Herbs and spices at suq.

Steps from the Deira Old Souk abra station, the sound of Arabic chatter bounces around the lanes of this small covered market as vendors work hard to unload cardamom, saffron and other aromatic herbs photogenically stored in burlap sacks alongside nuts, incense burners, henna kits, shishas and dried limes, an essential ingredient in Middle Eastern cuisine. Away from the tourist-oriented main thoroughfare, the tiny shops also sell groceries, plastics and other household goods to locals and sailors from the dhows (traditional Arabian sailing craft).


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Dhow Wharfage

0.08 MILES

Stroll down the Creek for photogenic close-ups of dozens of brightly coloured dhows docked next to the Deira souqs that load and unload everything from…

2. Museum of the Poet Al Oqaili

0.08 MILES

In 1923 this beautifully restored home tucked into the narrow lanes on the edge of the Spice Souq became the home of Saudi-born Mubarak Bin Al Oqaili …

3. Gold Souq

0.1 MILES

All that glitters is gold (and occasionally silver) along this covered arcade where dozens of shops overflow with every kind of jewelry imaginable, from…

4. Heritage House

0.19 MILES

Closed for renovation until the end of 2019, this 1890 courtyard house once belonged to Sheikh Ahmed Bin Dalmouk, a wealthy pearl merchant and founder of…

5. Hindi Lane

0.2 MILES

Until the completion of a new temple in Abu Dhabi in 2020, only a tiny and ageing double-shrine, tucked behind the Grand Mosque since 1958, serves the UAE…

6. Diwan Mosque

0.24 MILES

The distinctive ornate flat dome and slender minaret of this snowy white mosque watch over the Al Fahidi Historic District. Non-Muslims may only visit the…

7. Grand Mosque

0.25 MILES

Dubai’s tallest minaret (70m high) lords over the more than 50 small and large domes that give the city's largest mosque its distinctive silhouette. Today…

8. Perfume Souq

0.25 MILES

Several blocks with a preponderance of perfume shops hardly warrants the title ‘souq’, yet these stores sell a staggering range of Middle Eastern attars:…