New Orleans-La Shopping

New Orleans-La Shopping information

Best Areas

There's no point fighting it, most people will end up doing the majority of their shopping in the French Quarter. Being honest it isn't that bad, as long as you go in the right places and don't let the countless souvenir hawkers foist T-shirts, caps and cheap voodoo paraphernalia on you. If you're a sucker for a cheap souvenir then you'd better leave your wallet at home, Bourbon St would prove just too powerful a temptation. This aside you can try Royal St for upper-end antiques and jewellery. Uptown is well regarded for mainstream fashion and national chainstores, although the best places for anything of this ilk is one of the city's several malls. Magazine St is the Garden District's premier shopping thoroughfare and is lined with elegant stores in original buildings. Merchandise on offers tends towards the upper-end arts and crafts, and it's generally a cut above Bourbon in quality. The Jackson Brewery across Decatur St from Jackson Square contains a mixture of interesting shops and stalls, combined with places to eat and drink.

Malls

There are a few major shopping malls; the easiest to get to are the Riverwalk Marketplace. Situated between the Convention Center and the Aquarium, sitting alongside the Mississippi River. It is a half-mile long shopper's paradise with stores such as Abercrombie & Fitch, Discovery Channel Store, Eddie Bauer and GAP. Upstairs there's a multitude of cafés and small gift stalls, with excellent views across the Mississippi River via the massive picture windows. Canal Place at the end of Canal St, by the river is a collection of 50 or so high-end international stores. Gucci and Saks both have outlets here, which might give you some idea of what damage a few hours here could do to your wallet.

Markets

The most famous market in New Orleans is without doubt the Historic French Market, located south-east of Jackson Square in the angle formed by Decatur and St Peters St. The Farmers Market here is the oldest continually operated public produce market in Louisiana. You can peruse the stalls and watch the farmers sell their fresh home produce, and it's a great place to build yourself a picnic with hot and cold food stands. Although it is open 24 hours a day, Sunday remains the best day to visit. One block down from the Farmers Market you can find the Flea Market. Open daily, vendors congregate here to sell clothing goods, antiques, art, jewellery and handmade crafts. It's not quite as eclectic or quality a selection as you might think - there's a lot of modern tat mixed in with the genuine articles, but sifting through might carry its rewards.

What to Buy

There are a huge amount of souvenir stores on Bourbon Street, and surrounding areas, selling Mardi Gras beads, masks and cheap T-shirts. If you want to go a bit more upmarket, try browsing one of the many art galleries along Magazine or Royal St for a piece of New Orleans art. Naturally, voodoo items feature on most people's list of essential New Orleans souvenirs and a browse along Bourbon won't disappoint. You can hardly move without someone or other offering you bags of gris-gris charms or little voodoo dolls, complete with stick pins and instructions for casting your own hexes. Stores such as Reverend Zombie's Voodoo Shop (Bourbon St) sell a range of voodoo related merchandise, of much better quality than that available from the street hawkers. You should note that some of the items on sale at these sort of places are the genuine artefact and might not be to everyone's taste. The Voodoo Musuem's shop carries a good selection of well-made souvenirs as well. New Orleans isn't really the place for fashion shopping, although it has the stores you won't be tracking down any bargains in stores such as Gucci and Saks Fifth Avenue. If you can't resist looking up some labels then head for Canal Place. Don't leave town without a packet of mix to make your own "Hurricane" cocktail, and a few Cajun spices so you can recreate the real taste of New Orleans.

Opening Hours

Stores are generally open 10h00-21h00, Mon-Fri and 10h00-18h00 Sat-Sun. The French Market is open round the clock.

Tax Refund

In New Orleans the sales tax is 10%. This is added to the price of food, lodging, goods, and services and is not always marked. As individual states set their own sales tax the federal government has no system for refunding non-US visitors. Large and expensive purchases are often tax exempt if they are directly shipped outside the state they are bought in. You will have to ask at point of purchase whether it is possible to gain exemption by arranging direct shipping and, if so, whether this will represent any net saving to you. In Louisiana items purchased from tax-free shops qualify for a refund of the state tax of 9%, redeemable at the airport on departure.