Khan el-Khalili

A vibrant market place in the heart of downtown Cairo. An authentic and very much local vibes if you want to experience Cairo. A place in which you can find anything to buy.

When I think about Cairo I think about this place. It is old, authentic, raw, and captivating. The architecture and the old streets are lovely. However, this experience is not for everyone....at times I felt claustrophobic and it's constantly crowded. The streets are very narrow. And you need someone local or a guide to help you navigate the streets otherwise you can find yourself lost in some strange ally. Generally it's safe and there is a metal detector and police at the entrance. Motorcycles roam around near pedestrians which is dangerous..(for this reason I would not recommend coming here with kids) There are lots of shops for souvenirs but I have to say that they inflated their prices so much that even after an 80 percent haggling experience they were still overpriced. I regretted buying from there as I found better bargains at the airport. It's a little bit frustrating to have to turn down a lot of the street vendors, but if you are polite and nice with them they will let you be... I love watching people there and chatting with shopkeepers. I can't wait to go back again.

Haley Market is a very unique market to buy local specialty items, there is quite a lot of passenger traffic on weekends, people are different skin color in various countries, this place can move payment not much, there are some small shops that can exchange money.

The oldest and largest market in downtown Cairo seems to fit the whole world

The Khalili Market, located in the heart of Cairo (the old city), consists of thousands of individual shops scattered in dozens of streets and alleys, many of which date back to the 14th century A.D. The market road is narrow, the streets are crowded with small shops, mainly selling gold and silver jewelry, copper plates, stone carvings, leather goods and other traditional Egyptian handicraft products, which are popular with foreign tourists because of its simple shop and complete goods. If you come to Cairo, you must visit here. There are jewelry, crafts and clothing with Egyptian characteristics. It is estimated that there are many Chinese tourists to Egypt in recent years. When we come here, the shopkeeper of a shop immediately greets us with a loud voice: China, China! We bought some jewelry, clothes and dates. They are all inexpensive things. Many small commodities are really cheap and can bargain. We went in the evening because time was limited and there were too many alleys to enjoy.

The Khalili Market is the largest Grand Bazaar in Cairo, where a wide variety of Egyptian goods is gathered. The roads in the whole market are intricate, and a variety of vendors gather on both sides of the road. You can taste Egyptian cuisine, or experience the unique plump smoke here, and you can also buy many exquisite and cheap crafts. Absolutely a great place to experience life in Cairo.