Thimphu
Bhutan's Queen Mother Dorje Wangmo (the fourth king's wife) established this NGO to support rural communities across Bhutan through the marketing and…
Thimphu
Bhutan's Queen Mother Dorje Wangmo (the fourth king's wife) established this NGO to support rural communities across Bhutan through the marketing and…
Bhutan Traditional Archery Shop
Thimphu
This traditional bow and arrow maker at the Changlimithang Archery Ground sells bamboo bows, lacquered and strung to order. Expect to pay Nu 1800 for a…
Thimphu
Dozens of craft stalls line the middle of Norzin Lam opposite the Taj Tashi hotel. It's the single best place in Thimphu to shop for crafts, with stalls…
Thimphu
One of the best-stocked religious shops in Thimphu, selling everything from Buddhist scriptures and Buddha statues to kangling thigh-bone flutes.
National Handloom Development Project
Eastern Bhutan
Three kilometres from Khaling is the National Handloom Development Project, operated by the National Women’s Association of Bhutan (NWAB). It contracts…
Paro
Chencho has an interesting selection of local handicrafts, and is particularly strong on weavings, antique kiras (women's traditional dresses) and…
Lama Tshering Dorji General Shop
Paro
This monk supply shop is one of several in Paro aimed squarely at locals and monks rather than tourists, but it's a fascinating browse. Items for sale…
Thimphu
Across the Kundeyling Baazam cantilevered footbridge from the Weekend Market, this handicraft market on the east bank sells everything from wooden bowls…
Thimphu
This is one of Thimphu's best cloth and clothing stores, with ready-made ghos (traditional dress for men) costing from Nu 2000 and kiras (traditional…
Thimphu
This shop below Thimphu's main post office sells Bhutanese stamps, first-day covers and – if you bring in a digital photo of yourself on a USB stick –…
Thimphu
Thimphu's best selection of magazines and newspapers, as well as coffee-table and other books on Buddhism, Bhutan and the region. It's on the ground floor…
Bhutan
Yoser Lhamo is the main outlet for the Swiss Farm enterprises, where soft Gouda or hard Emmental cheese sells for Nu 650 per kilogram. This cheese is made…
Thimphu
This place has two floors of souvenirs from across Bhutan and further afield. The best buys here are larger items such as bamboo boxes, burl-wood dhapa …
Tashi Gongphel Bhutanese Paper
Paro
This showroom has products ranging from notebooks and cards to sheets of wrapping paper, all created from Bhutanese paper, traditionally made from either…
Western Bhutan
Located in the central bazaar next to Hotel Namgay, here you can buy a range of cloth from Nu 350 to 950 per metre; you'll need about 4m for a gho or kira…
Paro
This superior souvenir shop has the normal incense, tea, masks, cane boxes, traditional locks and books, but also dried mushrooms, ceramics, and the worm…
Thimphu
Run by the Gyalyum Charitable Trust, a personal project of the Queen Mother promoting traditional arts and crafts, this smart showroom sells high-quality…
Wood Turning & Laquering Cluster
Eastern Bhutan
This cooperative of local woodturners sells polished products in a small outlet near the dzong. The dapas turned from rhododendron wood (and other trees)…
Paro
This innocuous local grocery store has a section dedicated to local and organic Bhutanese products, making it a great place to pick up everything from…
Gagyel Lhundrup Weaving Centre
Thimphu
This private weaving centre at the south end of Thimphu produces expensive but high-quality hand-woven textiles and has a selection of ready-made garments…
Bhutan
The most prominent souvenir shop in town has a decent range of books, masks and the like. It accepts credit cards, and you can also rent mountain bikes…
Thimphu
Set in a block of craft shops, Choki sells masks, thangka paintings, local clothing and other souvenirs. Many of the items are produced by the affiliated…
Nado Poizokhang Incense Showroom
Thimphu
This showroom sells incense made at the nearby Nado Poizokhang Incense Factory, which you can visit to watch the production process. It's opposite the…
Thimphu
Opening hours are erratic and the prices are high at this eccentric crafts store, often staffed by a doma-nut-chewing grandma, but there are some genuine…
Thimphu
The best-stocked dhar (prayer flag) shop in town, selling everything from multicoloured strings of flags to the tall, white, pole-mounted memorial flags…
Thimphu
No prizes for guessing what's on sale at this small shop in a traditional house near the National Textile Museum. Colourfully embroidered tshoglham boots…
Thimphu
This government-run souvenir emporium has fixed prices and there's a good range of masks, paintings, textiles, and carved wooden items such as traditional…
Thimphu
The best trekking-gear store in town sells and rents sleeping bags, tents, wet-weather gear, solar battery chargers and even bottled oxygen. It also sells…
Thimphu
The family-run and well-stocked places has shelves piled high with bolts of Bhutanese fabric and ready-made gho and kira (traditional dress for men and…
Thimphu
A bookshop with a community feel (and a weekly reading club), Junction has a small but well-chosen selection of books about Bhutan, and there's a little…
Eastern Bhutan
This small shop beside the Druk Deothjung Hotel is the place to load up on crafts such as traditional boots, painted masks and woven and embroidered…
Paro
This slick operation has some expensive pieces, such as silver amulets and carved block prints, alongside cheaper souvenirs, fridge magnets and postcards.
Thinley Dendup General Shop & Handicraft
Eastern Bhutan
This local store by the central-town junction stocks textiles, dapa (wooden bowls), oboes, brass butter lamps and other religious paraphernalia.
Paro
A local general store that sells hard-to-find bottles of Red Panda beer for Nu 120, as well as TashiCell SIM cards (bring a photocopy of your passport).
Thimphu
A branch of Tarayana Rural Products, selling fairly priced arts and crafts to support rural development.
Bhutan
Stocks a small selection of glossy books, DVDs and textiles. This is the place to buy a miniature yak for the pool room…
Tashi Industries Carpet Factory
Western Bhutan
Anyone interested in carpets is welcome to make a visit to this handmade-carpet factory hidden in the north of town. At 49 knots per square inch, woven…
Eastern Bhutan
This roadside weaving centre 1.5km past Rangjung sells beautiful embroidered cloth, shawls and scarfs made from bura (raw silk – literally 'insect fibre')…
Thimphu
Sells tourist maps of Paro, Bumthang and Thimphu, plus some more interesting 1:50,000 topographic maps of Bhutan regions that foreigners are sadly not…