Al Ain Camel Market - Camel Souk
Al Ain Camel Market - Camel Souk
Al Ain Camel Market - Camel Souk
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- Justin WHasbrouck Heights, New Jersey6,155 contributionsOne of the most authentic spots you will visit on a trip to Abu Dhabi.Our Tourism class visited the Camel Souk when touring Al Ain and I thought it was one of the most authentic and localized places on the tour. The people at the Souk looked like they had not seen too many Americans before and the camels looked at us in amusement. I really enjoyed the trip here.Visited January 2024Traveled on businessWritten March 8, 2024
- GuptaALOKMumbai, India238 contributionsTHE LARGEST CAMEL 'MARKET' OF THE WORLDIt is the largest camel 'market' in the world. Only after coming here I came to know that there are different types of camels for different types work. For example, the camel which produces good milk is not the one which produces good hair, the one which gives good leather is not the one suitable for carrying loads.Visited December 2023Traveled with familyWritten March 30, 2024
- LWMillerIllinois265 contributionsFabulous and fun placeInteresting to say the least. A must see if you go to Al Ain. This is a quick and easy place to visit. You can spend as much time as you like. It’s fun to watch them load the camels on trailers when purchased. You can get close to them too.Visited May 2024Traveled as a coupleWritten June 15, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.0
324 reviews
Excellent
101
Very good
119
Average
67
Poor
22
Terrible
15
Ibrahim Refaie
Dubai, United Arab Emirates88 contributions
Feb 2020 • Friends
Al Ain camel market is a tourist hotspot. Many of them come from Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and other emirates to see camels. They love to take pictures of them and obtain first-hand information about them.
Written February 11, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
70ava
Beijing, China1,009 contributions
Feb 2023
Huge amount of camels, traders, and Bedouin specialists - most of them from the Rashaide tribe in Sudan. Have a look around, try to hear the negotiations, ask for a sip of the fresh camel milk. It is sad, though, to think that all those camels, including the young ones, are sold for their meat.
Written February 14, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Justin W
Hasbrouck Heights, NJ6,155 contributions
Jan 2024 • Business
Our Tourism class visited the Camel Souk when touring Al Ain and I thought it was one of the most authentic and localized places on the tour. The people at the Souk looked like they had not seen too many Americans before and the camels looked at us in amusement.
I really enjoyed the trip here.
I really enjoyed the trip here.
Written March 8, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LWMiller
Illinois265 contributions
May 2024 • Couples
Interesting to say the least. A must see if you go to Al Ain. This is a quick and easy place to visit. You can spend as much time as you like. It’s fun to watch them load the camels on trailers when purchased. You can get close to them too.
Written June 15, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
GuptaALOK
Mumbai, India238 contributions
Dec 2023 • Family
It is the largest camel 'market' in the world. Only after coming here I came to know that there are different types of camels for different types work. For example, the camel which produces good milk is not the one which produces good hair, the one which gives good leather is not the one suitable for carrying loads.
Written March 30, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jd112
Alanya, Türkiye3 contributions
I was there yesterday and saw the reviews here today.
It is well worth the visit to see the camel market, apart from camels theres lots of other animals to see.
But I managed to get myself in the exact same situation as the first reviewer, the guys are pretty good at playing innocent .
I Honestly thought he was being genuinely kind and wanted me to see his camels.
Normally I always say no to these kind of offers on the street but the guy that approached me was very convincing that he only wanted to show his camels.
Once I was inside the camel pen I was pretty much trapped and realised to late, so after a few pictures taken came the demand from the guy which made the whole experience a bit scary, one guy blocking the exit the second demanding money off me.
I got the price down a lot since I was not going to pay the 200 dirham they wanted. When i got out and the shock passed, I realised it could of been quite a serious situation since I was by myself far inside the camel pen.
I'm also no rookie to traveling, but somehow I fell for this one..
Recommend going there, just don't pet any animals or point your camera before agreeing on price.
