Best approached by taking the main left fork onto Souk el-Attarine, where it branches off from Rue Souk el Kebir, and then continuing north for about 150 yards, the Souk Principal des Babouches—also called Souk Smata—is on the right-hand side and is filled with the namesake babouches, pointed leather slippers so beloved of Moroccans. The small doorway opens up to an enormous emporium with examples in every color imaginable.
It can be hard to judge the proper value of these fairy-tale leather slippers, because price depends on so many things, such as the thickness of the sole, the number of layers, the presence or absence of a stepped heel, and of course the decoration. Use your nose, but be warned that a fair price can vary from 60 DH to 400 DH, depending on quality.
Look for the tiny wool boutique on the left as you come to the arch before the right turn for the babouches market. It's on the way to the Souk des Teinturiers (Dyers' Souk). You can see men rolling out wool to make into fetching striped handbags, and, best of all, into small balls, and looping them up into the most unusual necklaces going.