Jeddah, SAUDI ARABIA:  Saudi women shop at a grocery in the Souq al-Alawi market in the old town of Jeddah 29 December 2005. The market is the biggest market in Saudi Arabia where hundreds of thousands of Muslims from different countries have so far arrived for the annual pilgrimage to Mecca which begins on January 7. AFP PHOTO/BEHROUZ MEHRI  (Photo credit should read BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images)

AFP/Getty Images

Souq Al Alawi

Top choice in Jeddah


This souq runs off Al Dahab St and is the most extensive in the Kingdom. The market stalls cut into the heart of the old city and buzz with the activity of traders and pilgrims. Search long enough and you'll find genuine Arabian jewellery, Islamic art and traditional dress. Be here at sunset when the call to prayer fills the lanes – this is Arabia at its best.

The atmosphere is especially cosmopolitan during the hajj season. Bargaining with merchants is encouraged, so never settle for the price listed on the tag.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Jeddah attractions

1. Naseef House

0.03 MILES

One of Jeddah’s best-restored old coral houses, Naseef House belonged to one of Jeddah’s most powerful trading families and was later a royal residency…

2. Matbouli House Museum

0.07 MILES

With so many traditional houses closed in Al Balad, this privately owned museum in a beautiful three-storey property with stunning Hejazi mashrabiyya …

3. Al Shafee Mosque

0.13 MILES

Beautifully restored and maintained, this historic mosque, one of the finest in Jeddah, is named after one of the four great imams of classical Sunni…

4. Hanafi Mosque Minaret

0.29 MILES

This beautiful snow-white minaret is all that remains of the historic mosque named after one of the four great imams of Sunni theology, Abu Hanifah. It's…

5. Bab Makkah

0.31 MILES

The Mecca gate was historically the most important gate for Jeddah, Arabia's official pilgrim port. It stands at the start of the road that led to Islam's…

6. Sharbatly House

0.34 MILES

Built in 1930, this historic structure boasts some lovely Hejazi mashrabiyya (wooden lattice balconies). It's the former home of the wealthy Sharbatly…

7. North City Gate

0.35 MILES

This recreated historic gate marks the northern entrance to Al Balad, and is surrounded by some of the most beautiful historic houses, including the…

8. Beit Al Balad

0.42 MILES

Built in the early 20th century as the British legation’s headquarters in Jeddah and serving in that role from about 1915 to the mid-1930s, Beit Al Balad…