Vodundays · Ouidah, Benin
Each site in Ouidah hosts a precise family of Vodun. The Zangbeto at the French Fort, the Egungun at Maro Square, the Hunvè at the Sacred Forest of Kpassè, Mami Wata on the beach. This is not a logistical arrangement, it is a sacred geography.
Verified on 29 July 2026
2027 edition: 7, 8 and 9 January, Grand Ceremony on Friday the 8th, in accordance with law no. 2024-32. Beware of sources still announcing 10 January: they describe the regime of the former law, repealed in 2024. The attributions of each site are established in Ouidah; the exact programme is published by the state as the event approaches.
Shore, Atlantic Ocean
Historic centre
Schematic map respecting real distances: four kilometres separate the historic centre from the shore. Coordinates to be confirmed on the ground.
Zangbeto · The guardians of the night
Historic centre
The esplanade of the fort becomes the ground of the Zangbeto. The choice is not arbitrary: the Zangbeto is the customary police, the one that watched over the order of the quarters long before any administration. Dozens of straw cones spin there, and the outings follow one another under the supervision of the Zangbetonon.
In front of the entrance to the History Museum of Ouidah, the former French fort
These places are public. What is not public is knowing who comes out, at what hour, and what each movement means. Our guides hold that difference, and they hold it in teams of ten.