Thorn Tree travel forum

1

No, as far as I know they are all pretty much the same, one market from any of the others. Silk Street is pretty crappy, and the staff aggressive. I prefer to go to Ya Show, or Yue Show, but that's because they are close to where I live. Or there's Hong Qiao on the south side of the city. Each of the markets has a lot of the same items, but each one has a few things which are unique. There's other street markets and side alleys with things for sale, but they can be even worse.

Note, the old silk alley just looked more exotic. It's the same goods and the same sellers, just the prices are higher to pay for the higher rent.

Cheers, Paul.

2

If you want something with more character Panjiayuan on the east 3rd Ring is probably the best there is. It only sells "antiques" and books, though.

3

Markets where you can get souveniers:

Hong Qiao Market (Near the Temple of Heaven)
Yaxiu (Near Chaoyangmen)
Silk Market (Inside now...same location)
Panjiayuan (The mother of all markets. It sells a lot more than "books and antiques". If you only shop at one market in Beijing then let it be Panjiayuan).

4

Agreed with TKO -- the markets listed are some of the better than the Silk Street ones

In general it depends what you are looking for. If you are looking for clothing, the YaXiu market (near Workers' Stadium) is probably the best. There is a small market near Lido (Holiday Inn Lido).

There is also a whole sellers market near the Beijing Zoo (in the North West part of Beijing) --- you could find some deals there as well. Please feel free to check out my blog on travel and living in China at Experience China - travel and living in China

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