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The climate month by month, region by region — and the tour that matches it.
Morocco does not have one climate, it has four at the same time. On the same 15 January, people are skiing at Oukaïmeden, lunching on a terrace in Marrakech, sheltering from rain in Chefchaouen and kitesurfing in Dakhla. Answering “spring” to the question “when should I go?” therefore gets you nowhere. Here are the real figures, region by region, and what we actually do with them when we build your journey.
March-April-May and September-October-November: these are the six months in which you can combine the imperial cities, the desert, the Atlas and the ocean in a single journey. From December to February, the South and the desert are superb by day, but the nights are cold and the North is wet. In July and August, inland Morocco becomes very hot: we then take you to the Atlantic coast, the North, or the Atlas valleys, where it is 22 to 30 °C.
Monthly averages over the 1991-2020 reference period, for six towns each standing for one of our regions. Red cells mark the months whose average exceeds 33 °C.
| Place | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MarrakechImperial cities | 19 | 21 | 24 | 26 | 30 | 34 | 38 | 37 | 32 | 28 | 23 | 20 |
| FezImperial cities | 16 | 17 | 20 | 22 | 27 | 31 | 35 | 35 | 30 | 26 | 20 | 17 |
| OuarzazateDesert & kasbahs | 17 | 19 | 23 | 27 | 31 | 35 | 39 | 37 | 33 | 28 | 22 | 18 |
| TangierNorth | 17 | 17 | 19 | 21 | 24 | 27 | 29 | 30 | 27 | 25 | 20 | 18 |
| Chefchaouen*Rif | 17 | 18 | 19 | 21 | 23 | 27 | 30 | 30 | 28 | 24 | 20 | 18 |
| EssaouiraAtlantic coast | 19 | 19 | 20 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 20 |
* Chefchaouen: figures from the Tetouan station, 60 km away in the same Rif, as no published records exist for Chefchaouen itself. Chefchaouen being inland and higher up, it is in fact somewhat hotter there in summer.
What about the Atlas? No mountain station publishes usable normals for Imlil or the Ourika valley, and we would rather not print figures we cannot source. What we do observe on the ground: the Ourika and Imlil stay very cool in high summer — they are the refuge an hour from Marrakech when the plain is stifling — and they are lovely in spring and autumn. As soon as you gain altitude, the values in this table no longer apply.
| Place | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marrakech | 30 | 40 | 40 | 40 | 25 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 25 | 40 | 30 |
| Fez | 60 | 54 | 59 | 55 | 38 | 11 | 1 | 5 | 22 | 54 | 66 | 62 |
| Ouarzazate | 4 | 20 | 13 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 10 | 19 | 11 | 10 | 13 |
| Tangier | 100 | 60 | 60 | 60 | 50 | 15 | 2 | 2 | 20 | 85 | 125 | 135 |
| Chefchaouen* | 93 | 87 | 73 | 62 | 30 | 8 | 1 | 5 | 29 | 75 | 92 | 100 |
| Essaouira | 45 | 40 | 35 | 30 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 25 | 50 | 55 |
For scale: London receives roughly 600 mm of rain a year. Tangier takes 125 mm in the month of November alone — and Ouarzazate 10 mm over the same month.
These averages describe thirty years of climate. They do not describe what you will experience on any given day. With climate change, exceptional temperatures — far removed from the normals — are now being observed almost everywhere, and Morocco is no exception.
The facts, here: 47.6 °C recorded in Marrakech on 22-25 July 2025 against an average of 38 °C; 44.5 °C in Errachidia and 43.2 °C in Ouarzazate the same week; 43.4 °C in Chefchaouen in July 2024. In 2026, the national weather service issued alerts for 45 to 47 °C in late July and early August across several southern provinces, and July 2026 ranked as the fourth-warmest July since 1961. The absolute national record is 50.4 °C, in Agadir, on 11 August 2023.
So read this table as a tendency, never as a guarantee. On our side, we follow the bulletins of the Moroccan national weather service and adjust visiting hours, stages and accommodation whenever a heatwave is announced.
What the weather does, what to go and see at that moment, and the tour in our catalogue that goes there.
Marrakech holds 19 °C during the day and the desert 17 °C, with just 4 mm of rain for the whole month in Ouarzazate — its driest month of the year. But the night drops to 2 °C: you do not camp in the dunes in January without the right kit, and we tell you so before you leave. Meanwhile, people are skiing at Oukaïmeden, an hour's drive from Marrakech.
What to see: Marrakech · Aït Ben Haddou · Merzouga
21 °C in Marrakech, 17 °C in Fez: you walk the medinas without sweating and without queuing. The desert stays mild, at 19 °C. Worth noting for 2027: Ramadan is expected to begin around 8 February — the country changes rhythm, and that is an experience in itself (see below).
24 °C in Marrakech, 23 °C in the desert, 13 mm of rain in Ouarzazate. The light is still low, the kasbahs are golden, and you can walk the dunes without suffering. If you had to pick one month to combine the cities and the Sahara, this would be it.
What to see: Aït Ben Haddou · Dades Valley · Merzouga
26 °C in Marrakech, 27 °C in the desert. This is the month when the Atlas valleys are at their greenest and the Ouzoud waterfalls are at their fullest. The coast stays cool — 19 °C in Essaouira: you go there for the ramparts and the wind, not yet for swimming.
