7 Best Places to Shop in Mexico City, Mexico

It's worth visiting San Ángel on a Saturday just to visit this upscale artisan market that's been going strong since 1960. Before you even make it into the grandiose colonial mansion, you'll encounter dozens of vendors selling crafts, wood carvings, embroidered clothing, leather goods, wooden masks, beads, amates (bark paintings), and trinkets at stalls just outside and around Plaza San Jacinto and adjacent Calle Benito Juárez. (Just be warned that more than a few businesses around Plaza San Jacinto, perhaps misleadingly, include the word "Bazaar" in their name.) Inside, on two levels that encircle a beautiful courtyard, are the generally top-quality—although higher priced—goods, including alebrijes (painted wooden animals from Oaxaca), miniature ofrendas, glassware, pottery, jewelry, fashion, furniture, kitchenware, and a smattering of gourmet goods and beauty products. There's also a decent traditional Mexican restaurant in the courtyard, which has a massive tree looming over it. The bazaar is open only on Saturday, but many shops sell their wares online and will ship abroad.

Although it's not as big as some of the city's other markets, this lively mercado just a couple of blocks from Frida Kahlo's house is one of the most popular with visitors, in large part because of the famous food stalls at its center doling out plates of delicious ceviche, octopus, shrimp, chicken tinga, picadillo, and other fillings for about MP40 to MP50 per portion. But you'll also find aisles of the usual fresh juices, produce, spices, candies, and other goodies typical of Mexican markets as well as a number of souvenir and homeware vendors (mostly near the northwest entrance) and many other food vendors. Arguably even better than the tostadas are the quesadillas sold from a tiny little stand at the west entrance, directly across from pretty Jardín Allende, a small landscaped park with benches and pathways; on weekends, artists sell their wares in the park and a DJ spins traditional Latin music, which locals of all ages dance to---it's great fun to watch. For a sweet treat, stop by Chocolate Mexicano Dulce Olivia, which serves sipping chocolates and carries a vast array of artisan chocolate bars produced by small, often family-run makers from throughout the country.

Enormous La Lagunilla has been the site of trade and bartering for more than five centuries. It's open every Sunday, when vendors set up along Confort Street and along the alley connecting to Paseo de la Reforma, selling everything from antique paintings and furniture to old magazines and plastic toys. Dress down, and watch out for pickpockets.  

Located in a narrow courtyard along lovely Avenida Francisco Sosa, this lively market is devoted to locally made crafts, gifts, clothing, body-care products, and artisanal foods. Edible treats include homemade fudge, hand pies, chocolates, and mezcals. 

Also referred to as either Mercado Zona Rosa or Mercado Londres, this is the neighborhood's largest crafts market, featuring artistry from across Mexico, including jewelry, ceramics, and clothing. Vendors here can be intense, calling you to their stalls with promises of low prices (which you may or may not find). The market is an entire block deep, with entrances on both Londres and Liverpool. Most of the stalls sell silver and pewter, or crafts like serapes and ponchos, baskets, pottery, fossils, jade, obsidian, amber, and onyx. Expect to pay slightly higher prices here than at the Mercado Artesanal de la Ciudadela. Opposite the market's Londres entrance is Plaza del Angel, a small, upscale shopping mall, the halls of which are crowded by antiques vendors on weekends.

As sensory experiences go, the city's most impressive floral market, located about a mile east of Roma and south of Centro Histórico, is quite impressive. The nearly 1,200 stalls proffering boldly colored, radiant arrangements and cut flowers along with a huge variety of potted plants fill the air with fragrant aromas. You'll find more than 300 vendors selling other goods, including snacks, fruits, and fresh juices, plus a good variety of ornate piñatas.