Shopping in Sri Lanka offers you value for money. While you enjoy shopping, you have the opportunity to buy quality products at a relatively cheap price. There is a large array of products to choose from, but the most popular ones are Gems, readymade garments, Batiks, Tea and Handicrafts which can be found in various tourists’ oriented areas throughout the country.
Here’s a list of some of the wonderful things that you can buy during your trip to Sri Lanka:
Gems: Most of the gem dealers in Sri Lanka are located in Ratnapura district and has been the main source of gems for many years. Gem cutting centers and jewelers located in many city centers also offer valuable and beautiful gems.
Handicrafts: Sri Lanka is well known for its handicrafts. Most of the handicrafts are produced in Kandy district and have number of shops catering to the tourists. A village has also been established recently at Kundasale, about 4km from Kandy, to settle local craftsmen and their families. This also offers the opportunity for visitors to watch artisans at work and to purchase their products on site.
Readymade Garments: Sri Lanka is one of the major garment manufacturers and exporters of all kinds of clothing in South Asia. Commercial capital, Colombo, is a major attraction for garment hunters and you can buy an excellent selection of children’s wear, beach wear, casual clothing for men and women and warm padded jackets at an attractive prices from various shops and shopping malls around the city and suburbs.
You can also buy products produced on traditional handlooms which are very beautiful and attractive. The other best buys could include silk, hand-made lace and batik from beach sarongs to luxurious wall hangings.
Batiks: Batiks are colorful garments which involves a slow artistic process when colours are applied and fixed one at a time. Batiks traditionally been used as a way to decorate clothing. It is an art form in its own right. The unique characteristic of crackles is a result of the wax cracking and dye from subsequent dye baths getting in the cracks. Controlling the cracking is very important to the overall appearance of a piece. You can find at most tourist destinations around the country and most of the shopping centers
Tea : Until recent past, tea had been one of the major export products of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka produces world finest teas and can be bought from shops around all the city centers and also from many tea sales centers at most tourist destinations around the country.
Spices : Sri Lankans use vast variety of spices in their food. Spices are generally cheap in Sri Lanka and easy to pack and definitely a treat for dinner guests back home. Cumin, used in curry, can be bought whole. Some of other spices are cinnamon sticks, dried curry leaves, cloves, turmeric, nutmeg and its membrane which is known as mace. Cardamom is relatively expensive but highly aromatic and excellent with rice dishes.