Maasai Market

Are you looking for an affordable, beautiful, and colorful place to shop for souvenirs to take back home with you? Then Massai Market is the place to be. The place is an open-air market with a wide variety of items to shop including African pots and pans, African paintings, African materials, curios, jewelry, utensils, you name it-it will be at the Maasai Market. It is therefore no wonder that this is the one place all tourists flock for shopping when in Nairobi. I have come to a conclusion that how you dress when going to Massai Market will determine everything. Just like when shopping in many other places in the city of Nairobi, you have to be aware of the way you look, how you are dressed, and how you talk. You see, any of these or a combination of all of them might be the determining factor on how you will be charged for whatever items you buy.

The more sharply dressed you are and the quicker the person selling can determine that you are a foreigner, the higher the price of what you buy. To anyone who doesn’t like to be “rude” by ignoring people, you need to skip this place because the only way to survive is to ignore, not for any other reason, but for your peace of mind as you go around selecting your souvenirs. We had our Korean friends visit Kenya, they requested us to take them to Massai Market so that we could help them. as soon as you try and enter the market people run to you to ‘show you round’. they are really persistent and it is not enjoyable especially if they notice you are a tourist or you are with one. We simply walked in and said to them we did not need help walking around a market (who would?). They ignore this and keep the pressure up. So, at this point, my sister simply said, “we will stand here until you leave us alone”. we then stood there, in silence, not replying to any questions until eventually, they walked off. HAHAHA! a tactic that works well. We managed to secure a few things for our friends and they were happy. Tips to Consider * Make sure you are clear on how much you want to spend and stick to the price you want to purchase. * If you feel you’re not coming to an agreement, don’t be afraid to walk away. This will save you time. * Make your experience memorable by allowing yourself to enjoy every minute and laugh it out no matter how pushy they can be. * If you can leave your children behind, please do. Otherwise, this is a good place to shop if you’re looking for handy-made and unique things to have in your home or gift someone.

The Maasai Market is an open-air market. It is truly remarkable with so many unique pieces of clothes, accessories, art, jewelry, crafts, sandals, etc., at low prices. This market sells items for men, women, and kids. It is famous among tourists because of its handmade purses and bags. Inside the market, there are no food items, but there are good restaurants across the road. My friend and I visited the market, and after reading the reviews on the website, we knew what to do. Our strategy was to not respond to anyone who talked to us and walk straight to the market. There were more than ten people that spoke to us within the 2 minutes. Once you are inside the market, those people would leave you alone. We spent about 15 mins there. It’s an excellent market to shop in, but when visiting, be very careful with your items and avoid talking to people around. I truly believe the business of those honest vendors and shops is ruined by those people who try to scam you to their shops. Nevertheless, I was able to buy some fantastic items.