You can spend a week at the Vodun Days, film everything, and leave having understood nothing. It happens to a lot of people. The ceremony is in front of you, but nobody gave you the keys.
There are two keys. The first is the language and the customs: knowing how to greet, how to stand, what is not done. The second is the Fa, because nothing important is decided here without it.
We hand them over in two workshops, just before the official festivities begin. You arrive at the Grand Ceremony on 8 January knowing what you are looking at.
Workshop 1 · Tuesday 5 January 2027
Local language and customs: the codes, before everything else
A “good morning” said in Fongbe changes the way people look at you. It is not about politeness, it is about your place: someone who greets in the language of the house is no longer quite a visitor. In one morning, you leave with this:
- Greeting, thanking, introducing yourself in Fongbe.
- How to stand before a dignitary, an elder, a sacred place.
- What may be photographed, what you ask first, what is not done.
- The everyday gestures: entering, sitting, receiving, offering.
- When:
- Tuesday 5 January 2027, in the morning.
- Where:
- Under the mango trees of the Palais d'Agondji, in Ouidah.
- With:
- A teacher of the Fon language.
Workshop 2 · Wednesday 6 January 2027
The Fa: understand first, consult afterwards if you wish
Many people dream of consulting the Fa and do not dare. They do not know what will happen, what they will be asked, or whether they are allowed to be there. The workshop settles that. Everyone follows the same workshop; the only difference comes at the end: either you leave with what you have understood, or you stay and a priest opens the Fa for you.
- What the Fa is, and what it is not.
- How a consultation unfolds, from beginning to end.
- The signs: what they say, how a priest reads them.
- Your questions, put to those who carry this knowledge.
- When:
- Wednesday 6 January 2027, at 3 pm.
- Where:
- Under the mango trees of the Palais d'Agondji, in Ouidah.
- With:
- The priests of the Fa, with the FRABO, Fraternité des Bokonons, Babalawos et Olouwos.
Understand, then consult
€35
about 23,000 FCFA
The same workshop, followed by your consultation of the Fa.
Book my place
What we really offer: to be received, not to watch
These are not lectures. You sit under the mango trees of the Palace with the people who carry this knowledge, you ask your questions, you exchange. That is the difference between immersion and a show.
This is for you if you want to understand rather than only look, if you are from the diaspora and are looking for a first serious contact with the tradition of your ancestors. It is not for you if you want a ritual on demand or a promise of results. We sell no initiation, and we promise nothing in the place of the Fa.
Why there are not many places
The workshops are held in teams of ten people, never more. Those who took The Programme are already seated. À la carte tickets are the chairs left in those teams, nothing else.
Both workshops are included in The Programme, from 4 to 10 January 2027. If you are staying several days, look at it first.
The questions we are asked
Do you have to be initiated to take part?
No. Both workshops are open to everyone, believers or not, from the diaspora or elsewhere. No initiation is offered or sold: an initiation cannot be bought.
Can you decide to consult the Fa once you are there?
Yes, as long as the priests still have room that day. Booking the consultation in advance is the only way to be sure.
In which language are the workshops held?
In French. Tell us when you book if you need English or Portuguese, and we will answer before you pay.
Are the workshops included in the After Vodundays packages?
Yes. Both workshops are included in The Programme, from 4 to 10 January 2027. The à la carte ticket is for those already in Ouidah who only want these moments.
A question before you book? Write to us, we answer fast.
One message is enough: which workshop, which option, how many people.
The other à la carte activities: the four circuits, the night in Ganvié, guided days at the Vodun Days, the Vodun Vibes evening, nights at the Palace.