Souq Al Abiad


The original Ottoman-era market on this spot was burned down within a year of being built; local legends blame a careless hookah smoker for the blaze. The market was hurriedly rebuilt and it brims with stalls to this day. Sugar cane is squeezed into juice, sacks of saffron seem full to bursting, kunafeh is sliced, and sellers holler about the peerless craftsmanship of sandals, lanterns and scarves.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Al Jazzar Mosque

0.05 MILES

The graceful silhouette of the green-domed Al Jazzar Mosque, with its slender, 124-stair minaret, dominates the northern end of Akko's old city. Al Jazzar…

2. Khan Ash Shawarda

0.07 MILES

This broad, square former caravanserai, built over a Crusader-era convent in the 18th century, has been beautifully restored and now shelters a number of…

3. Okashi Art Museum

0.08 MILES

Within the history-steeped walls of the Citadel, this moderately interesting art gallery is devoted to the works of Avshalom Okashi (1916–80), an…

4. Knights' Halls

0.1 MILES

Akko's crowning attractions are the stone-vaulted Knights' Halls. Wandering these echoing chambers gives captivating insights into the medieval knights…

5. Hammam Al Pasha

0.13 MILES

Built in 1780 by Al Jazzar and in use until the 1940s, this richly ornamented marble and tile hammam now plays host to a 30-minute multimedia show about…

6. City Walls

0.14 MILES

Fortified, wrecked and refortified by Muslims, Crusaders and Mamluks, old Akko is encircled by a sea wall to the west, south and southeast, and by…

7. Khan Al Franj

0.15 MILES

Built by merchants in the mid-16th century, the courtyard of this former caravanserai – the oldest in Akko – is accessible through an open archway.

8. Underground Prisoners Museum

0.16 MILES

Dedicated to Jewish armed resistance during the British Mandate, this museum occupies a massive structure built by the Turks in the late 18th century on…