orca.floRamadan and Eid WhatsApp messages for your customers (2027)
Short answer
Ramadan 2027 is expected to begin in the UAE on Monday 8 February 2027, and Eid al-Fitr on 9 or 10 March, depending on the moon sighting (astronomers’ estimates reported in August and September 2026). Send your Ramadan hours a few days before, iftar and suhoor offers in week one, and delivery cut-offs in the last ten days.
Updated
Ramadan changes when UAE customers message you, what they ask and when they expect you to be open. Below are copy-ready WhatsApp messages for every stage of the month, in English and Gulf Arabic: Ramadan hours, iftar and suhoor offers, pre-Eid bookings, delivery cut-offs and Eid greetings. Then how to send them as a broadcast without risking your number, and when to send each one.
When Ramadan and Eid fall in 2027
Ramadan follows the Islamic lunar calendar, so it starts about 11 days earlier every year. For 2027, UAE astronomers expect Ramadan 1448 to begin on Monday 8 February 2027, with the crescent sought after sunset on Sunday 7 February. Eid al-Fitr is expected on Tuesday 9 or Wednesday 10 March 2027, depending on whether the month has 29 or 30 days.
These are estimates, reported by Khaleej Times and Gulf News in August and September 2026 (linked under Sources). The official start is announced after the UAE’s moon sighting on the evening the crescent is sought, so write your messages with the dates in [brackets] and fill them in once they are confirmed. Ramadan working hours and the Eid holiday are also announced officially each year; update your own hours once they are.
Your Ramadan WhatsApp calendar for 2027
| When (2027, estimated) | What to send | Who to send it to |
|---|---|---|
| Mid to late January | A pre-Ramadan reminder: stock up, book before the rush, or pre-order Ramadan menus and hampers | Customers who bought or booked in the last year |
| About 4 to 6 February | “Ramadan Kareem” and your Ramadan opening hours | Customers who messaged you recently |
| Week one (from about 8 February) | Iftar and suhoor offers, Ramadan menus and packages | A segment the offer fits, such as past diners or past orders |
| Weeks two and three | Pre-Eid appointments, outfits and gifts: a reminder to book early | Regular clients, and people who asked but didn’t book |
| Last ten days (from about 28 February) | Your delivery cut-off before Eid, the last booking slots and your Eid closure dates | Customers with open orders or regular bookings |
| Eid eve and Eid day (about 9 or 10 March) | “Eid Mubarak” and the day you reopen | Customers you have an ongoing relationship with |
Ramadan opening hours
Iftar, suhoor and pre-Eid offers
Delivery cut-offs and the last slots before Eid
Eid greetings
How to send them as a broadcast without risking your number
- Only people who asked to hear from you. Customers who bought, booked or asked you something. Seasonal messages to bought or scraped lists are exactly what gets numbers reported and restricted.
- Send to a segment, not to everyone. An iftar offer goes to past diners; a delivery cut-off goes to customers who order delivery; a pre-Eid booking reminder goes to regular clients.
- Personalise. Use the customer’s name and what they bought or asked about. Identical text to hundreds of people looks automated.
- Pace the send. Small batches with gaps, not hundreds at once. A bigger list needs longer gaps, which means starting earlier.
- Make it easy to say no. Add “Reply STOP if you’d rather not get updates” and stop messaging anyone who does.
- Don’t time it for sunset. People are breaking their fast with family; a message mid-morning or later in the evening is more likely to be read.
- One greeting is enough. A “Ramadan Kareem” at the start and an “Eid Mubarak” at the end; offers in between only to the people they fit.
Broadcast lists in the free app
In the free WhatsApp Business app, a broadcast list holds up to 256 contacts, and only people who saved your number in their phone receive it; each person gets it as a one-to-one chat. WhatsApp also says some countries see a monthly broadcast limit, rolling out gradually. For more than that, or to send to people who haven’t saved your number, read how to send WhatsApp broadcasts safely for the options and what each costs.
