Khan El Khalili Bazaar in Cairo| Egypt Travel Blog: Day 09 (Part 59) 08D19

Cairo Khan El Khalili Bazaar | The Most Famous Ancient Market in Egypt

Egypt Travel Blog: 10 DAYS Egypt Explorer - Felucca Cruise & Red Sea

After visiting the Cairo Museum, we headed to the Khan El Khalili Bazaar located in the heart of Islamic Cairo, not far from the medieval walled city, the Saladin Citadel. We were asked if we wanted to visit the Saladin Citadel, but everyone passed on that. Most of us were too tired and wanted to go back to the hotel.

They say no trip to Cairo is complete without visiting the Khan El Khalili Bazaar. Merchants, both local and foreign, have been trading in the Khan El Khalili Bazaar since the 14th century. Khan El Khalili was originally built as a burial site. The burial site belonged to the Fatimid Caliphs and these were the people who founded Cairo in the 10th century.

Going to the Khan El-Khalili bazaar is like going back in time to an old Arab souk. It’s hard to think of something you can’t find in the bazaar. You will find almost anything you can think of. Colorful candles and lanterns, jewellery, perfumes, musical instruments, handicrafts, sweets, spices I never knew existed, statuettes, souvenirs, silver jewellery, t-shirts, galabiyyas, belly dancing costumes … what more do you want?

Here you can put your haggling skills to good use and you are expected to haggle. At some stores when I started with 1/3 price of what merchant asked for, they were looking at me like I was an alien!

Even if you don’t want to buy anything, walking through the alleys and experiencing a different world will make your Egypt trip worthwhile. It is possible to lose track of time and get lost in the maze of stores.

We were given an hour and a half to visit the bazaar and then we would meet at a restaurant to eat and have tea.