THE FAST ALSO EIGHTS: THE VODUN DAYS 2027 WATCH THEIR RESTAURERS
There are festivals that we listen to, festivals that we dance — and there is Ouidah, where the party is tasted. From January 2 to 9, 2027, the historic capital of Vodun welcomes the Vodun Days, the first international event of the arts, culture and spirituality vodun. And this year, the festival opens its kitchens to the talents: Benin Tourism launches a call for applications for the restaurators of its Food Court, at Place Maro. Festival TV tells you why, in Ouidah, gastronomy is not a side of the festival: it is at the heart of the ritual.
Let's start with the scale of the event. Eight days of celebration, from January 2 to 9, 2027, in the city of the Gate of the Non-Return and the Temple of the Pythons. The edition 2026 gathered 740,668 participants, according to the INStaD: Ouidah is no longer a local festival, it is a world pilgrimage — Beninese from the diaspora returned to the country, travellers from the whole world, guardians of convents and artists, all gathered around a spirituality that Benin has elevated to the status of living heritage.
Now, who says eight days of feasting says eight days of table. In Benin, eating is never a simple supply: Beninese cuisine is a language in its own right. The corn or cassava paste that is soaked in a smooth seed sauce or a pull-down gombo sauce; the amewo, this red paste with palm oil served with chicken; the akaassa and ablo, these fermented little cakes that accompany the smoked fish of the coast; peanut sauces, the peppered yams, the crispy akara donuts in the early morning. Each dish tells a region, a family, an ancestor. In a vodun party — where offering and sharing are at the centre — the meal is an act of memory as much as a pleasure.
That's exactly the spirit of the Food Court of Place Maro, at the heart of the festival. And the news of the week: Benin Tourism opened on 15 October 2026 a call for applications for the restaurateurs who will hold their stands there throughout the duration of the Vodun Days 2027. The conditions, announced by the call, are clear and demanding: to be present during the 8 days of the festival, to practice capped rates — the party remains popular and accessible — and to propose a Beninese signature dish, which will say "here my cuisine, here is my terroir" to the hundreds of thousands of festivalgoers. Applications are submitted via the official online form, and closing time is 10 November 2026 at 5.30 p.m. The results will be announced at the end of November, after a tasting of the pre-selected restaurant owners: yes, in Ouidah, cooks are being heard as artists — because they are.
For Beninese restaurants — and for those in the diaspora tempted by the return to the sources — the opportunity is rare: eight days of visibility in front of a global audience, at the heart of the country's largest cultural event, in a place thought like a showcase of national gastronomy. For festivalgoers, the promise is just as beautiful: to eat true, to eat local, to eat Beninese, between two ceremonies and two concerts. The party dances, prays, sings — and in Ouidah, it is tasty. To your applications!
Practical information
Vodun Days — the first international event of the arts, culture and spirituality vodun
Location: Ouidah, Benin (Place Maro, Gate of the Non-Return and sites of the city)
Dates: January 2 to 9, 2027 (edition 2026: 740,668 participants, according to INStaD)
Call for applications — Food Court restorers (Place Maro): opened on 15 October 2026 by Benin Tourism; attendance required during 8 days; price capped; Beninese signature dish required
Closing of applications: 10 November 2026 to 5.30 p.m. — official form: https://tally.so/r/kdDXpZ
Results: end of November 2026, after tasting of pre-selected
Official website of the festival: https://vodundays.bj
— Moïse 1er, the Festival Explorer