Buying a Kaftan or Djellaba in Morocco

Before you buy, it helps to know exactly what you are looking at, because the words are used loosely by sellers and travel blogs alike. The djellaba is the loose, hooded robe you see worn all over Morocco by men and women, for everyday wear and as outerwear against cold or sun. The kaftan is a woman's long, one-piece gown without a hood, ranging from simple cotton house dresses to elaborate formal gowns. The takchita is the dressiest of all: a two-piece ensemble, an underdress and an embellished overdress, cinched with a wide belt called an mdamma and worn to weddings and celebrations.

Around these three sit a few relatives worth knowing. The gandoura is a lighter, usually short-sleeved tunic for summer; the jabador is a two-piece tunic-and-trouser set popular with men and increasingly with women; and the selham or burnous is a formal hooded cape. Our overview of Moroccan traditional clothing sets each in its cultural context; this guide is about buying them well. The table below is a quick reference.

You have three broad routes, and the right one depends on your budget, your timeline and how particular you are about fit. The medina souks are the cheapest and have the widest range of off-the-rack djellabas and casual kaftans, but prices are haggled and quality is uneven. Fixed-price cooperatives and boutiques cost more but remove the negotiation and tend to curate for quality, which suits gift-buying and travellers who dislike bargaining. At the top end, designer boutiques in Marrakech's Gueliz and the Sidi Ghanem design district sell contemporary, fashion-led pieces at city prices.

The fourth route, and the one that gives the best fit, is a tailor, known as a khayat. Many travellers buy fabric in the cloth souk and take it to a tailor to make up a kaftan or djellaba to measure, which is how Moroccan women get theirs for weddings. It takes a few days and a fitting, but the result is made for your body. For finding the clothing and fabric souks in the Marrakech medina, use our souks shopping guide; in the north, Chefchaouen is known for wool djellabas and blankets, covered in our Chefchaouen crafts guide.

Off-the-rack is quick and cheap and perfect for a simple cotton djellaba or an everyday kaftan you just want to try on and take away. The trade-offs are fit and, sometimes, finish: mass-made pieces are cut generously and sewn quickly, so sleeves and hems may need adjusting and the stitching may be plainer than a made-to-measure garment. For a casual souvenir this is usually fine.

Custom tailoring is where Morocco shines for anyone wanting a formal kaftan, an exact fit, or a size the racks do not carry. The usual process is to choose cloth in the fabric souk, agree a design and price with a tailor, get measured, and return in a few days for a fitting and collection; allow 2-5 days and do not leave it to the last day of your trip. Labour for a straightforward kaftan is modest, roughly 300-1500 MAD depending on complexity, on top of the fabric, and the tailor can copy a photo or a garment you already own. It is the best-value luxury in Moroccan shopping if you have the time.

Fabric decides both the price and when you will actually wear the piece, so match it to your climate and use. Everyday djellabas come in cotton and light blends for warm weather and in heavier wool for winter; a genuine wool djellaba is warm, weighty and worth the extra outlay if you live somewhere cold. Summer kaftans and gandouras are made in cotton, linen and light jersey, comfortable and easy to pack.

Formal kaftans and takchitas are where the fabrics get luxurious: satin, chiffon, crepe, brocade and silk blends, often layered and embellished. The detailing is a craft in itself, hand or machine embroidery, sfifa braid trim, and aqad, the knotted button-loops that run down the front. Genuine silk and hand embroidery command a premium and are part of what you are paying for on an expensive piece. Related home textiles, from cactus-silk throws to wool blankets, are covered in our textiles and blankets guide if you are furnishing as well as dressing.

Moroccan traditional dress is cut loose, and sizing is inconsistent between makers, so do not rely on a label. Djellabas and kaftans are meant to drape rather than fit closely, which is forgiving, but the two things that go wrong are length and sleeves: a hem that pools on the floor or sleeves that swamp the hands are common on off-the-rack pieces bought without trying them on. Always try before you buy, and be honest that a size that looks right on the hanger may not be.

If you are having something made, a few measurements solve the problem entirely: overall length from shoulder to hem, shoulder width, sleeve length, and chest and hip at the fullest point. A tailor will take these and can adjust the cut to your shape. For men buying a djellaba, the same applies, with attention to the hood sitting correctly and the length clearing the ankle. When in doubt, size for drape and have the length taken up rather than buying something tight.

Prices span a huge range, from a cheap cotton djellaba to a couture takchita costing more than a flight home, so the bands below are a realistic 2026 guide rather than fixed rates; confirm on the day, as fabric, embellishment and where you buy all move the number. In the souks the first price is a haggled opening bid, and a fair settled price is often 40-60 percent of it; fixed-price boutiques charge more but the figure is the figure. Custom pieces are priced as fabric plus tailoring labour, and a kaftan typically needs around 3-4 metres of cloth at anywhere from 40 to 300-plus MAD a metre.

As a rule, the jump in price on formal wear is about the fabric and the handwork, not the basic garment, so decide how much embellishment you actually want. A simple, well-cut kaftan in good cotton or satin is a wearable, affordable souvenir; a hand-embroidered silk takchita is a serious purchase best made from a fixed-price boutique or a trusted tailor. The table sets out the bands.

On any piece above the basic level, quality lives in the details. Turn the garment inside out and check the seams and the lining: good pieces are neatly finished, evenly stitched and lined where the fabric needs it, while cheap ones fray and pucker. Look closely at the embroidery and trim, because 'hand-embroidered' is a claim worth testing: real handwork has slight irregularities and a raised, dense feel, whereas machine embroidery is uniform and flat. Machine work is not a fault and is fine to buy; just do not pay a handwork premium for it. The same goes for silk, which should feel cool and drape softly rather than the crisp, shiny feel of polyester satin.

Haggle in the souks but not in fixed-price boutiques, and keep it good-natured; our bargaining guide explains the etiquette. Once bought, these pieces travel easily: fold along the seams, and a kaftan or djellaba packs flat with barely any weight, though delicate embellished pieces are worth carrying in hand luggage. To round out a formal look, Berber silver makes a natural pairing, covered in our silver jewellery guide, and pointed babouche slippers finish the outfit, in our babouche guide. For how these garments fit into what to actually pack and wear in Morocco, see our what-to-wear packing guide.