14 Best Places to Shop in Side Trips from Delhi, India

Established in 1845, this family-owned store is home to family heirlooms as well as Victorian-era masterpieces, such as a Peacock Throne replica and zardozi (embroidered) artworks previously displayed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The ground floor features a display gallery and jewelry retail space, while the second floor has customized zardozi pieces such as clutch purses and wall art. Outside, a demo area and workshops allow visitors to learn about embroidery and stonework.

Frequented by local and foreign tourists, this area is famous for retail stores selling saris, suits, and other apparel at affordable prices. Most shops here sell power loom–embroidered work.

Owned by Oswal Exports, Agra's marble inlay exporter, Kalakriti Agra has exquisite furniture and decor pieces crafted in marble inlay. A section of the expansive showroom houses several handicrafts from around the country, from woodwork to hand embroidery. To the left of the entrance, artisans working on stone for live demos can be observed.

For over three decades, this store has been offering handicrafts collected from around India. Among locally-sourced pieces are wooden and sandstone sculptures as well as tribal paintings. The second floor is dedicated to silver jewelry with stone work.

This company has been designing jewelry using cut and uncut emeralds and other precious stones since 1862; a special "connoisseur's room" with unique pieces is open only by appointment. Don't miss the little museum display of fantastic 3-D zardozi (embroidered paintings). Some have been encrusted with gems by the master of the technique.

This family-run store has been dealing in jewelry, handicrafts, and clothing since it opened in 1974. Pick up Madhya Pradesh's famous Chanderi and Maheshwari saris here, or get the team to stitch other apparels within a couple of hours. The ground floor features a workshop for demonstrations in sandstone carving.

If you're willing to brave some chaos, visit the Madanpura area, which is home to many silk retailers and the city's Muslim weavers. Working out of their homes or workshops in the neighborhood, some of them may open their doors for you to peek at live weaving work. Ask your hotel concierge or tour operator for the best route to this area.

In the Cantonment area around the corner from the Radisson, this is a large showroom with a wide selection of fine saris, scarves, bed covers, fabric, and some elaborately worked tapestries. While they primarily work with wholesale orders for saris, retail pieces are available for tourists. They also have a weaving workshop in Sarnath where you can see hand weavers in action.

This three-room emporium stocks zardozi (embroidery), traditional jewelry, and marble inlay work. A large room on the upper floor is dedicated to antique-style gold and silver jewelry inlaid with precious stones. The basement doubles up as a workshop for marble inlay tables, plates, and other items.

For the last five decades or so, Nilambari has been dealing in handloom saris, suits, lehengas, and other apparels crafted by their in-house weavers. Choose from a range of weaves, embroideries, and traditional Indian patterns decked with zari—fine threads of gold or silver.

This was the first store to revive Agra marble work in the 1960s. Ask to see some of the masterpieces in the private gallery to give you a better perspective on quality.  Visitors referred by Fodor's Travel get 15% discount.

On a small lane 50 meters north of the Chowk, there are brass vendors, artisans carving copper statues, and shops that sell silks and woolen items to a local crowd.

This shop has fine, beautifully displayed crafts, including new and antique silver and gold jewelry, diamonds from a local mine, silver boxes and vases, enameled silver elephants, sandalwood carvings, small (and also very large) brass statues, Varanasi and Kashmiri carpets, papier-mâché, and silk and paper paintings.

Stunning marble-inlaid tabletops in every size, some with latticework, are on display in this massive showroom of marble collectibles. Other pieces include vases, decorative elephants, and plates.