, it might even be enriched with an extra authenticity.

However, if you are not the kind to want to change your habits, then perhaps, postponing your trip may be wiser.