25 Best Shopping in Oaxaca, Mexico

La Cava, affiliated with Los Danzantes restaurant, sells a variety of quality mezcals along with regional wines and hand-rolled cigars in a cozy shop just off the Conzzati Park.

This speakeasy-style bar gives you an adrenaline rush from the moment you ring the bell to gain access. Serving only mezcal from hundreds of glass bottles, the staff can offer you a three-variety tasting menu incorporating flavors and textures available only in individual mezcal-making villages, or you can feel free to choose your own and discuss your opinions with the regulars. More than a bar, this is an unforgettable experience in a mezcal museum.

The owners, Betty and Fernando, are wonderful hosts at their gallery and mezcal-tasting room. The attractive decoration, variety of mezcals available, and excellent food make Piedra Lumbre one of the best new mezcal bars in Oaxaca.

Silvia Suarez is undoubtedly the mother of ethno fashion in Oaxaca. Her handmade designs have been shown and worn around the world and provide a modern, fashion-conscious take on the traditional indigenous textiles and techniques from the state of Oaxaca. Alongside her current collections, customers can see and buy examples of the highest-quality local clothing and artisan textile products. No visit to Oaxaca would be complete without a piece of clothing from this Oaxacan institution.

This is the bookstore you wish you had found before your trip. Hundreds of books, most of them in English, cover topics from the country's cuisine to its couture. There's also a great travel-guide section, as well a cheap used-books section.

Sort through an excellent selection of crafts, including painted copal-wood animals with comical expressions, at this shop.

Oaxaca's largest and oldest market is held at the Central de Abastos (literally the "Center of Supplies") on the southern edge of downtown. Saturday is the traditional market day, but the enormous covered market swarms daily with thousands of buyers and sellers from Oaxaca and the surrounding villages. Along with mounds of multicolored chilies and herbs, piles of tropical fruit, electronics, and bootleg CDs, you'll find intricately woven straw baskets, fragile green-and-black pottery, and colorful rebozos (shawls) of cotton and silk. Don't burden yourself with lots of camera equipment or bags; and keep an eye out for pickpockets and purse-slashers. Polite bargaining is expected.

Oaxaca is famous for its chocolate—most of all for its hot chocolate. This shop near the market is arguably the best around; it grinds its own chocolate together with the trademark Mexican cinnamon. You can also buy mole here.

Cristina Palacios has made her name creating contemporary silver jewelry for a discerning, design-conscious client. Her store in the heart of the city attracts lots of interest. One of the most impressive features of her process is that every item is handcrafted. Her jewelry designs can be made to order.

South of the city center, Cuish has a small mezcal tasting room, great for pre- and postdinner drinks, where it sells only its own house-bottled brand. Try the Espadin, Arroqueno, and Tobala varieties, and hear the stories of the producers and production. Cuish can also sell you a bottle to take home to share with your friends.

The mezcal at El Cortijo comes from Santiago Matatlan, one of Oaxaca’s most famous mezcal-producing centers, and the bar reflects this in the variety of mezcals available. Alongside the tasting, quiet conversations, and good snack food, you can get your hands on a bottle at a reasonable price. This is an excellent place to start your night and your mezcal-drinking journey through the state of Oaxaca.

Home to the works of Julio Martinez, the gallery also hosts visiting shows by artists from Oaxaca and across Mexico. Its central location—and the variety of art available—makes it a good place to visit if you are interested in making a purchase.

Here you can see the latest from Oaxaca's most famous artist, Francisco Toledo, as well as many other well-respected contemporary artists. Of course, these are some of the most expensive works in town, but the browsing is free.

In business since 1961, this shop has a small but good assortment of stamped-tin products, whimsical earrings, as well as animals and skeletons carved of featherlight wood. Prices are totally reasonable.

This magical shop features the works of Arnulfo Mendoza, a top weaver. His rugs, made using hand-dyed silk and wool, have incredibly intricate designs. It's no wonder that some of his larger pieces sell for several thousand dollars. There's also a gallery showing the works of many Oaxacan artists.

Selling books in both English and Spanish—not to mention CDs and high-end gifts—the bookstore adjoins an independent coffeehouse.

It's mostly locals that you'll find chowing down amid the lively stalls of the daily Mercado 20 de Noviembre, across the street from the Mercado Benito Juárez. No prices are listed, but rest assured that this will be your cheapest meal in Oaxaca.

Close to the zócalo, the daily Mercado Benito Juárez has stalls selling moles, chocolates, fruits and vegetables, and much more. The bulky brick building teems with clothing, arts, and crafts.

The city's sprawling market is a long walk (but short cab ride) from the beaches. It's divided into orderly sections of comedors (humble eateries), crafts and souvenirs, produce, and fish and meat vendors (a section that vegetarians should stay away from if they’re squeamish). For culinary adventurers, this is the place to sample Oaxacan specialties such as chapulines (toasted grasshoppers sprinkled with lime and chili), chocolate, and stringy cheese. The best time to visit is on the weekends, when indigenous Mixtec and Zapotec vendors bring their goods from the highlands. Watch for handwoven baskets, unique vegetables, and black pottery.

For textiles, don't miss Mercado de Artesanías, a great place to shop for handwoven and embroidered clothing from Oaxaca's seven regions. This is also the place to find the handmade huipiles (short, boxy blouses, often made of velveteen) worn in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec.

La Crucecita's Mercado Municipal is a fun place to shop for postcards, leather sandals, and souvenirs amid mountains of fresh produce. Watch as Zapotec street vendors prepare bags of pale green nopal cactus to go, or enjoy a free tasting of exotic fruit such as mamey sapote.

You'll support the women artists' co-op by shopping at this huge warren of shops often referred to as MARO. The selection and quality are excellent, the prices are reasonable, and it's open daily.

The Museo de Artesanías Oaxaqueñas is really a store, not a museum, where you can find handicrafts produced throughout the state: woven tablecloths, brightly painted alebrije figures, black pottery, and colorful Zapotec rugs. Artisans are occasionally on hand for demonstrations.

The three Centro Histórico locations of this shop are within spitting distance of each other. They all sell gold and silver reproductions of pre-Columbian jewelry found in the tombs of royalty at Monte Albán. The branches are at Calle Macedonio Alcalá 503 and at the corner of Calle Macedonio Alcalá and Calle Bravo. There's also a shop at the archaeological site.

Pajaro del Sol is a gallery showcasing the best of contemporary artisan products made using the traditions and materials of the local indigenous community. Of particularly high quality are the ceramic (barro) products and the fantastical animalistic alebrije sculptures. Some of the products are straight takes on traditional products, others more ironic, but all of them are incredibly beautiful and of very high quality. The gallery specializes in the work of two artists, one of whom is the famous Mario Perez. Everything you see is available to buy.