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Culture & Shopping in Fez: Souks and Crafts

Fez is the craft capital of Morocco — leather, pottery, metalwork, textiles, and woodwork, much of it still made by hand in the medina's workshops. Shopping here is a contact sport: the souks are vast, the haggling is expected, and the quality ranges from superb to souvenir-grade.

This guide covers where the real crafts are, what to buy, and how to shop without getting played.

The craft souks: leather, metal, pottery

Every trade has its quarter. Here's the map.

Photo: Walter Baxter, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The craft souks cluster in Fes el-Bali, each trade in its quarter. Start at the tanneries — Chouara, the largest, where the dye pits make the famous photographs (take the mint sprig you're offered). The leather shops around the tannery terraces sell bags, jackets, and babouches; quality varies wildly, so check stitching and smell the leather (good leather smells like leather, not chemicals).

Seffarine — the metalworkers' square — is where Fez's famous brass and copper work is hammered out in front of you: lanterns, trays, teapots. The dyers' souk adds the colour. For pottery, the Ain Nokbi quarter outside the walls is where the blue-and-white Fassi ceramics are actually made — the kilns are worth seeing even if you don't buy.

Keep reading: What to buy (and where) →

What to buy (and where)

What Fez does best: leather goods (bags, belts, babouches — the tannery-district shops are the source), Fassi pottery (the cobalt blue is the signature), brass lanterns and trays from Seffarine, hand-woven textiles and carpets, and carved cedar boxes.

The Cooperative Artisanale de Fès is the fixed-price craft centre — pottery, leather, carpets (they claim over 5,000 handmade pieces) — with no haggling and honest baseline prices. Even if you buy in the souks, visit first to learn what things should cost.

Art D'argile, a pottery gallery just outside the medina, is good for ceramics with a bit more curation than the average souk stall.

Keep reading: How to haggle without getting played →

How to haggle without getting played

Photo: Blake Handley from Victoria, Canada, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

How haggling actually works: the first price is an opening, not an insult. Counter at a third, laugh, let them counter, meet somewhere that feels fair to both of you. Walking away is part of the dance — if the price is real, they'll call you back.

What to avoid: 'free' guides who attach themselves at the tannery viewpoints (they expect a shop visit), anyone rushing you, and silver 'Berber' jewellery at prices that seem too good — it usually is. And remember the commission game: if your guide takes you somewhere, the price includes their cut. That's normal; just factor it in.

Practical tips

• Haggling is expected — start at 30–40% of the asking price and meet in the middle.
• The fixed-price Ensemble Artisanal is the no-haggle baseline; use it to calibrate prices.
• Never feel pressured — 'la shukran' (no thanks) with a smile ends any pitch.
• Guides earn commission from shops they take you to; it's fine, but know the game.

Buy one thing you love, made by someone whose name you learned. That's the Fez souvenir that matters.

Sell crafts in Fez? List your shop on Dayfari free →