Popular Markets of Goa: Hot or Not in Goa?

One of the best-loved and indulged activities in Goa is shopping at its local markets that are a riot of color & exotic products that attract tourists from all over the world. Popular local markets are the Anjuna, Flea market, Mapusa Friday market and the new market at Margao. The markets of Goa are filled with local handicrafts, cuisine, spices and other items

Mapusa Market:
Mapusa is synonymous with its Friday Market, including spices of all kinds. You get great bargains here. Fresh fruit, mostly organically grown, is in abundance. That elusive smell that has your nose twitching is Goa's secret ingredient for all those wonderful sweet and sour curries - round lumps of seedless tamarind, or amot as it is known locally, in great demand in traditional Goan kitchens. Get yourself a string of chouriso or Goa's mouth-watering sausages, spiced and marinated in feni. No sausage anywhere else in the world tastes like the Goan chouriso The sausage can be located outside the Mapusa Municipal Market. If you are looking for the essence of Goa, this market is a must-see on your itinerary. The place is a riot of colour and noise. Goan women dressed in their colourful best, come in from surrounding villages to sell their locally grown or ‘manufactured wares, fried, or boiled, or added to an ordinary dish for extra zing. The best part of shopping in the Friday Market is, despite the good bargains, you are still expected to haggle. Never pay the first price asked, whether it is over trinkets, straw hats, dried fish or furniture. The Friday Market winds up by dusk and Mapusa quickly gets back to normal, until the following Friday.

Panaji Market:
In Panaji, the 18th June and MG Roads are the main shopping areas, where you can pick up handicrafts and traditional Goan items. Apart from these, the shops in the city sell clothes - cottons, denims, salwar kameezes, kids wear and saris, shoes - leather, sport shoes and jewellery - semi-precious and fashion jewellery. If you are brand conscious, MG Road is the place for you, the market is home to branded outlets such as Adidas, Nike, Levis and Benetton. Shops on MG Road are open from 9.30 am to 8 pm.

Margao Market:
Margao's Municipal Market is the main shopping market which is located to the east of the Municipal Gardens. Here, you could shop for the entire day along with enjoying the Goan food. Special items which you can buy here are shoes, a variety of Goan spices like cinnamon, cardamom, trifala, dagadful, teflam which are used for Goan dishes, dry fish, dry mango preparations and salted dry mangoes. Municipal market is open between 9 am - 2 pm & 4 pm - 8 pm.

Vasco Market:
The Municipal Market in Vasco lies in the centre of the city, adjacent to the Vasco Residency. In the municipal market, you will find a variety of shoes and clothes. Apna Bazaar is the another market in Vasco, which houses around 25 shops selling designer garments, cosmetics and jewellery. There are also several other shops selling popular music albums, sweets, chaat and cold drinks. The shops in the Municipal market are open between 9 am - 1 pm & 2 pm - 8 pm

Anjuna Flea Market:
Wednesday flea market at Anjuna is very interesting . It can be a whole new shopping experience. You can take a bus or a motorcycle taxi, or a fisherman's boat from Baga, which is quicker (15 min by boat, 30 min by road). Although you will still find hippies there, it really isn't their market any more. Now dominated by Lambani nomads in their striking clothes and jewelry, and craftspeople from elsewhere in India, the market is a splash of red and orange in a flat clearing above the rocky beach. Bead and white metal bangles, necklaces and earrings, silver toe rings, embroidered shoulder bags, silk and cotton sarongs, and ethnic footwear are among the more ordinary products on sale. If you look carefully, there are all sorts of other things here from used motorbikes of uncertain age to do-it-yourself mehendi (Henna) kits. Buy a crochet bikini, a backless mirror-work top, or a tie-dye bandana to enhance your wardrobe for those really formal occasions, or just sit back at the market bar and down a ridiculously cheap beer while someone braids your hair or you get someone to pierce any part of your anatomy or have a wild tattoo as a signature of your holiday.

Saturday Night Markets:
The Saturday Night Bazaar at Anjuna and Ingo's Saturday Night Market at Arpora are more exciting and famous than Anjuna Wednesday Flea Market. Here, the live music played by the local bands, the riot of colour and light, exotic drinks and delectable foods offered by the bars, make your shopping experience much more of a night out. In these markets, you will find a mix of local and foreign vendors. Items which you can buy here are incense sticks, jewellery, handmade shoes, T-shirts, lampshades, miniature statues, bags etc. Further, the fortune-tellers and tattoo bars add extra fun and drama to the lively atmosphere. The Saturday night markets are open from 7 pm to 1 am, between the months of November to March.

Beachside Shopping:
Goa, popularly known as "the beach paradise" is home to some of the finest beaches of the world. The Goan beaches are not only known for their pristine beauty, but they are also famous as the centre of various leisure activities, shopping is one of them. Also, on this beach stretch, you will find restaurants, cafes and juice bars serving the delectable Goan as well as Chinese and Thai cuisine. In reality, every road in Goa leads to a beach and at every end of it, you will find small and big shops selling everything, from handicrafts to traditional Goan items, popular Goan T-Shirts, sarongs and many other souvenirs. Among the beachside shopping centres, Baga-Candolim-Calangute stretch is the most popular. Shopping in the latter part of the day can be quite exciting on this beach stretch. Items which you can buy here are handicrafts, jewellery, sunglasses, goggles, spectacles, light metal figurines, sculptures, semi-precious stone rings and bracelets, all at half price. You will always want to come back for more.