What experiences have you had in negotiating prices in the Souk?
Prices offered for goods in the Souk are generally hugely inflated. It is an ‘accepted’ that for items above £10 or so then a third of the asking price should be the final price. This means starting lower. Not everybody is comfortable with this but it is the common practice. Some goods are harder to get down to a sensible price but persistence pays. For prices offered below £10 then half is a reasonable price to finish at.
Let us not forget that a good negotiation is where both parties are happy.
The Marrakech traders are polite, smiley and not generally pushy. They have learned over the years how to handle tourists. A smile and polite “No Thanks” is sufficient and they won’t persist. They are friendly people here and a great negotiating tool is the use of humour. Everybody likes to laugh and joke.
For our visitors to Riad el Zohar who are less brave or short of time and just want to get on, we have The Ensemble Artisanal just 10 to 15 minutes walk from our front door. In this building is a collection of many shops and a few manufacturing workshops. Here goods are marked up at fixed prices and usually at very low prices compared to the first price offered in the Souk. The prices are generally about right and the quality is the same as elsewhere. Goods and artefacts are usually good quality here in Marrakech.
