What Souvenirs to Bring from Saudi Arabia – Part One of the Top 15 Ideas for Gift Shopping
Saudi Arabian perfumed oils
Now that you know the easiest way to locate places to shop for souvenirs, I will give you some all times classic gifts ideas to bring from Saudi Arabia.
The most desirable and undoubtedly the most authentic souvenir from Saudi Arabia is genuine Saudi perfumed oil. Purchase a small bottle of this aromatic magic and every time you apply it (just one drop will be enough to last for the whole day and longer) you will remember your trip to the Kingdom.
If you plan to buy perfume for somebody else, be cautious: make sure the addressee doesn’t have any allergies to take full advantage of your unique souvenir from Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabian pure oil perfumes
Image source unknown
Almost all of the below brands can be found in major Saudi malls (remind you to check for the particular brand names in the corresponding mall websites to avoid disappointment). I would also advise to do a bit of a research at the perfume collectors’ forums like Basenote or Fragrantica. These threads will come useful:
Budget Arabian Perfumes, part 1
Budget Arabian Perfumes, part 2
You might probably want to obtain some primary knowledge that will help you to make your way in the world of Arabian perfumery. If you don’t have enough time or courage to go through the specialized forums, just remember the basics herebelow.
You will stumble upon some specific terms when browsing the websites of perfume brands. Attar is an Arabic words that means “scent”. It refers to the process of distillation of botanicals (mainly petals but herbs and seeds also) in specific proportions into a carrier (essential) oil. Quality attars usually don’t have expiration date, they smell better as time passes by, and are considered to be a luxury in the Middle Eastern perfume world. My guess is it’s the way of distillation, the concentration and the rareness or origin of the plants or flowers that influence the price of attars.
Mukhallat stands for “oil mix” or blend. I’ve noticed that mukhallats named after a royalty smell better than their counterparts, but that is my subjective opinion. You might also be curious to try a “house mukhallat” which is specific to each particular brand. Ask for the specialty of the house, just like you would do in a Michelin star restaurant.
Oud is basically oleoresin that comes from Aquilaria tree. The quality of the oud oil depends on the tree origin, the way the oil was extracted and content of the resin in the carrier oil.
Tree chips
A handful of general advice on purchasing Arabian perfumes:
- If you are to purchase traditional Arabic oil fragrances, I’d suggest to look for reputable sellers/brands, because a not quite knowledgeable person will not be able to estimate price, authenticity or presence of synthetic components of Arabian oil bought in a souq.
Remember, that rare ouds cost a fortune, as the production has declined: population of the oud producing trees has come to a point at which they are categorized as threatened.
I highly recommend to watch a 50 minutes video shot by Al Jazeera about oud production.
- Although you will be able to find “westernized” versions of perfumes (meaning fragrances based on alcohol, not oil), I would advise to go for oil edition, it’s so authentically Arabian!
- The texture of your perfumed oil will be thick and viscous, and you might be surprised to see the tiny little glass bottle that will contain your precious purchase. The oil will probably be decanted in sizes of 3, 6 or 12ml (or quarter, half and one tola, where tola is a measurement unit for “liquid gold” in the Middle Eastern world). Can be easily accommodated in your luggage though!
- The constitution of the Arabian oil is pretty steady, don’t expect evolving of fragrance according to the classical pyramid of French perfumery that relies on gradual evaporation of components and releasing the notes. Try some on your wrist and it will smell the same hours later.
- Full versions of Arabian perfumes come in gorgeous bottles that can be considered a gift item by themselves. Check out this Banoosh Attar perfume by Asgharali perfume house:
Yes, this is an Arabic oil container (can’t call it bottle really).
One more sample is Al Khayool-III Attar perfume by Asgharali perfume house:
Khanjar (traditional Arabic dagger) and oil container – two souvenirs in one!
Mukhallat Tharwaan perfume by Ajmal perfume house, crystal prism used as a container for concentrated oil.
Now that you know the basics, let’s move on to the specifics!
Continued in the next post…
