Mumbai (Bombay), India — Shopping
Shopping in Mumbai (Bombay), India
Mumbai is a shopper's paradise where bargaining is the norm. The shops and bazaars offer everything from expensive European antiques to local spices by way of electrical goods, silks and designer fashion.
Markets
Mumbai's bazaars are worth visiting for the experience alone. Head to Mangaldas Market for silk and cloth, Zaveri Bazaar for jewelry, and Dhabu Street for leather goods. For fashion bargains, head to Fashion Street Market on M Gandhi Road. For antiques and furniture, try Chor Bazaar, otherwise known as 'Thieves Market'.
Key areas
For designer fashion, try the boutiques near Kemp's Corner, including Courtyard, 41/44 Minoo Desai Marg, which stocks top local designers, and Melange, 33 Altamount Road, for chic, high-end clothes by 70 Indian designers. Mumbai is also home to a number of tailors who will make clothes quickly at a reasonable cost.
For antiques, curios and furniture, the shops along Merewether Road behind the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower are a good place to start. The main drag, Mutton Street, is teeming with antique shops hawking everything from grandfather clocks and English tea sets to crystal chandeliers. Many are, however, reproductions so choose carefully and haggle fiercely.
Mumbai is a major center of the diamond trade and those who know what they're looking for can pick up some great bargains. Those with less cash to splash should visit the Bombay Store, on Sir P Mehta Road in the Fort area, for all sorts of Indian souvenirs. Cheaper still are the handicrafts at the Central Cottage Industries Emporium, Shivaji Marg, between Apollo Bunder and Regal.
Shopping hours
Markets are generally open from 0900 to 1900, and shops do not open until 1000 or 1030 but tend to remain open until about 1900.
