Bab Souk and the Artisan Lanes

Bab Souk is a gate and market area in the medina of Chefchaouen, in the Rif mountains of northern Morocco, located south of the main square, Plaza Uta el-Hammam. The gate and the lanes around it hold the town's traditional crafts and everyday shopping. Weavers produce the woollen blankets and shawls typical of the Rif, often in red and white stripes, leatherworkers make bags, belts and slippers, and shops sell hand-painted ceramics, spices, soaps and local goat-cheese rounds. Small workshops are often open to the lane, so visitors can watch a loom being worked or leather being cut, and some owners are happy to explain the process. Visitors typically spend one to two hours here, walking the lanes, comparing items and bargaining. Bargaining is customary: a first price is often well above the final price, and politely offering around half to two thirds of the opening figure is a common starting point, though visitors should only offer what they would be happy to pay. Goat cheese from the Rif is a local specialty, sold as fresh white rounds, and bread, olives and honey are available from nearby stalls. The best time to visit is the morning, when shops open, bread and cheese are fresh and the lanes are cool and uncrowded. By late morning and afternoon, tour groups pass through, and sellers become more insistent. Photographers will find rich scenes in the dyed wool hanging from doorways, the colourful stacks of blankets and the rows of leather slippers, though it is polite to ask before photographing a stall holder or workshop. Market activity is stronger on certain days, when rural producers come into town, so a morning visit often shows more local life. Cash in Moroccan dirhams is the norm, and small notes make payment easier. There is no entry fee, and prices should be checked before buying.