Bargaining in Morocco and Marrakech is the only way to get the price of an item. A guide on how to shop in Moroccan souqs is what you need for a low cost holiday in Morocco.
A visit to Marrakech it cannot be complete without one long stop in the souqs, the characteristic markets that extend around the main square in a labyrinth of sounds, colors and smells that it is impossible not to come across. This corner of the city it will immediately strike you for its vivacity and its chaos, leaving you perhaps, at first, confused and disoriented.
Getting around the souqs can in fact be quite difficult, given the labyrinthine layout of their streets, the very low frequency of signs and the insistence of vendors trying to attract your attention or kids who want to accompany you to Djema el-fna square in exchange for some money.
However, a visit to the markets will allow you to grasp the most authentic soul of the pink city, to learn something more about Moroccan culture and to dialogue with the artisans, who will not hesitate to explain everything they can about their products and their techniques. processing. Lovers of craftsmanship will have the impression of reliving a past made up of unique objects, handcrafted with dedication and skill that is increasingly rare to encounter.
Among the stalls of Marrakech you will find gods really special products and of excellent workmanship at more than affordable prices, provided you know how to manage a negotiation. So here is a small guide that will give you some indications on how to behave and what to buy in the souqs.
The art of bargaining
The goods displayed in the souqs they are always free of price and this could make it difficult to establish their real value. It is customary for the shopkeeper to propose a price to the customer and for this to start at bargain until an agreement is reached. The rule he wants the customer to raise the price for the first time by offering half the fixed price, but considering that sellers often raise their prices when they see tourists, don't hesitate to offer even less than half, if you believe that this is the real value of an object. If the final price does not satisfy you, leave the shop as well, in many cases the shopkeeper seeing that you are not willing to sell will accept the price you set. If at the end of the negotiation the merchant will tell you that "you are Berber”, It means that you have made a good deal and that you have conducted well the negotiation. Often, after the conclusion of the deal or before payment you will be offered a mint tea, called by the locals "Berber whiskey”, Do not hesitate to accept it.
If you are interested in buying an object, take the opportunity to ask the sellers for more information on its production and processing, you could learn many interesting things. Typically, when shopkeepers see customers willing to buy, they become very available and they love to describe their work or display the rarest wares in their shop.
What to buy
Walking through the markets you will be attracted to different objects and you will want to buy many things. Decorated dishes, fabrics, jewels, spices, bags, in the souq you can really find everything. But what is really worth buying? Here are 5 things not to miss:
1.Tea and spices
You are in the kingdom of spices and aromas, let yourself be tempted by their exotic colors and fragrances. First of all I recommend buying mint tea, which you will surely fall in love with during your stay, and which you will find yourself drinking several times a day, as if it has always been your habit. Then buy some spices, based on your tastes or by letting the shopkeepers advise you, who often also have ready-made condiments for meat, fish or vegetables. THE spice banquets they are among the most interesting to visit for the particularity of the products that you can find inside them. In fact, together with spices, herbs or healing plants are generally sold, such as "vix berber", A sort of ground herb to breathe to free the nose, or the" galanga ", a root also called" viagra Berber ".
2. Typical perfumes, oils and cosmetics
In the same shops that sell spices, you can also find oils and perfumes, as well as different typical cosmetics. Many will already know theargan oil, a multi-use oil with multiple properties used for skin and hair care and produced only in Morocco. Among other typical cosmetics you will find the black soap, ideal for exfoliation and skin cleansing. Generally this product is used together with a massage glove, but I do not recommend buying if you are planning a stop in a hammam, as there they will probably give you the glove they used for you. Among the strangest objects you will find in the cosmetics department is the "Berber lipstick”, A strange object that seems to be made of a brownish stone and which when moistened turns red and can be smeared on the lips.
3. Leather bags and briefcases
Among the souqs you will find several shops dedicated to leather goods, bags and briefcases in particular. The quality of the leathers, treated in a natural way in some tanneries that you can visit, will surely entice you to buy something. In this case be ready for a long negotiation, as merchants will usually offer you higher prices than the true value of the items. As a guideline, for a leather case without particular processing, the price is about 250 dhm, but costs can increase in the case of hand-decorated bags.
4.Pashminas and fabrics
If you like pashminas and colorful fabrics, check out the Sebbaghine souq, That is, the souq of the dyersprobably one of the most beautiful in Marrakech. Here you can see the artisans dye the fabrics with natural powders and pigments and then spread them out to dry on threads hanging from the walls. If you intend to buy something, take the opportunity to let the shopkeepers explain their dyeing systems and their processing techniques, you will be really fascinated.
5.Tajin and ceramic items
Finally I suggest buying something really typical, like the characteristic tajin, ceramic dishes with a lid of a triangular shape used to serve cous-cous and other typical Moroccan dishes. You can find them in every color and size, richly decorated or essential and the prices are really affordable.
