Shopping in Abu Dhabi
Whether you’re searching for traditional souvenirs, designer fashion or that perfect piece of sparkling gold jewellery, Abu Dhabi’s malls and souks offer a treasure chest of surprises waiting to be discovered
Luxury labels
Shopping enthusiasts have ample opportunity to flex their credit cards in the nation’s capital. Not only is the destination a tax-free haven, it also offers a wide choice of traditional souks and modern shopping malls where endless hours can be spent discovering hidden treasures.
Marina Mall, Abu Dhabi Mall, Al Wahda Mall and Khalidiya Mall all offer an array of internationally recognised brands, both high street and high end.
All four malls are one-stop leisure and shopping destinations with a wealth of stores offering almost every conceivable brand name from fashion to footwear items, and jewellery to luxury lifestyle products.
Marina Mall is situated on the Breakwater and has a leisurely shopping atmosphere complete with entertainment and dining offerings for all the family, including an ice skating rink, bowling village and cinema. It is the main choice for designer fashion, stocking boutiques for Armani, Chanel, Dior and Louis Vuitton, to name a few. Visitors will find everything from jewellery and accessories to electronics, sporting goods, cosmetics and household items.
With more than 200 retail outlets spread over four floors, Abu Dhabi Mall has something for everyone. Family fun is guaranteed with a nine-screen Cineplex, a huge food court and casual cafés dotted around the mall, as well as a popular children’s play area.
Al Wahda Mall has a variety of well-known brands including Club Monaco, Beyond the Beach and Next. Meanwhile Khalidiya Mall offers a good mix of high-street outlets as well as a children’s fun centre and cinema. For high-end perfumes and accessories, visit Paris Gallery which also has a Serenity Spa.
Other shopping malls that have stood the test of time are the Fotouh Al Khair centre, Hamdan Centre and Madinat Zayed Shopping Centre (home to the city’s gold souk), while Mushrif Mall on Airport Road opened recently.
Madinat Zayed Gold Centre
Souk search
While there are several sophisticated shopping malls to choose from, traditional markets – souks – play an equally important role and should feature prominently on every visitor’s agenda.
The souk consists of numerous small stores or stalls which sell a wide range of goods, both the necessities and the luxuries. The open-air souks have much to offer, with oriental spices, vibrantly coloured fabrics, prized Persian rugs, traditional designs in jewellery and more. Combining old-world charm with modern-day sophistication, the souks are a reflection of Abu Dhabi’s past, when bargaining was the order of the day.
Historically, they were considered important meeting places as much as they were trading centres. The early markets were rambling sandy alleys crammed with stalls and tea or coffee houses where people gathered to discuss the day’s events over shisha (hubbly bubbly), a cup of sweetened tea or gahwa, the famed Arabic coffee.
Some still have small coffee or tea-shops located on or off the main thoroughfares and visitors can expect to be offered a complimentary cup or two from friendly stallholders as a precursor to some intense bargaining.
In days gone by, it may well have been possible to buy just about anything from a bag of salt or a camel, to incense for the home or gold for a wedding. However, the newer souks often specialise in different products, thus creating individual markets such as the fish souk, fruit and vegetable souk, carpet souk and gold souk.
There are also modern attractions, such as the new Central Market Souk or the Arabian-themed Souk at Qaryat Al Beri where visitors will find traditional goods and souvenirs, jewellery, coffee shops and restaurants.
The colourful, open-air Iranian Souk in the Al Mina area features goods imported by dhow from Iran, including exotic bedspreads, carpets and hand-painted pottery, while the carpet souk is a great place to look for oriental carpets and rugs.
Great buys at Abu Dhabi’s souks include traditional silver and brass coffee pots, carpets from Iran, India or Pakistan, incense and oudh, the local perfume essence.
Prices are generally competitive. The trick to shopping wisely is to bargain forcefully, starting with the lowest possible price you are willing to offer – and unlikely to pay – but working up to a point where you feel that you have made a real bargain.
In most souks, bargaining is expected and part of the charming sales process. Gold, electronic goods, textiles and carpets are usually the best value for money, while other great bargains are traditional handicrafts in the form of handwoven baskets, mats, camel blankets, crafted metal artifacts and jewellery.
Bawadi Mall
Al Ain
Al Ain Mall is the retail centrepiece of the Garden City and features anchor stores such as Home Centre, Grand Stores and Paris Gallery. The family entertainment area includes a 12-lane bowling alley and a multi-screen cinema, as well as an indoor ice-skating rink.
The popular Al Jimi Mall stocks premium brand fashion, cosmetics, jewellery, perfumeries and attractive terrace cafés and restaurants.
Al Ain’s largest shopping area, Ba- wadi Mall, has almost 400 shops, a 10,000-square-metre family entertainment centre, eight-screen cinema and a 16-lane bowling alley. There’s also a souk with 55 traditional-style retailers and an adjacent camel market which is worth a visit.
The Al Ain Souk with its authentic ambience sells a mixture of household goods, as well as fruit and vegetables, and is a great place to explore.
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Rob Nicholas are discussing. 