Delhi: Shop, Bargain & Discover with a Local Shopping Expert

The bargaining is the service

Delhi markets run two price lists, and which one you get depends on how you ask. Four hours with somebody who shops here means you pay the second one, and it means you can tell hand-embroidered from machine-embroidered before you commit.

Starts with a short consultation: what you are after, what you want to spend, and whether you would rather be taught to negotiate or have it done for you.

What Delhi is good for

Textiles — this is the best city in India for them, because everything from every state arrives here. Hand-embroidered chikankari from Lucknow, kantha from Bengal, block print from Rajasthan, and handloom cotton by the metre.

Silver, in Dariba Kalan off Chandni Chowk, where the trade has been for three hundred years. Ask for the hallmark; reputable shops give a weight-based price and will show you the scale.

Pashmina, which is where most visitors get fleeced. Real pashmina is hand-woven from Changthangi goat fleece, passes the ring test, and costs what it costs. The soft, cheap, shiny thing in the tourist shops is viscose. Your guide will show you the difference by touch.

Ayurvedic products and spices — Khari Baoli for the latter, which is the largest spice market in Asia and where every shop in north India buys.

Where you go

A mix of Chandni Chowk's specialised lanes, Dilli Haat for state crafts at fixed prices, and the fabric and export-surplus markets, depending on what you are after.

Say this at the start

That you want to be taken where locals buy, not where shops pay commission. A good guide will simply agree.

Two options

Guide only, or guide with an air-conditioned car — the car is worth it if you intend to buy anything bulky.

Practical

Four hours. Carry cash for the small shops; UPI will not work on a foreign phone.