Scheduling them in OrcaFlo
In the OrcaFlo panel, open Broadcasts → New broadcast, write the message and attach a photo (your iftar menu, for example) if you like. Under Target Audience pick all leads, hot, warm or cold leads, or people you choose, or under Or send to a segment pick a saved segment from your contacts. A segment is worked out when the broadcast sends, so it includes anyone who joined it in the meantime.
Under Send, choose At a set time to schedule it (it uses your device’s time zone), and under When someone replies let the assistant answer knowing what the broadcast said, or hand the replies to a person. Messages go out one at a time with a pause in between, 15 minutes by default and up to two hours, and none go out during quiet hours (9pm to 9am by default, in your business’s time zone; you can change them on the Broadcasts page). Both protect your number. That is about 48 messages a day at the default settings, so a broadcast to 100 customers takes about two days and one to 300 customers more than six days: schedule your Ramadan-hours message at least a week before 8 February, and your Eid cut-off a week before the cut-off itself.
Sending to a segment leaves out contacts who never messaged you (imported ones, for example) unless you tick the box to include them; all leads, hot, warm or cold leads and hand-picked lists include them, so check the list first. Afterwards, Results shows who it was sent to, who replied and who it failed for, and Resend failed retries only those. Step by step: schedule a broadcast and see who replied. If you don’t see these options in your panel, ask us and we’ll switch them on for your business.
Update your auto replies and your assistant too
A broadcast tells people your hours; your replies have to match them. In the free WhatsApp Business app, edit your away message before Ramadan starts and set Schedule → Custom schedule for the dates, or update your business hours and use Outside of business hours. A ready-made Ramadan away message is in WhatsApp auto reply message examples.
If OrcaFlo answers your WhatsApp, update your opening hours, Ramadan menu or packages and Eid closure in its information before the date, and it answers “are you open after iftar?” from the new ones. It books only into the open slots in your working hours, so a message at 1am becomes a booking for the next open slot. See how it works for restaurants and cafés, salons and spas and online stores.
What not to send
- Fake urgency (“only 2 iftar tables left!”) to your whole list.
- A promotion inside a religious greeting to people who never bought from you.
- The same Eid message to every number in your phone, including suppliers and people who never asked to hear from you.
- Delivery promises you can’t keep: check your courier’s own Eid cut-off before you set yours.
- Messages timed to land at sunset, when people are breaking their fast.
Questions
Astronomers expect Monday 8 February 2027, with the crescent sought after sunset on Sunday 7 February. The official start is announced after the UAE’s moon sighting, so treat the date as an estimate until then.
It is expected on Tuesday 9 or Wednesday 10 March 2027, depending on whether Ramadan has 29 or 30 days. The Eid holiday dates are announced officially closer to the time.
Your Ramadan hours a few days before the first day, offers in the first week, pre-Eid bookings and delivery cut-offs from the third week, and Eid greetings on Eid eve. A paced broadcast to a big list takes days, so schedule it early.
Write in the language your customers use with you. If they use both, put both in the message, with the one most of them use first. In OrcaFlo, the assistant answers each reply in the language the customer writes in.
Yes. In Broadcasts → New broadcast, choose At a set time. It starts at that time in your device’s time zone and sends one message at a time with a pause in between (15 minutes by default), with none during quiet hours (9pm to 9am by default); Cancel schedule stops it until it starts.
Send them to customers who know you: people who bought, booked or asked you something. Greetings to people who never contacted you can get you blocked or reported, which puts your number at risk.
Related
How to send WhatsApp broadcasts without risking your number
Read more GuideWhatsApp auto reply message examples for UAE businesses
Read more GuideHow to keep your WhatsApp Business number from getting banned
Read more For restaurants & cafésAnswer every “are you open?” and table request without leaving the pass.
Read moreStop losing customers to slow replies.
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