Morocco
Marrakech in January
🌤️ Cool seasonPleasant and mostly dry.
🎒 Pack: warm jacket for evenings
Why January scores 9.1What goes into the score
How it works- Weather comfort9.2
- ✓Comfortable temperatures (19°C highs / 6°C lows)
- ✓Comfortable humidity (dew point 1.1°C)
- ✓Mostly dry (~25 mm rain)
- Air quality8.8
- ✓Good (within WHO guideline) (PM2.5 ~12 µg/m³)
- Seasonal hazards10.0
- ·No notable seasonal hazards
- Safety baseline7.5
- ·Increased caution
| Jan | May | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 9.1 Excellent | 9.6 Excellent |
| Season | 🌤️ Cool season | ☀️ Warm dry season |
| High / low | 19° / 6° | 29° / 15° |
| Rain | 25 mm | 11 mm |
| Humidity | dew pt 1° | dew pt 8° |
| PM2.5 | 12 µg/m³ | 5 µg/m³ |
Typical-month data: NASA POWER (MERRA-2 reanalysis) 2015–2024 (modelled, not a forecast). Temperatures: Marrakech weather-station normals. Rainfall: Marrakech weather-station normals (national met service).
Holidays & crowdsJanuary 2027
Long weekendThere's at least one long weekend. Domestic travel picks up and popular spots get busier over those days.
- New Year 1–3 Jan · 3 days off in a row
- Proclamation of Independence Day 9–11 Jan · 3 days off in a row
Other public holidays: Amazigh New Year (14 Jan)
National holidays only; regional holidays and school breaks aren't included. Source: holidays (open-source public-holiday calendar).
Explore MarrakechEvents, sights, food & souvenirs
Check event dates locallyMorocco's former imperial capital, known for its walled medina, busy souks, palaces and gardens, and as a base for trips to the Atlas Mountains.
Marrakech MarathonDate variesUsually late January
An international marathon and half marathon on a flat course around the city.
Why go: Roads close on race morning and hotels fill up that weekend.
Where: City streets and palm grove
Coming up later
Ramadan and Eid al-FitrDate variesIslamic lunar calendar — moves about 11 days earlier each year; around February to March in 2026–2027
The month of daytime fasting, with lively evenings after sunset and celebrations at Eid.
Why go: Some cafes close by day and opening hours shorten, but evenings in the medina are especially busy.
Where: Citywide
Marrakech International Film FestivalDate variesUsually late November to early December
An international film festival with competition screenings and public open-air shows.
Why go: Free screenings are sometimes held on Jemaa el-Fnaa.
Where: Palais des Congrès and Jemaa el-Fnaa
Jemaa el-Fnaa
The main square of the medina, filling with food stalls, musicians and storytellers from late afternoon.
💡 Agree a price before photographing performers or animal handlers.
Jardin Majorelle
A cobalt-blue painted garden of cacti and palms once owned by Yves Saint Laurent, next to the YSL Museum.
💡 Go at opening time to avoid the longest queues.
Bahia Palace
A 19th-century palace with carved cedar ceilings, zellige tilework and courtyards.
Koutoubia Mosque
The city's largest mosque, whose 12th-century minaret is a landmark visible across the medina.
💡 Non-Muslims cannot enter, but the gardens around it are open.
Ben Youssef Madrasa
A former Quranic school with an intricately decorated central courtyard.
Medina souks
A maze of covered market lanes organised by trade, from leather and metalwork to spices.
💡 Bargaining is expected; offline maps help in the lanes.
Tanjia
Marrakech's signature dish of beef or lamb slow-cooked in a clay urn in the embers of a hammam furnace.
💡 Small grill stalls in the medina and around Jemaa el-Fnaa
Tagine
Slow-cooked stew of meat or vegetables with spices, olives, preserved lemon or dried fruit.
Couscous
Steamed semolina with vegetables and meat, traditionally eaten on Fridays.
Harira
A tomato, lentil and chickpea soup, especially popular for breaking the fast in Ramadan.
Mint tea
Sweet green tea with fresh mint, poured from height and offered as a sign of hospitality.
Argan oil
Oil from the argan tree of southwestern Morocco, used for cosmetics and cooking.
💡 Cooperatives and herbalist shops
Leather babouches
Traditional pointed leather slippers in many colours.
💡 Medina souks
Berber rugs
Hand-woven wool rugs made by Amazigh communities.
💡 Rug shops in the medina
Spices
Ras el hanout, saffron and cumin sold loose by weight.
💡 Spice stalls around Rahba Kedima square