by No matter what sort of shopping you’re looking for, Goa will have something to offer you. Whether it is the perfect holiday souvenir to remind you of your travels, some beautiful jewellery or a unique piece of clothing you will find it in Goa.
Anjuna Wednesday Flea Market
The flea market in Anjuna has been held every Wednesday since the 1960’s and was started by the original hippies who travelled overland across Europe and India to find the paradise of Goa. Originally, it was used by them as a place to barter for goods or to raise cash either for a ticket back home or to stay on in Goa.
Today though it is a vast open air market held in South Anjuna along the sea front and comprises of hundreds of individual stalls. Here you can buy coconut wood necklaces and delicate silver ankle chains, tie dyed dresses and cashmere shawls, CD’s of Goa’s famous trance music and a hundred varieties of incense.
As with most markets in India there is some hard selling and the stall holders will try hard to get your attention and convince you to buy but, generally speaking, a firm “no” will be enough if you don’t want to purchase anything. Bartering is essential here as nothing has a price sticker so do be prepared to negotiate.
Shopping In Calangute
Located south of Anjuna the town of Calangute is very popular with Indian and foreign tourists and, as such, it caters for anything the holiday maker might need. Walk up from the sea front and you will find hundreds of shops lining both sides of the busy main street and selling everything from beach essentials like flip flops, towels and straw hats to fake branded items like jeans and shoes.
Shopping in Calangute is much more commercial and a lot of the shops stock similar items but that does make for good haggling so finding a bargain may be easier than at some of the markets. Conveniently there are ATM machines here (each guarded by security to ward of beggars or hawkers) and bars and cafes to stop for drinks.
Mackie’s Saturday Night Market
Held every Saturday night during the dry season (October to July) Mackie’s is a night market which boasts hundreds of stall as well as live entertainment and tasty local food. Some of the stall holders are the same as those who sell at Anjuna and other markets but there are also lots of different vendors with unique pieces of jewellery, embroidered furniture throws and cushion covers and beaded sandals.
The market starts just after sunset and goes on until around 3am and during this time there are live bands playing party music, displays from traditional Indian dancers and sword tricks to keep you entertained as you shop. Food here is good and very cheap with a large bowl of biryani costing 100 Indian Rupees (£1.30/$2.10 US) and the lively atmosphere makes for a great evening of shopping.
Beach Sellers In Goa
No matter which beach you walk along in Goa, be it Baga, Calangute, Anjuna or Vagator there will be people there to try and sell you things. Mostly, these are young women or girls with bundles of jewellery, scarves and t-shirts and they can be a little pushy at times.
Although it can be tempting just to say no some of the jewellery in particular can be quite good and is very cheap at around 50 rupees for a necklace (£0.65 UK/$1 US). If you do want to say no though make sure that you do so from the off as wavering will encourage them and you will only attract more sellers to you.
