Dubai is a highly exclusive place where you can get the world’s most expensive pieces. Many do not know though that Dubai is also the world’s cheapest place if you know where to look for something. Although the mentioning of cheap watches is not common in the Baedekers, we can give you some advices on where to go for purchasing cheap watches in Dubai.
There are two main categories when talking about cheap watches. One is if the brand is cheap because it is not famous or simply because not made of expensive materials. Other types of cheap watches are the replicas. The replicas are those watches, which are made to look like some expensive brand. There are legal and illegal replicas. Chinese normally do some small alterations with the brand name releasing at much cheaper but same looking watches, which are highly popular especially among women. The most likely copied brands include the Rolex, Omega, Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci, Dior watches. There are several lawsuits in connection with illegal copying so if you buy such cheap watches, be aware that you support the black market. However, these cheap watches look highly appealing. Unfortunately, especially good replicas are often sold at cheaper stores or in the souks as “originals” for a price much higher than they are worth.
For this reason, be careful with the cheap watches. The cheap Chinese watches look good but they are not reliable at all. Therefore, if you buy an attractive piece, you can be sure it will get wrong in a shorter time. Cheaper brands of normal watches are sold in the bazaars of Dubai. Cheaper shopping areas include Deira district, where everything is full of Indian, Pakistani stores selling cheaper goods. Al Fahidi, Al Rigga roads are always busy, as they are full of cheap shops. Visit the Murshid Bazaar to see cheap local watches. Murshid is the local centre of all electronics and no device exists that you would not find over there. Visit the close by Bur Dubai and Al Satwa district with the Baniyas Square. If you want to buy cheap watches, you must also negotiate. The shops in Dubai open earlier, around 8:00 in the morning, but they have a “siesta-time” until 16:00 when they reopen at 21-22:00. As Friday is for prayers, so many shops only open after the main prayer of Friday which one must pray at the mosque.
The Souks and other bazaars are also great places to buy cheap watches, together with the local Chinatown’s Dragonmart, which is the cheapest biggest marketplace for Chinese in the Middle East and it is a hub for trading. You can even get cheap watches in some of the watch stores of Dubai. In BurJuman Shopping mall, there are watch stores selling all sorts of fancy watches, like the British Accessorise. In the summer, you can avail many discounts. You will surely make the best deal this time of the year by getting all the discounts in Dubai.