Illustrative image
اللَّهُ نُورُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ۚ مَثَلُ نُورِهِ كَمِشْكَاةٍ فِيهَا مِصْبَاحٌ ۖ الْمِصْبَاحُ فِي زُجَاجَةٍ ۖ الزُّجَاجَةُ كَأَنَّهَا كَوْكَبٌ دُرِّيٌّ يُوقَدُ مِن شَجَرَةٍ مُّبَارَكَةٍ زَيْتُونَةٍ لَّا شَرْقِيَّةٍ وَلَا غَرْبِيَّةٍ يَكَادُ زَيْتُهَا يُضِيءُ وَلَوْ لَمْ تَمْسَسْهُ نَارٌ ۚ نُّورٌ عَلَىٰ نُورٍ ۗ يَهْدِي اللَّهُ لِنُورِهِ مَن يَشَاءُ ۚ وَيَضْرِبُ اللَّهُ الْأَمْثَالَ لِلنَّاسِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ ٣٥
Sufi retreats · Morocco
All-inclusive retreats of dhikr, ziyara and quiet, from the mountain of Moulay Abdessalam Ibn Mashish to the oasis of Tamegroute. A devotional track for Muslims, and an open track for every seeker.
Five days · one scheduled week per month · 10 places per circle · no payment online
An introduction
The Shadhiliyya is one of the great Sufi paths of Islam, and the one most deeply rooted in Morocco. It takes its name from Abu al-Hasan al-Shadhili, born around 1196 among the Ghumara of northern Morocco. He studied in Fez, then travelled east in search of a master. In Iraq he was told that the one he sought lived in his own country. He came home to Jbel Alam and became the disciple of Moulay Abdessalam Ibn Mashish.
From there he carried the teaching to Tunisia, where the village of Shadhila gave him his name, and on to Egypt. He died in 1258 at Humaithara, on the road to the pilgrimage. His successors in Alexandria wrote the teaching down, above all Ibn ʿAṭāʾ Allāh, whose Ḥikam are still read wherever Sufism is taught.
The path asks for no special dress and no withdrawal from the world. Its followers keep their work and their families, hold to the Sharia and the Sunna, and fill ordinary days with remembrance of God, gratitude, and a litany recited morning and evening. Its best-known prayers are the Ṣalāt al-Mashīshiyya of Ibn Mashish and the Ḥizb al-Baḥr, the Litany of the Sea, of al-Shadhili.
In Morocco the path was renewed in the fifteenth century by Imam Muhammad al-Jazuli, author of the Dalāʾil al-Khayrāt, and again around 1800 by Moulay al-Arbi al-Darqawi. Many of the country’s orders trace their chain through it. Our retreats follow that chain on the ground, from the mountain of Ibn Mashish to the tomb of al-Jazuli and the Nasiri zawiya of Tamegroute.
The retreats
Three levels of the same five-day ziyara, dhikr, reading and quiet in Marrakech or Fez, all-inclusive and set around the prayers.
Marrakech
A grounded introduction to Marrakech’s saints and living tradition.
5 days · 4 nights · from Marrakech airport (RAK)
FocusThe Dalāʾil al-Khayrāt, love of the Prophet ﷺ, generosity, and the spiritual heritage of Marrakech.
Marrakech
More comfort, more space for learning and reflection.
5 days · 4 nights · from Marrakech airport (RAK)
FocusThe Dalāʾil al-Khayrāt, love of the Prophet ﷺ, generosity, and the spiritual heritage of Marrakech.
Marrakech
Private hospitality for a deeply considered Marrakech ziyara.
5 days · 4 nights · from Marrakech airport (RAK)
FocusThe Dalāʾil al-Khayrāt, love of the Prophet ﷺ, generosity, and the spiritual heritage of Marrakech.
Fez
A grounded introduction to the saints of Fez and its living tradition.
5 days · 4 nights · from Fès–Saïss airport (FEZ)
FocusThe Dalāʾil al-Khayrāt, love of the Prophet ﷺ, the Shadhili lineage of Fez and the Idrisid heritage of the city.
Fez
More comfort, more space for learning and reflection.
5 days · 4 nights · from Fès–Saïss airport (FEZ)
FocusThe Dalāʾil al-Khayrāt, love of the Prophet ﷺ, the Shadhili lineage of Fez and the Idrisid heritage of the city.
