197 Best Places to Shop in India

One of the oldest NGOs in India, working for the advancement of the village poor, Sadhna works with rural women in the Udaipur district and trains them to produce traditional appliqué work on cushion covers, bedspreads, silk stoles, bags, kurtas, light quilts, and jackets. Sadhna has gained popularity over the years, and the women also tour around the country to exhibitions in major cities during festivals. There's another branch near the Jagdish Temple in the Old City.

If you're after handicrafts from the Andaman Islands, you'd do well to stop at this government-run city-center market that stocks a wide range of locally produced (and often kitschy) goods such as wood carvings and seashell jewelry. Prices are fixed, so no bargaining is needed.

Designed by the award-winning Indian architect Charles Correa, this mall is favored by young couples and families for its abundant open spaces, restaurants, department stores, boutiques, and live shows.

Open every day but Sunday from 10 am to 7 pm, this collection of posh and arty boutiques is scattered around a small, quiet garden across from the Ashok Hotel in the Diplomatic Enclave. Prices can approach those in the West, but this is a relaxing place to stroll and browse. Clothing is the main draw, followed by home furnishings, jewelry, leather, and Ayurvedic beauty products. The quaint Diggin café serves good Italian food and Cafe Flora is the perfect pit stop for desserts.

Specializing in art, social sciences, theater, and politics, this publishing imprint has a cozy store, which manages to devote space to art and literary discussions as well as an expansive and eclectic stock of books.

This is probably the best suit shop in Mumbai, with an extensive collection of fabrics and impeccable tailoring. You can get a full suit made here in about five days if you ask for it to be expedited, with a trial fitting, for about Rs. 15,000.

On historic Sheikh Memon Street (named after a Sufi saint), you'll find plenty of smaller, cost-effective jewelry shops such as Zaveri Naran Das. Insist on knowing how many karats you're buying and whether or not the store will stand by the piece's purity. The street is also home to purveyors of all sorts of knickknacks such as toys, crockery, and sunglasses, many of which are sold wholesale for lower prices than elsewhere.

In Old Delhi, Shivam Zari Palace and its neighbors sell inexpensive Hindu wedding paraphernalia such as turbans, fabric-covered boxes, torans (auspicious door hangings), tiny brass gods, and shiny bric-a-brac.

For Kerala handicrafts and souvenirs, check out this government emporium.

Catering to the affluent and a design-loving tourist crowd, Soma is filled with vibrant colors. Here you'll find sustainably sourced (and extra-soft cotton) clothing for women and children, and decorative fabrics, including hand-painted white cloth lamp shades, as well as authentic block-printed goods for the home. One caveat: designs haven't been updated much in the last few years; if you shopped here on your last trip, you'll likely find the same items today.

Come here for high-end Indian designers. Expect clothes in bright colors made from cotton and silk, plus all manner of resort wear.

By some measures this is the largest mall in the region—there's parking for 1,800 vehicles. A huge number of major brands are available on its five floors, and there's also a sprawling food court and a multiplex.

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.

Owned by the Tata Group, a venerable and enormous Indian conglomerate whose founder built the Taj Mahal hotel, Tanishq is a reliable place to buy gold jewelry. The prices, however, are a little higher than elsewhere.

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.

Indian tribal artisan work is sold through this cooperative store, which benefits the crafters directly. There's an unusual selection of crafts, including clothing and knickknacks.

In business since 1865, this is said to be the largest jewelry showroom in India, with five floors of gorgeous 18-, 22-, and 24-karat gold, diamonds, and silver jewelry. It has many branches across the city.

The beautiful traditional garments and home furnishings here are made of handwoven silk, linen, and cotton.

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.

Goa is famous for its cashew crop, and this store has an excellent selection of cashew nuts. There are exotic varieties such as Pudina Lime, Hot Masala, and Szechuan—sample a couple before buying. You will also find a great selection of Goan curry pastes, powders, and spice mixtures.

While you're in the Jagdish Temple area, make sure you check out the collection of more than 500 handmade wooden puppets in varying shapes and sizes at this small shop. Ask the folk artist proprietor, Rajesh Gurjargour, an excellent puppeteer, for a private demonstration. Miniature paintings, embroidered jackets, handcrafted soft toys, and knickknacks are also for sale.

Shoehorned into the iconic Rhythm House building in one of Mumbai’s most touristed localities, Valliyan by Nitya Arora is a magpie’s nest of jewelry. What it lacks in square footage, it makes up for in density of choice. The designs are futuristic and theatrical and have been worn by everyone from Frieda Pinto to Nicky Minaj. Keep an eye out for the Mumbai-inspired Bombay Gothic and Art Deco collections, and the bestselling Evil Eye rings, earrings, and bracelets.

This is the store for azulejos, a traditional Portuguese style of hand-painted tiles and ceramics. In addition to a selection of tiles, frames, and other ceramics, Velha Goa Galleria has the rights to sell the reproduced ceramic artwork of Goa's own celebrated cartoonist Mario Miranda. It's a fantastic spot for souvenirs and gifts.

For exquisite but expensive formal wear, including lavish saris, embellished with zari (silver filigree embroidery), head here. The kurtis (short tunics) are also special.

Come here for gorgeous traditional and contemporary silver and gold jewelry.

Very prompt and efficient, Amrapali Creations usually makes Indian clothes, such as salwar kameez and sari blouses, but if you give them a sample to copy they can make you a Western-style outfit.

Wood items are designed according to customer requirements, while maintaining the roots of the artisans' creative process. Antiques are also sold.

Traditional gold earrings and beaded necklaces in muted colors and styles are the specialty of this shop.

There's a small but representative selection of Indian handicrafts at reasonable prices here.