Heading to Cusco in June. Would appreciate info on what folks consider their best buys in Cusco and what you paid. I know bargaining is expected - - I don't want to bargain too hard but don't want to
0
Cat:Central and South AmericaForum:0EE6C5E8
Cat:Central and South AmericaForum:0EE6C5E8Discussion:3823f94c-9cc6-4f39-af5e-691e89f35021
Heading to Cusco in June. Would appreciate info on what folks consider their best buys in Cusco and what you paid. I know bargaining is expected - - I don't want to bargain too hard but don't want to throw money around either so some guidelines on prices for blankets etc.
A couple of things that I have used for years are a backpack and a winter coat made from old ponchos. They are very colorful and will past a lifetime. Other good bargains would be anything made form alpaca.
Cusco has beautiful handwoven textiles. They come in all forms - purses, table runners, hats, backpacks and a wide range of qualities. One place you can be sure to get the highest quality - and the most expensive - with no bargaining on price - is the Centro de Textiles Tradicionales del Cusco at Ave. el Sol 603. This is a fair trade organization. Each handmade item has the name of the person who made it and often a photo of them. There are weaving demonstrations showing how the tetiles are made. These are very beautiful pieces.
The largest indoor hand crafts market in Cusco is Centro Artesenal Cusco at the end of el Sol Ave. There is a wide range of items and quality and everything is open to bargaining. It is hard to say "what you should pay." Walk around and look at the various stands and if you see something you'd like to purchase, see what the other stands are charging and decide what it is worth to you and go from there. These merchants are skillful at the art of bargaining. Just remember in general, the merchants are quite poor and would like to receive a fair price for their goods.
One thing I am glad I purchased are the "finger puppets" that all the children are selling on the streets. They are very inexpensive and my cats love to play with them.
Peru is beautiful and the people are wonderful. The food is delicious - especially the ceviche. Just take it easy when you first arrive - unless you are used to very high altitudes. It can take a couple of days to adjust. You may want to ask your doctor to prescribe medication to stave off altitude sickness.
I bought a wall hanging that I just adore in the market stalls of Pisac. That market is amazing for the colors and ethnic people for photography as well, so I encourage you to go there. The community ovens over a lot of good shots. Don't remember what I paid, but it was reasonable.
In Cusco, no one has mentioned the Jewelry artists. There are several, off the main square....quality jewelry. I have a bracelet in solid silver with a very modern motiff of a butterfly that I treasure. Sorry--I'm traveling and don't have the info with me, but I found it on the Frommers recommended shopping list. For the amount of silver verses the cost, my husband believed it was a good price as well.
We visited May, 2011, and had a wonderful experience there. You find many craft areas and markets. The folks are warm and proud people. Our best cultural experience was going to the public market where locals ate and shopped for their goods. There were flowers, meats, soups, tools, bracelets, and most interesting, the pharmacists, who sold herbs for common ailments. The real alpaca is very expensive compared with those with some synthetic fibers. You know by the price difference. Drink plenty of water and caco tea and candies.
Those wonderful and colorful woolen Peruvian sweaters are a real bargain there. Wished I had purchased a lot more than I did! We also found some very unique gold jewlery, and at the time (2003) it was a good buy.
I second the fair trade organization, Centro de Textiles Tradicionales. We bought high quality handwoven pieces that look like works of art, intricate made hats, and they are all tagged with the name of their creator.The store is clean, unlike some markets, with piles of weavings, beware of those, that smell of mold, we had to run out of that store holding our breath. If you rest your feet sitting on a bench in the square, the local children will try to sell you hats as well, just remind them as they circle again that you just bought one from them, put it on your head, and you will all have a good laugh together!
Anything alpaca as it is so much cheaper than what you can buy it for in the states. Alpaca scarves are very inexpensive and make great gifts to bring home or to stash for holiday gift giving. Silver jewelry is inexpensive in Peru and Peruvian opals are stunning, very different from African, Mexican, or Australian ones. They are a gorgeous blue. While the cerviche might be great as one person suggested, I would avoid it. I'm very careful when I travel, but I got the worst case of food poisoning while staying in the Cusco - Machu Picchu area; my husband said that was the sickest he had ever seen me and we had been married for 30 years. It took me nearly a month to fully recuperate.
Cusco is a shopper's paradise, besides having world class museums, cultural/historic sites. Ilaria (ilariainternational.com), a Peruvian silver company, makes wonderful, beautiful jewelry, with shops in the major hotels and a shop of their own on Plaza de Armas. Style of the jewelry ranges from classical traditional to modern. For the quality and workmanship they are a bargain but not cheap.
Alpaca sweaters are best bought from reputable stores. The tourist stalls sometimes sell sweaters which are a combination of alpaca, lamb's wool, fiberglass, space-age polymers, whatever; the label is not always accurate. Handmade often means hand loomed. Hand knit sweaters should look handmade. I've had good luck buying hand knit sweaters from the co-op on the road to Q'Enko, there's usually a llama tied up outside the entrance door. Hand knit is about twice as expensive as hand loomed and looks it too.
There are great antiques to be found in the San Blas district. Interesting finds include textiles, jewelry, pottery, and all kinds of unique knick-knacks. The textiles make great wall hangings and throw pillows to go on your sofa.
If at all possible allow at least day to walk around Cusco to shop and check out interesting stores. It is fun just to look and talk with store clerks.
I bought a pair of alpaca slippers that I just loved.. They finally wore out but I gave a friend some money when she went to buy me two more.. Comfy and warm. Found them in the market in town.
Instead of the traditional guinea pig dish we had anticipated, my sister and I had an altitude-suppressed appetite and for dinner ate only a satisfying corn-on-the-cob plucked steaming-fresh from a vendor lady’s backpack.It cost about 25 cents--30 cents with a wedge of local cheese. See more about Cuzco in my blog posting, http://travelswithcarole.blogspot.com/search/label/Cuzco
