Shopping In Tangier // What To Buy, Bazaars, Souks & Crafts (2023)

Being the gateway to Morocco and the first (and sometimes only) city to visit, it is interesting to know what to buy in Tangier, the metropolis of the Strait of Gibraltar.

So what do you buy in Tangier? The best things to buy in Tangier are handicrafts, leather goods, jewellery with semi-precious stones, cotton and silk aprons, and of course, carpets. There are also several shops selling antiques and furniture.

Read on to find out more about shopping in Tangier.

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Typical Moroccan crafts in Tangier

There are many bazaars in the Medina and most of them are in the Rue Almouhadines, next to the Zoco Chico. There are also many bazaars in Shiaguin street and in the New City you can find them in Pasteur Avenue or Liberté street, both good places to buy Moroccan handicrafts from the different regions of the country. We recommend asking in several shops, as you usually have to haggle quite a bit over prices.

The official handicraft center, located in La Mesalla, offers the opportunity to see the artisans making their products, but the price is fixed and cannot be haggled. In the local handicraft shops, we can find leather goods: slippers, bags, purses etc, and all kind of leather clothes, jackets, coats, skirts, etc.

There is a great variety of jewellery with semi-precious stones.

Very famous from the region are the white cotton and silk aprons or aprons with white and red stripes used by the Jebala women.

In the medina we can find some typical furniture making workshops in iron, mosaic and wood and the blacksmiths in Bouabib street near the big souk.

There are craftsmanship of sculptures in carved natural stone and painted plaster, of Andalusian origin.

Also the practical carpets of raffia of plastic of pretty colors are made.

Jewels and gold, we will be able to find them in the medina, street of Touahin, bocacalle of Shiagin.

From the rural zone of its surroundings we can emphasize the basketwork of the Jebala, with trays and containers of several colors and the ceramic of cooked mud and other objects of furniture in wood and brass. To find these products we recommend going to the Gran Zoco market.

On the road to Tetouan you will find several stalls selling ceramics and stone at good prices.

There are interesting furniture stores in the new city, with different designs from the European, more baroque, where we will be able to find magnificent, mirrors, lamps, tables and complements for the decoration, in many occasions imported of the Middle East.

The bags, jackets and other leather goods are at a good price, both in the Avenida Pasteur and in the Medina.

Moroccan textiles in Tangier

This city is an important center of textile manufacturing, so we can find in their shops along with traditional clothing, clothing, sports or leather at competitive prices.

The typical clothes are made by female hands: kaftan, handkerchiefs and chilabas.

It is well known Liberté street, between the Gran Zoco and the Boulevard Pasteur, the Fondac Ecchejra, with weavers, specialized in Rif blankets and the Princess Caftan shop,

Those of upholstery and decoration products, of different design than the Spanish ones and with a good price, are interesting. There is also an abundance of lace, tassels and haberdashery products at good prices.

Antique shops in Tangier

In the surroundings of the Place de France there are some high class establishments, we can find in this area and in the medina shops that sell used objects like the shops of the flea market.

Bazaar in Tangier

Look for them near the great Zocco, in the Alcaicería on the beach street and the shops on Libertad street, where the Berber or popular market is located.

In the famous flea market in Casabarata, Rabat road, or in different shops in the centre, you can find all kinds of objects of oriental import, branded watches, electronics, video games, music etc. at cheap prices.

Food in Tangier

Next to the Zoco Grande is the market where you can find seasonal agricultural products: oranges, watermelons and vegetables. Very typical are the strings of onions.

Dried fruits are very appreciated, such as dates, figs, almonds, peanuts, etc.
It is also a good place to buy tea and other infusions.

Very interesting for its variety and quality, are the spices, highlighting the Saffron, oregano, cumin, philanthro, and mixtures that are used to prepare the “pinchitos morunos”, an excellent souvenir to bring to Spain.

Maa zhar (orange blossom water) or rose water, is used to sweeten coffee, tea, and gives flavor to cakes and sweets. It reduces fever and softens the skin, in beauty and make-up treatments. This water is used in silver or chiselled bronze “Mrach” sprinklers, spraying guests during circumcision, birth or marriage ceremonies, etc.

In the bakeries of the Avenue Pasteur and France are famous the typical almond sweets, pastries and pastries in general quality, highlighting the famous Spanish and Andalusian pastries.

If you want you can have tea at the Cafe Central in the small souk. Today it is not as bohemian as in the golden age of Tangier, but on its terrace you can enjoy one of the best mint teas in the city.

Traditional Medicine in Tangier

In Tangier it is possible to find many traditional herbalists and pharmacies, both in the medina and in the new town, where many typical products are found.
In the herbalist’s shops you can find traditional remedies for a number of ailments, advised by the local healers, very well known the Herbalist’s shop Al Kasbah in the medina Loukus street the most popular ointments are those made of gimsen.

Within the aesthetics the most traditional products are

Musk, a perfume with aphrodisiac properties.
The Ghassoul, an ideal powder for the skin and the hair, typical of the Valley of the Mouluya.
Oils and creams of Argan, Nopal, Chumbo, Almonds and Nigella.
Soaps made of argan oil, lavender flowers, aloe and figs, black soap based on olive oil and eucalyptus.
Gloves of exfoliating Kessa, Henna of Tazarine in the Sahara and the valley of Ourika, to decorate the skin, and the powder Kholl to darken eyelids.
Perfumes and Plant Extracts, Rose perfumes the production area is the town of Mgoumna Kella. Orange blossom extracts (orange blossom water), chamomile, mint, lavender, thyme, jasmine, apple, oregano, typical of the Azrou region.
We highlight the Madini Perfumery, Blv Pasteur, whose motto is that they can reproduce any fragrance. Any perfume you can think of can be obtained at a much lower price than the original
Magic lipstick, so called because in a few seconds the color changes according to the temperature of the lips, with a very natural look. It is composed of natural henna dyes and argan oil that provides, in addition to hydration and shine, a natural tone that lasts more than 24 hours without needing to be touched up. There are even women who can last up to two days.
Low price, a little less than one euro.
The best known is the green lipstick, but they are sold in various colors depending on the tone you want to get.
Akker Fassi, traditional Berber lipstick and colorant made from poppies.
Natural alum, used as a healing deodorant and to give firmness to the foot

Other shopping in Tangier

If you are looking for curious books, the bookstore Las Columnas , avenue Pasteur, where you can find all the history of Tangier in books.

We recommend the Marjane Hypermarkets, on the roads to Rabat and Tetouan. There you will find all the wide offer of these centers.

Modern shopping centres in Tangier

In recent years, with the city’s meteoric growth, European-style shopping centres have been opened, with fashion shops, a hypermarket, cafés, restaurants, cinemas etc.
Some of them are still waiting for their next opening.

We Recommend

Tanger City Mall, in the new expansion area of Tanger City Centre, near Mohamed VI Avenue, next to the high-speed train station, with 30,000 m2, on three levels.

Socco Alto, in the upper part of Tanger, a district of California, next to the Golf Club.

Ibn Batouta Mall, recently opened, in the centre, near the port, with important shops such as Carrefour, Market, Fnac, Zara, etc.