What to see: Ourika Valley · Ouzoud Waterfalls · Toubkal & Imlil
30 °C in Marrakech, 31 °C in the desert: still bearable, but this is the last window before the heat. If you want the grand loop — imperial cities, Sahara, Atlas and ocean in one journey — it is now, or October.
What to see: Marrakech · Ouarzazate · Essaouira
34 °C in Marrakech, 35 °C in the desert: the heat settles in for good. But Essaouira stays at 21 °C and the sea climbs back to 20 °C. June is the month when we build the itinerary around the coast and the mountains rather than around the Sahara.
What to see: Essaouira · Taghazout · Ourika Valley
Let us be blunt: inland, July is hard going. The average is 38 °C in Marrakech, and 47.6 °C was recorded there on 22-25 July 2025. Essaouira, on the other hand, does not budge — 22 °C, sea at 21 °C — and Tangier tops out at 29 °C. And an hour from Marrakech, the Ourika valley and Imlil stay cool. Come in July, yes: to the coast, to the North, or to the mountains.
What to see: Essaouira · Tangier · Ourika Valley · Toubkal & Imlil
Same advice as July, with one more argument: the sea reaches 21.5 °C in Essaouira, its highest point of the year, and Tangier climbs to 30 °C. The Rif and the coast are at their best. Inland stays off the table — except the Atlas valleys, which remain cool.
What to see: Essaouira · Chefchaouen · Tetouan
32 °C in Marrakech, 33 °C in the desert: the heat falls away, the summer holidaymakers have gone home, and the sea is still at 21.5 °C. By late September the Sahara is workable again. One of the most pleasant months of the year, and one of the least crowded.
28 °C in Marrakech, 28 °C in the desert, sea still at 21 °C. Cities, Sahara, Atlas and ocean are all within reach in a single journey — the mirror of May, with autumn colours in the valleys on top. The North, though, starts getting rain: 85 mm in Tangier.
What to see: Merzouga · Ouarzazate · Agadir
23 °C in Marrakech, 22 °C in Ouarzazate with only 10 mm of rain: the South and the desert are at their very best. The North, meanwhile, takes 125 mm in Tangier — more than London. A northern tour in November is a deliberate choice, not an accident: we will say so.
What to see: Merzouga · Draa Valley · Todra Gorge
20 °C in Marrakech by day: the imperial cities are mild and quiet. The desert reads 18 °C in the daytime but 3.6 °C at night in Ouarzazate. The North stays the wettest of the year, with 135 mm in Tangier. A fine month for the cities, a demanding one for the Sahara.
What to see: Marrakech · Rabat · Casablanca
The right date does not only depend on the month: it depends on what you are coming for.
Beyond that, the heat makes the days punishing and a night under canvas costs you dearly in comfort.
See the Desert & Kasbahs tour ›Medinas are walked, and they are walked badly at 38 °C. Spring and autumn are made for this.
See the Four Imperial Cities ›The sea runs from 20 to 21.5 °C over those five months — this is the Atlantic, it is never warm, but that is the best window.
See Essaouira ›The Ourika and Imlil are lovely in the shoulder seasons, and stay cool when the plain passes 38 °C. It is the one inland region of Morocco that works well in July and August.
See the Atlas & Atlantic tour ›Chefchaouen and Tangier are splendid in spring and summer. In November and December they take 125 to 135 mm of rain.
See the North & Rif tour ›Ramadan follows the lunar calendar: it moves forward about eleven days each year. In 2027 it is expected to begin around 8 February and end around 9 March — estimated dates, which the Ministry of Habous and Islamic Affairs confirms after the moon is sighted, to within a day. Morocco also returns to GMT just beforehand, on 7 February 2027.
Travelling during Ramadan is entirely possible, and it is even a special moment: the cities come alive in the evening, tables fill up at the breaking of the fast, and hospitality is at its peak. You simply need to know that many restaurants close during the day, that office hours change and that the rhythm of visits shifts. We adapt the programmes accordingly — just tell us whether you would rather experience this period or avoid it.
Four classic pitfalls, which we would rather flag before you book.
An average of 38 °C in July in Marrakech means days at 34 °C… and peaks at 47.6 °C. We watch the national weather service alerts and shift the visiting hours when we have to.
An average of 2.4 °C at night in Ouarzazate in January, 3.6 °C in December. Camping in the dunes is still magnificent, but it has to be prepared: we send you the packing list.
Tangier gets 125 mm in November and 135 mm in December — more than London. Chefchaouen and the Rif follow the same curve. On the same date, Ouarzazate is on 10 mm.
As soon as you climb into the Atlas or the Rif, the figures in this table no longer apply: it is markedly colder, and snow sometimes closes the passes in winter. Ask us before you fix a date.
Sources. Climate normals 1991-2020 (temperature, rainfall, sea temperature): Climates to Travel — Morocco. Exceptional temperatures recorded in 2024, 2025 and 2026: bulletins and alerts from the Moroccan Direction générale de la météorologie, reported by L'Économiste and Médias24. Ramadan dates: astronomical estimate, officially confirmed by the Ministry of Habous and Islamic Affairs. Page updated in September 2026.
