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Taif, Saudi Arabia

Souq Al Balad

The old market in the heart of Taif: lanes of shops selling honey, rose products, perfume, spices, dates, clothes and traditional crafts.

Favourite places

Historical places

  • Shubra Palace

    Central Taif

    A historic palace of the late Ottoman era, built of stone with wooden lattice windows and later used as a royal summer residence. Check locally whether it is open.

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Local food

  • Taif rose water and rose oil

    Taif, Saudi Arabia

    Taif roses are distilled into rose water and the costly rose oil (dehn al-ward). Rose water flavours Arabic coffee, sweets and desserts; rose oil is a prized perfume. Buy from farms and long-established perfume shops.

  • Mountain honey

    Taif, Saudi Arabia

    Honey from the Sarawat mountains around Taif, including the dark sidr honey, sold in the souq and at mountain stalls.

  • Mutabbaq

    Taif, Saudi Arabia

    A thin, crisp folded pastry stuffed with minced meat, egg and leek (or sweet banana and cheese), cooked on a hot griddle. A favourite street snack in the Hejaz, especially in the evenings.

Where to eat

Where to stay

  • Central Taif

    Taif, Saudi Arabia

    Hotels and apartments near the old souq and the main roads, practical for the museums and markets and for the drive to Al Hada and Al Shafa.

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Culture

A traditional market: dress modestly and greet shopkeepers with "As-salamu alaykum". Many shops are family-run for generations.

History

Taif has been a market town for centuries, trading fruit, honey, roses and livestock from the mountains with merchants from Makkah and beyond. Souq Al Balad ("the town market") in the old centre carries on that trade.

Not far from Taif, the ancient Souq Okaz was the great pre-Islamic fair of poetry and trade; it has been revived as a cultural festival on its historic site.

Tour plans

Evening in the souq

2–3 hours

  1. Step 1: Arrive after Asr

    The souq comes alive in the evening.

  2. Step 2: Honey and roses

    Taste honey and buy rose products.

  3. Step 3: Spices and crafts

    Browse the lanes for gifts.

  4. Step 4: Dinner

    Saleeg or mandi in a nearby restaurant.

Travel information

Best time to visit

Evenings, when the souq is busiest and coolest. Spring for fresh rose products; summer for fruit.

How to get there

In central Taif. Drive or take a ride-hailing car; parking can be tight at busy times.

Getting around

On foot through the lanes.

Travel tips

  • Shops close briefly at prayer times and some open late in the day — evenings are best.
  • Bargaining is normal in small shops; be polite.
  • Taste honey before you buy and ask its type.

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