In this guide
💡 The Short Version: By day Jemaa el-Fnaa is quiet, with juice carts, herbalists and henna artists. The food stalls are set up from about 17:00 and the square is busiest from about 19:00 to 22:00. It is being rebuilt: a 160 million MAD works programme was in its final phase in June 2026, and on 18 September 2026 a tender was published to replace the food stalls with new stands, with bids due by 12 October. Agree every price first, including photos and henna. Do not pay for photos with the chained monkeys or the snakes: the macaques are an endangered species. Use a guide only with an official badge. Or book a tour: the street food tour with a local guidead (from £24, 3 hours) and the street food tour by nightad (from £29, 2.5 to 3 hours) take you round the stalls.
The square by time of day
UNESCO inscribed the square on its list of intangible cultural heritage in 2008. The Koutoubia minaret stands to its west. There is no ticket and no opening time.
Jemaa el-Fnaa by day, seen from above. Photo: Dániel Csörföly, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
| Time | What is happening |
|---|---|
| Morning to early afternoon | The quiet hours: orange-juice carts, herbalists, henna artists and water carriers. |
| From about 17:00 | The food stalls are set up. |
| About 19:00 to 22:00 | The busiest hours: the food stalls, and the storytellers’, musicians’ and dancers’ circles. |
| Ramadan | The food stalls open after sunset, around 19:30 to 20:00. |
- Sunset: the cafés with terraces on the edge of the square are the usual place to watch it, and a drink is expected.
- Koutoubia: non-Muslims cannot enter the mosque. The 77 m minaret and the gardens beside it are the visit.
- Pickpockets: the UK Foreign Office says pickpocketing and bag-snatching are common in medinas. A police station stands on the square.
Jemaa el-Fnaa at dusk, with the Koutoubia minaret on the horizon. Photo: Hamed Gamaoun, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
The rebuild and the food stalls
Al Omrane Marrakech-Safi is rebuilding the square for the authorities, in sectors so that the stalls and performers keep working (MAP, 12 June 2026). The programme costs 160 million MAD.
Orange-juice carts at the edge of Jemaa el-Fnaa. Photo: Alexey Komarov, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0.
- What it includes: new paving in cut natural stone, the Arsat El Bilk garden, reorganised roads and footpaths, a station for the calèches, a tourist information kiosk and public toilets. The work was in its final phase on 11 June 2026.
- The criticism: the paving drew a wave of criticism online, including of grease stains and poor drainage in the food area (Bladi.net, 21 September 2026).
- The carts: new carts for the food and juice sellers came in during spring 2026.
- The stalls: on 18 September 2026 Al Omrane Marrakech-Safi published tender 147/2026, worth 7.68 million MAD, to make, install and connect new stands for the restaurateurs. Bids are due by 12 October 2026, and the notice says nothing of how many stands or when.
Tours worth paying for
A guide takes the choosing out of the food stalls. Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” prices, per person.
A street food tour by day
From £24 · 4.8 stars from 4,155 reviews · 3 hours
Marrakech: Street Food Tour with a Local Guidead is GetYourGuide’s most-reviewed food tour in the city.
A street food tour by night
From £29 (usually £37) · 4.7 stars from 3,233 reviews · 2.5 to 3 hours
Marrakech: Street Food Tour by Nightad goes in the evening, when the square is at its busiest.
A private medina tour by night
From £18 (usually £24) · 4.5 stars from 676 reviews · 2 hours
Marrakech by Night: Private Medina Tour with Local Guidead is a two-hour private walk. Marrakech food tours compares the guided tastings.
What to pay for, and what to skip
Agree the price first. A henna artist who takes your hand and starts before a price is agreed is the commonest complaint. In 2019 a snake charmer demanded 450 MAD from a tourist for one photo and was prosecuted, and the authorities ordered performers, henna artists, guides and taxi drivers on the square to display prices (Le360, 2019). In September 2026 a dried-fruit seller was arrested and his stall closed after asking a tourist for 200 MAD for a small amount of produce (Bladi.net).
Do not pay for photos with the animals. Born Free’s 2025 visit saw at least eight chained Barbary macaques, some in football shirts or nappies, and cobras dragged by the tail (Born Free). The species is endangered and has had the highest protection against international commercial trade since 2016. A petition to Marrakech’s council against the use of animals as photo props had 17,360 signatures on 10 August 2026 (Morocco World News).
Calèches. The carriages wait at a station on the edge of the square. SPANA, the UK charity for working animals, advises choosing a horse that looks fit, with no prominent hips or backbone and no limp, and avoiding any with wounds at the mouth, saddle or harness. Agree the price and the route before you get in.
Guides. Use a guide only with an official badge and permission from the local authority. Marrakech medina tours and licensed guides says how to check.
What to skip: the animals. The storytelling and Gnaoua circles need no payment beyond a tip, and the Jamaâ el-Fna museum, at 40 MAD, covers the square’s history. See Marrakech museums.
Hours, rules and getting there
| Part of the square | When |
|---|---|
| The square | Open at all hours |
| Food stalls | From about 17:00 |
| The Jamaâ el-Fna museum | 10:00 to 18:00, Tuesday to Sunday |
- Dress: cover shoulders and knees. Ask before you photograph people, especially children.
- Getting there: it is the central square of the medina, and a taxi from the airport can set you down there. See Marrakech airport to the medina.
For the Koutoubia and the Kasbah monuments on foot from the square, see the medina walk. The souks start on the north side of the square, and Marrakech medina tours and licensed guides covers guides. Is Marrakech safe? covers scams and dress in full. For the rest of the city’s bookings, see what to book before you go to Marrakech. Marrakech after the earthquake lists what has reopened, and 3 days in Marrakech puts the square at the end of the medina day. To sleep nearby, hotels near Jemaa el-Fnaa lists the hotels beside it, and where to eat in Marrakech lists places to eat. Marrakech food tours compares the guided tastings.
Common questions
What is Jemaa el-Fnaa like by day and by night?
By day it is calmer, with orange-juice carts, herbalists, henna artists and water carriers. The food stalls are set up from about 17:00, and the square is busiest from about 19:00 to 22:00. UNESCO lists it as a place of storytellers, poets, snake charmers, Berber musicians and Gnaoua dancers, all through the day and well into the night.
Is Jemaa el-Fnaa being rebuilt?
Yes. A 160 million MAD requalification by Al Omrane Marrakech-Safi, with new stone paving, the Arsat El Bilk garden, a calèche station, a tourist kiosk and public toilets, was in its final phase in June 2026. On 18 September 2026 a tender was published for new stands for the restaurateurs, with bids due by 12 October.
Should I pay for a photo with the monkeys or snakes?
No. Born Free's 2025 visit saw at least eight chained Barbary macaques, some dressed in football shirts or nappies, and cobras dragged by the tail. The macaque is an endangered species.
How do I avoid being overcharged on Jemaa el-Fnaa?
Agree the price before anything starts, including a photo, a henna design or a performance, or decline. After a snake charmer demanded 450 MAD for one photo in 2019, the authorities ordered performers, henna artists, guides and taxi drivers on the square to display prices.
Is Jemaa el-Fnaa safe at night?
It is crowded, and the UK Foreign Office says pickpocketing and bag-snatching are common in medinas. A police station stands on the square. Keep bags in front of you, and use a guide only with an official badge.
Can I go inside the Koutoubia Mosque?
No. Non-Muslims cannot enter. The 77 m minaret stands west of the square, and the gardens beside it are public.
