Every place has its distinctive flavor and every city has a market that relates its stories, embraces its history and accompanies its evolution. If you enjoy visiting public markets, you must see Mutrah Souq, the most beautiful market your eyes will ever see!
Mutrah Souq is one of the oldest markets in Oman, dating back about two hundred years. Its antiquity has perhaps increased the extent of its beauty, magic, and allure.
You cannot see Mutrah Souq from the outside, as it stretched deep within the city. The market starts at a gate facing the Sea of Oman and Mutrah Corniche and ends with another gate in the city’s old quarters that usually receive the majority of visitors coming from other Omani towns and villages.
Mutrah Souq is a prototype of old Eastern markets, characterized by narrow winding alleys roofed with wood. This Souq goes by another name among the Omanis: the Market of Darkness, due to its myriad of alleys and roads lined by shops that block the sun during the day. This name applies specifically to the section that extends from the Prophet's Mosque to Khawr Bimbah. And as if two names were not enough for this souq, the east and west parts of Mutrah Souq, separated by Khawr Bimbah, are also known as “the small market” and “the large market”. The Market of Darkness is the small market, whereas the large market is the wholesale market.
When passing through this souq, your senses are tantalized by the aromatic smells of frankincense, incense, and Arabian perfumes. Mutrah Souq is known for its handicrafts like silverware, daggers, traditional cloth, new apparel, and shoes, in addition to the famous Omani sweets (Halwa), spices and braziers (receptacles in which incense or frankincense is burned).