Grapeshisha » Tourism in Dubai, Abu Dhabi & the UAE » Souks in Dubai

Souks in Dubai

List of the Souks in Dubai and the UAE

A souk is essentially a market area of an Arab city where you can get anything from fresh food to artifacts such as a shisha and tourist type objects. We have put together the best souks worth checking out all for different reasons. Whether you want an Arabian coffee pot or a handwoven carpet, some prayer beads or other intricacies of Arab culture, these are the places to go:

Gold Souk in Dubai

Without a doubt, the must see souk, if there is one is the gold souk. It is one of those places which has to be seen with all the glistening gold in the shop front, mixed in with the hawkers trying to sell their fake handbags and knocked off clothing. We dare you to come here and not spend a penny. Make sure you explore around the area where you will find many odd shops trying to sell their wares.

Khan Murjan Dubai

Khan Murjan is a new area in Wafi city mall, which has more than 150 shops with traders selling a variety of handicrafts. If you can catch it during the day you will see the light coming through the amazing stained glass window. And once you have finished your shopping, have some coffee near the waterwheel in the courtyard.

Souk Madinat Jumeirah

The Souk at Madinat Jumeirah precedes Khan Murjan by a few years and in its airy wooden interior, you feel somewhat taken back in time. The stores are more expensive, but some of them are exclusive. This is something not to miss if you are spending a day or evening at Madinat.

Souk Al Bahar in Dubai

Souk Al Bahar is located in at Downtown Burj Dubai and has a modern day feel and attitude to a souk, with restaurants and some larger retail shopping outlets. However, in the main there are some great little stores that are worth a peak, and with the restaurants at the waterside, this because a great place to spend an evening.

Al Jaber Gallery in Dubai

Sometime you want to just get the gifts without the buzz of the market. This is exactly what Al Jaber does. Located in the middle of the Mall of the Emirates, you can pick up your bits and pieces, so it seems as if you have done the trawl for your friends and family. This is market shopping cheating at its best. No haggling, no buzz, just good quality souvenirs in one place.

Meena Bazaar Dubai

also known as

Souk al Kabeer Dubai

Can you call Meena (or Mina) Bazaar a souk? It’s noisy and has the brightest colours in the store fronts. This is the place to get your material and clothing for your Indian clothes. But you can pretty much buy anything here if you ask the store owners. Meena Bazaar is falling apart, tacky and has the greatest heart. This is worth a trip to see the heart of India in the heart of Dubai. If making clothing is your thing, then Satwa, which is basically a square is worth going to, if you have the time.

Spice souk in Dubai

The spice souk is the one souk that actually feels like a souk. The smell of spice is great as you walk through the tight alleyways and streets. Worth the walk through to see all the spices piled high, and to buy your discount saffron.

Perfume Souk in Dubai

If you want to concoct your own Arabic scent, and you have sampled the scents of the Arabian Oud and similar smells in the malls, then the Pefume Souk is for you. The smell of Arabian perfume is completely different to western scents and is oil based, so consider this before you commit your money.

Karama Market in Dubai

This is fake central. If that is what you want, this the place to get your knocked off goods.

Other Souks outside Dubai worth checking out:

The Blue Souk in Sharjah sells traditional objects in a different environment with big discounts on carpets and furniture.

The Fujairah Market is almost a step back in history and you can see how markets probably operated back in the day

The Souk Al Arsah in Sharjah is as traditional as it comes, having been rebuilt exactly to specification – it’s worth checking out if making a trip to Sharjah Museum.

The New Souk at Khor Fakkan overlooks the gulf and would be one of the places you would visit if you traveled here. An eye catching and charismatic little spot.

Abu Dhabi doesn’t really have any great souks. Sometimes you’ll get lucky at the Iranian souk in Mina with Iranian hand painted goods, but you may just end up looking through plastic bits and pieces. The old souk was knocked down a few years ago, and we now await the next era in new developments.

Places not worth going to if you are on holiday would be the fish souk – unless you like watching people buying fish, the electronics souk, where you cant judge the quality of product and the Deira covered souk, which is odd clothing plus cheap stuff stuff for your house.

And if you forget to get your souvenir, the Dubai Duty Free feels like a souk itself with all that is on offer.