It is well worth the visit to see the camel market, apart from camels theres lots of other animals to see.
But I managed to get myself in the exact same situation as the first reviewer, the guys are pretty good at playing innocent .
I Honestly thought he was being genuinely kind and wanted me to see his camels.
Normally I always say no to these kind of offers on the street but the guy that approached me was very convincing that he only wanted to show his camels.
Once I was inside the camel pen I was pretty much trapped and realised to late, so after a few pictures taken came the demand from the guy which made the whole experience a bit scary, one guy blocking the exit the second demanding money off me.
I got the price down a lot since I was not going to pay the 200 dirham they wanted. When i got out and the shock passed, I realised it could of been quite a serious situation since I was by myself far inside the camel pen.
I'm also no rookie to traveling, but somehow I fell for this one..
Recommend going there, just don't pet any animals or point your camera before agreeing on price.
Written June 6, 2010
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Leezer1015
Carbondale, IL56 contributions
This is a real livestock market and not necessarily a tourist attraction.. When we went, we (westerners) definitely attracted a lot of attention. Some guys escorted us to their stall and proceeded to give us quite the camel show (here, get on the camel, here's a baby camel, etc) complete with pictures. It was very interesting and a different experience.
However, a few things to be aware of:
#1 At the end they asked for money (no surprise), but they started their request at 500 dirham (ba ha ha ha). But since the deed had already been done, we had much less leverage. Obviously, we drastically negotiated them down, but still, I advise you to settle prices before. I guess this is obvious, but we missed it. A rookie mistake but we still made it.
#2 They actually padlocked us in their stall! We didn't realize it until we had already paid and were heading out. One of the guys pulls out his key and allowed us out. So, what would have happened if we had not found a suitable price? So, beware.
Let me say that I'm not totally naive to the world, having done quite a bit of traveling and living abroad. However, we made two mistakes which meant we overpaid, and it could have turned out much worse. Anyway, beware!
That being said, enjoy the market and enjoy the experience.
However, a few things to be aware of:
#1 At the end they asked for money (no surprise), but they started their request at 500 dirham (ba ha ha ha). But since the deed had already been done, we had much less leverage. Obviously, we drastically negotiated them down, but still, I advise you to settle prices before. I guess this is obvious, but we missed it. A rookie mistake but we still made it.
#2 They actually padlocked us in their stall! We didn't realize it until we had already paid and were heading out. One of the guys pulls out his key and allowed us out. So, what would have happened if we had not found a suitable price? So, beware.
Let me say that I'm not totally naive to the world, having done quite a bit of traveling and living abroad. However, we made two mistakes which meant we overpaid, and it could have turned out much worse. Anyway, beware!
That being said, enjoy the market and enjoy the experience.
Written November 2, 2009
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
lesmiserables9
New Orleans, LA149 contributions
May 2015 • Couples
I want to post my experience because I want to warn everyone, especially women, to stay away from this place! I was swindled into following a trader, who led me and my boyfriend around. We walked around the most deserted parts of the market. He took us into a pen, told my boyfriend to stand on one side of the camel, and directed me to stand on the other side, where he proceeded to touch my waist. At first I brushed this off as him guiding me, but as this went on it became more and more uncomfortable, the touching more and more prolonged. When I said we had had enough, he aggressively insisted that we continue to follow him. This continued until by the end he was grabbing my butt. There were a number of other men following us, forcing us into pens, to pose for pictures we didn't want. In the end, the market was closing so he demanded money. To be quite honest, I now realize that I should have been more persistent, but in my limited travel (not to mention life) experience, I have never been touched inappropriately before!
Horrible horrible experience that marred my entire visit to an otherwise lovely city.
I am posting a picture (one that they forced us to take). In it, you can clearly see a hand around my waist that belongs to someone hiding in the background.
Horrible horrible experience that marred my entire visit to an otherwise lovely city.
