Shopping in Uzbekistan - outlets, shopping streets and boutiques

Unique shopping in Uzbek style is able to impress even the most demanding tourists, giving the trip an exotic oriental flavor. Once in Uzbekistan, it is worth paying attention to the products of skilled craftsmen. It is best to buy souvenirs in the market. There are several large shopping centers in Uzbekistan where you can find everything your heart desires. Before buying art souvenirs, it is recommended you ask the seller about their true age. Uzbek laws impose a ban on the export of antiquarian and cultural values ​​older than fifty years. In order to avoid problems, it is a good idea to have a certificate of the to-be exported items stating that it belongs to the category of goods of mass production.

Tourists like to bring clay figurines of Khoja Nasreddin as souvenirs from Uzbekistan. They can be purchased near the tourist attractions, in the bazaars and shops in Tashkent, Samarkand, and Bukhara. Khorezm art ceramics such as turquoise vessels “Hum”, Khiva dishes with ultramarine patterns “lagans”, light-blue plates “badia”, can be found in the markets of the town Rishtan. Carved caskets made of wood with elegant ornaments are widely showcased in the center of applied art at the Tashkent Abulkasym Madrassah. Traditional Uzbek cold steel-knives “pichok” with Arabic inscriptions, is easy to find in any of the bazaars. National clothes and skullcaps are also sold everywhere. One of the most expensive souvenirs is silver jewelry and carpets. Many travelers take a couple of bottles of tart Uzbek wine with them.

The center of Uzbek shopping is the Capital of the Country Tashkent. Not so long ago, the first shopping and entertainment center “Mega Planet” was opened in the city, where today huge selections of goods are on offer to tourists. The first two floors of the building are occupied by boutiques in which clothes, footwear, accessories, jewelry, perfumes and cosmetics are sold. An entertainment zone is situated on the third floor. You can choose souvenirs and gifts in the Tashkent department store. Here you will find the most beautiful Uzbek teapots, bowls and lyagans. The shopping centers “Chilanzar” and “Chilonzor Savdo Markazi”, is where you can buy clothes, household items and food products. Despite the abundance of souvenirs in shopping centers and shops, the lowest prices for souvenirs can be found on the “Chorsu Bazaar”, Kujluk bazaar, Farhad Farmers’ market, Alay and Mirabadskiy (Gospitalny) food bazaar, the “Hippodrome” bazaar, and the clothing market “Uriksor”. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

The most popular places for shopping in Samarkand are craft workshops on Registan Square, where authentic souvenirs are made using unique ancient technologies. The largest shopping mall in the city is the Central Department Store where a lot of boutiques, shops, outlets and souvenir shops are concentrated. Opposite TSUM is the “Street of Jewelers” where you can buy the best gold and silver handmade jewelry in Samarkand at affordable prices. For silk fabrics, chased metal products, wooden boxes and ceramics, it is worth going to the bustling and colorful Siab Bazaar in the Old Town.

The surviving trading domes in Bukhara provides an opportunity to make purchases in the atmosphere of the Middle Ages. They are closed markets where an abundance of souvenir and other shops are concentrated. Each of them is hidden under the dome and has its own name: Tok-i- Zargaron – “dome of jewelers”, Tok-i-Sarrafon – “dome of the moneychangers”, Tok-i-Telpak-Furushon – “dome of head wears”. You can buy magnificent Uzbek carpets embroidered with amazing patterns, luxurious textiles, handmade ceramics, jewelry, traditional knives and daggers in Bukhara. At the Bukhara food market, tourists are offered fresh vegetables and fruits, herbs and local spices.