Where is the market located?
Erbils souk is located next to the Citadel and also known as the Qaysari Market or Bazaar, it dates from the Ottoman period.
The Bazaar and Citadel sits in downtown of Erbil and Citadel is, as of 2014, a UNESCO World Heritage site. At 7000+ years old, the Citadel is one of the oldest continuously occupied human settlements. The Bazaar has been recently reconstructed using traditional architecture.
What can you buy at the market?
As with most contemporary cities in the Middle East, you can find lunch, socks, cellphones, carpets, antiques, fresh fruit, organic Kurdish cheese or honey, shoes, clothes and also a chance to buy souvenirs such as kalash (hand-made white Kurdish shoes) and lot of variation of cloth.
Feelings...
The Qaysari bazaar is confusing to walk in, it is not one of those places where there is a map and you know which shop is where. You basically follow your nose (because the aroma of everything is in the air, from sugar, spice and everything that is nice) and your sight (because there is so much colour and vibe). This is the true Erbil aspecially in the early evening time.
I must point out the people are really kind and warm, although they do try to joke you when it comes to prices and quality of goods. Walk around and observe the beauty from the coloured textile and designs to the little Kurdish bits and pieces that really does remind you that you are still in Kurdistan.
Sweets and Tea Culture in the Heart of the Erbil Bazaar
Wandering through the Erbil Bazaar, you quickly discover that its rhythm is set not only by merchants calling out their prices, but by the scent of sugar, spice and slow-brewed tea drifting through the corridors. Local sweet shops showcase an irresistible spectrum of Kurdish sweets: crisp, honey-soaked baklava; date-filled pastries dusted with pistachio; and small handcrafted bites made from walnuts, almonds, or sesame. Among the region’s signature treats are nawlok and jazar, traditional sweets prepared in small batches and displayed in generous trays that catch the light like amber.
No visit feels complete without pausing for tea. In Erbil, tea drinking is less a beverage choice and more a cultural pause—an invitation to slow down. Vendors pour strong, mahogany-colored tea into narrow glass cups, often sweetened generously or finished with a slice of lemon. At the bazaar’s open-front tea stalls, traders, families and travelers sit shoulder to shoulder, sharing stories over steaming glasses. This simple ritual anchors daily life and offers a warm counterpoint to the market’s constant motion.