I am posting a picture (one that they forced us to take). In it, you can clearly see a hand around my waist that belongs to someone hiding in the background.
Written May 6, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
masaccio
Huntingdon, UK1,920 contributions
Apr 2012 • Couples
The camel souk was the only thing we really enjoyed in Al Ain and I'm glad we hired a car in Abu Dhabi to come and see it. I guess we could have taken a bus tour, but then we would have been with the big group that must have spent all of around five minutes there.
If you're somebody who enjoys taking photographs, it's worth spending a little more than an hour there. The traders will have more than gotten used to you being there by then and will have stopped offering to show you their baby camels (for a fee, of course).
Common advice for visiting the camel souk seems to be to dress respectfully. The blonde girl in the strappy top and hot-pants gripping her partners hand appears not to have read anything about that, but she was in amongst the sea of 5-minute tourists, so I don't think she noticed the reactions. I don't know whether our more modest dress was what led to more interesting conversations with traders, but I expect it could have helped.
If you're somebody who enjoys taking photographs, it's worth spending a little more than an hour there. The traders will have more than gotten used to you being there by then and will have stopped offering to show you their baby camels (for a fee, of course).
Common advice for visiting the camel souk seems to be to dress respectfully. The blonde girl in the strappy top and hot-pants gripping her partners hand appears not to have read anything about that, but she was in amongst the sea of 5-minute tourists, so I don't think she noticed the reactions. I don't know whether our more modest dress was what led to more interesting conversations with traders, but I expect it could have helped.
Written April 22, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jenjoona
Bradford, UK24 contributions
Nov 2012 • Couples
Our visit was a great opportunity to see so many breeds of camels of all ages. We did not visit the other livestock at the souq, but the camels seemed to be in good condition. I would have given 5*s if there had been less hassle from some of the traders and more opportunity to learn about what happens at the souq.
The majority of the men working at the Souq were from Pakistan, rather than Emerati or other Arabs from the Gulf. As soon as we arrived we were surrounded by pushy offers to see a 'baby camel' for a picture, etc. We left our bags in the car and only took a camera so that we could not be pressured into giving more money than we wanted to. At the end we got into our car and confidently handed the men who had showed us round an amount that we felt to be appropriate (20dinars). Of course he insisted we gave more (they wanted 100dinars each) and we had to be quite firm (an Arab man supported us with this by telling them 'enough'!)
As you would expect, the camel souq is an all male and quite conservative place. Modest clothing for both men and women is a must and will generate less attention. I would also recommend easy to clean footwear.
We also drove around the 'souq merkazi' saw beautiful plants for sale and lots of other interesting stalls.
The majority of the men working at the Souq were from Pakistan, rather than Emerati or other Arabs from the Gulf. As soon as we arrived we were surrounded by pushy offers to see a 'baby camel' for a picture, etc. We left our bags in the car and only took a camera so that we could not be pressured into giving more money than we wanted to. At the end we got into our car and confidently handed the men who had showed us round an amount that we felt to be appropriate (20dinars). Of course he insisted we gave more (they wanted 100dinars each) and we had to be quite firm (an Arab man supported us with this by telling them 'enough'!)
As you would expect, the camel souq is an all male and quite conservative place. Modest clothing for both men and women is a must and will generate less attention. I would also recommend easy to clean footwear.
We also drove around the 'souq merkazi' saw beautiful plants for sale and lots of other interesting stalls.
Written November 24, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Yes but how much is it from al ain ? Do
I pay to go
In ?
Written September 4, 2019
Camel market is about 15 minutes from Al Ain city center and it’s close to Bawadi Mall.
Written September 4, 2019
What is the adress because de don’t find the market
Written November 2, 2018
It is behind the Bawadi Mall
Zayed Ibn Sultan St # 137, Al Ain 67774
Written November 4, 2018
I was there last month in June and the hours were 6 am to 7 pm.
Written July 3, 2018
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