Fez
Private hospitality for a deeply considered Fez ziyara.
5 days · 4 nights · from Fès–Saïss airport (FEZ)
FocusThe Dalāʾil al-Khayrāt, love of the Prophet ﷺ, the Shadhili lineage of Fez and the Idrisid heritage of the city.
Transfers
Airport pickup on arrival and your transfer back on departure.
Stay and meals
Accommodation, three meals a day, drinking water and all ground transport in the programme.
Guidance
A local guide, and a qualified spiritual facilitator for the sessions agreed in your programme.
Daily practice
Time and space each day for prayer, Qur’an recitation, dhikr, ṣalawāt, journaling and rest.
Devotional evenings
Private evenings with Moroccan madīḥ, where arranged.
10-place departures
Join one place at a time, or reserve a complete departure for your family, friends or circle.
Visits inside sacred spaces, taking part in zawiya gatherings and meetings with resident teachers are confirmed individually for each date. Retreats can be joined into a longer journey, and we arrange the transfers between them.
Two tracks
Both tracks follow the same route and visit the same places. You choose one when you book.
For Muslims walking the path.
For every seeker, of any faith or none.
A retreat here is a journey with set times for prayer, dhikr, reading and silence. It is not a formal khalwa under a sheikh.
A day on retreat
An example: the second day of the Fez and Meknes retreat. Times move with the season; the order stays the same.
Dawnالفجر
Fajr, then breakfast on the riad roof as the city wakes.
Morning
Ziyara of Moulay Idriss II, past al-Qarawiyyin to the zawiya of Sidi Ahmad al-Tijani.Interiors for Muslim guests when permitted; every guest from the doorways and the quarter.
Middayالظهر
Dhuhr, lunch in the medina, rest.
Afternoon
Rest, reading and journaling at the riad, with a passage from the Ḥikam to carry into the evening.
Sunsetالمغرب
Maghrib, and a walk back through the quiet streets.
Eveningالعشاء
An evening of remembrance: dhikr and ṣalawāt.
The chain
The masters of the path whose places our retreats visit, in order.
Abu al-Hasan al-Shadhili
أبو الحسن الشاذلي
d. 1258 · Buried at Humaithara, Egypt
The teaching is carried across two centuries, in North Africa and Egypt
Later Moroccan transmission
Moulay al-Arbi al-Darqawi
مولاي العربي الدرقاوي
d. 1823 · Bou Berih, Beni Zeroual
Small groups
Join other pilgrims on a scheduled Wednesday–Sunday retreat, with ten places held for each departure.
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Journal
The Shadhili path, dhikr and ziyara explained, and practical advice for coming on retreat.
4 min read
Three Shadhili Sufi retreats in Marrakech: ziyara, dhikr, ṣalawāt, accommodation, the best months and how to choose a scheduled or dedicated date.
Read the article4 min read
A practical guide to Morocco for Muslim travellers: mosques and prayer times, halal food, Ramadan, dress, visiting shrines, and travelling as a woman or family.
Read the article6 min read
Planning a spiritual retreat in Morocco from the UK? Which airport to fly into, entry rules, money, dress and what an all-inclusive Sufi retreat includes.
Read the articleQuestions
Five days and four nights of ziyara, dhikr, reading and quiet, set around the prayer times and all-inclusive: airport transfers, accommodation, three meals a day, ground transport, a local guide and a qualified spiritual facilitator for the sessions agreed in your programme. A retreat here is a journey with set times for prayer, dhikr, reading and silence. It is not a formal khalwa under a sheikh.
No. The devotional track is for Muslims; the open track welcomes every sincere guest. Both tracks visit the same places. Where a sanctuary’s interior is reserved for Muslims, open-track guests have a guided visit outside.
Yes, with the permission of the zawiya, which we ask for each date. Devotional-track guests take part; open-track guests sit as quiet guests where visitors are welcomed. We tell you before you book which evenings are confirmed.
Only how you take part: congregational prayer, full dhikr and recitations on the devotional track; explanation, quiet attendance and reflection on the open track. The route, the riads and the pace are the same.
A private retreat is just for you, your family or your companions, on any dates you choose. A scheduled departure has 10 places, and guests can request one place or reserve the whole departure. Dates are listed on each retreat page as soon as they are scheduled.
Choose a retreat and a track, and send your dates. We reply with your programme and price. No payment is taken online.
