in the shade by the pool!
September and October are good times to visit for snow-free ascents of peaks. However, this is the walnut-harvest season, and the remoter villages – which are heavily dependent on this cash crop – may be reluctant to see their men leave the harvest to assist you with mule support.
Festivals and holidays
Morocco celebrates a number of world, political and religious holidays. The dates on which these holidays fall can be found on internet sites such as www.worldtravelguide.net.
World holidays such as New Year and May Day affect little in the way of street life. Banks and offices are closed, but apart from that you won't notice much difference.
Political holidays, such as Independence Day, the king's birthday and the Green March, mean a lot of flags in the streets, and more offices and some shops closed, but again life continues pretty much as normal, particularly in the mountain villages.
Religious holidays, other than the end of Ramadan (Eid el-Fitr) or the killing of the sheep (Eid el-Kbir or Eid al-Adha), will again pass pretty much unnoticed. The two Eids will affect your trip, as may the fasting month of Ramadan (see box for the dates of these religious events).
The Islamic calendar, to which all the religious festivals are linked, is lunar based. This means that religious holidays are approximately 11 days earlier each year. Again the dates of these holidays can be found on the internet. A word of warning, however – although the dates for the two Eids appear to be set, there is always a degree of uncertainty on the ground of the exact dates, because Morocco is one of the last countries in the world that relies on an actual moon sighting rather than on a moon calendar. If the moon isn't or can't be seen, then the holiday is deferred to the next day.
Approximate Dates of Main Islamic Religious Festivals (2011-2015)
2011
Ramadan begins 1 Aug
Eid-el-Fitr (end of Ramadan) 30 Aug
Eid-al-Adha 6 Nov
2012
Ramadan begins 20 July
Eid-el-Fitr 19 Aug
Eid-al-Adha 26 Oct
2013
Ramadan begins 9 July
Eid-el-Fitr 8 Aug
Eid-al-Adha 15 Oct
2014
Ramadan begins 28 June
Eid-el-Fitr 28 July
Eid-al-Adha 4 Oct
2015
Ramadan begins 18 June
Eid-el-Fitr 17 July
Eid-al-Adha 23 Sept
Ramadan
Ramadan is the Islamic month of fasting, and Muslims are required to refrain from eating, drinking and smoking from dawn to sunset. Regardless of whether you are trekking with a commercial group or organising the trip yourself, you should, out of respect for Moroccans, avoid eating, smoking or drinking in public places during the day. Visitors often wonder about the effects of Ramadan and whether it is wise to go trekking or climbing at this time.
The village of Islane (Routes 1-3)
If you are travelling with a large commercially organised party, then Ramadan will probably have very little effect on your trip. You may be aware of the local staff getting up early (before sunrise) to eat and drink and then gathering together with other Moroccans at sunset to drink askif or harira (soup) and eat dates and some bread. In addition, you'll observe them not eating, drinking or smoking during the day. As your in-country travel will be pre-organised, minibuses should be there for you at the appointed time.
A self-organised trip will be a different experience, and there are a number of factors to consider.
Are you undertaking long routes that will exhaust local support staff who are unable to drink during the day?
Who is going to prepare your lunch?
Are you prepared to be flexible as regards transport availability?
How much interaction do you anticipate having with locals in the mountains, and can you adjust to their timescale?
Are you prepared to travel in public transport without drinking or smoking?
If you're hiring a car and driving around the country, are you prepared for all cafés and restaurants in non-tourist areas to be closed?
There are some other aspects to be aware of during Ramadan.
Banks will open an hour later in the morning and close mid-afternoon.
Alcohol is not available in supermarkets, and off-licences are closed from three days before Ramadan until three days after the Eid (celebrations at the end of Ramadan). It is available to foreigners in licensed restaurants, but sometimes the bar or restaurant might run out of some drinks.
The Djemaa-el-Fna in Marrakech really comes alive after sundown, and everyone will be out and about eating and enjoying themselves. Sounds great, but not if you're trying to get somewhere by a certain time!
It will be almost impossible to get a taxi after about 5pm until after f'tour (the breaking of the fast meal at sundown), as everyone will be rushing to get home.
The celebration at the end of Ramadan, Eid el-Fitr, is the second biggest event in the Islamic calendar (after Eid el-Kbir). Eid el-Fitr lasts around three days, and most shops, banks and offices will be closed. Obtaining mule support or organising the start of a trip during this time may be difficult.
In summary, if you are prepared to adapt, be really sensitive to local culture (and particularly in the conservative countryside) and be flexible with regard to transport times and so on, then this can be a very rewarding time to visit.
Eid al-Adha
The ‘big Eid’, in Morocco called Eid el-Kbir or Tafaska (Berber), commemorates the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience to God, and the fact that he was instead able to sacrifice a ram. It varies from country to country as to how it is celebrated, but in Morocco this is a time for family. Each household will sacrifice a ram or a male goat, or possibly both depending on the family's ability to afford the animals.
Except in the most touristy areas of Marrakech, everything else will come to a standstill for the first day at least. In some towns it can take up to a week for things to return to normal. Starting a trip that is reliant on local staffing to any degree during this time will be fraught with difficulty and probable time delays. Organising a trip that runs either side of Eid el-Kbir will need careful consideration and prior discussion with any locals
