As you can probably tell, shopping is one activity we enjoy doing while traveling at A Friend Afar. Honestly, I’m personally not the biggest shopper back home since I’m usually trying to save money for my travels, but I do love finding unique items on my trips. Plus, I firmly believe in supporting local economies and usually have gifts to buy for friends and families back home for birthdays and other occasions! Since part of my trip to Cuba involved learning about local markets, some of the activities took us to an artisan market, a rum and cigar shop, and a textile cooperative factory where the guayabera shirts are made. Check out these Cuban shopping finds below!
El Centro Cultural Antiguos Almacenes de Depósito San José
The most popular artisan market in Havana is located in an old warehouse and gives you plenty of opportunity to buy local handicrafts. I bought my Cuban fedora for 4CUC (a little over 4USD) that I wore the rest of the trip. There’s loads of artwork, leather goods, jewelry, woodwork and guayaberas for sale. It’s a great place for one-stop shopping because you can find most anything. Don’t forget to bring your bargaining chops since it’s expected!
For the love of all things vintage
If you love antiques, check out the bookstore Memorias Librería near the Museum of the Revolution. They have amazing old coins, postcards, and posters. I found a baseball poster from the ’90s when the Orioles came to Havana to play the Cuban team. My best find was one of the oldest advertisements for Bacardi. It dates back to Prohibition times and features the Bacardi’s logo, a bat , carrying Uncle Sam, who’s holding an empty glass, to Cuba across the Straits of Florida. It reflects the period in history when Americans would flock to the Caribbean island for the bar scene in Havana.
At the end of our walk on Mercaderes that I wrote about previously, we found ourselves at the secondhand book market where we engaged in “people-to-people” interactions as our tour guide recommended. Basically we just chatted with and made friends with locals while browsing for books, magazines, and movie posters.
I ended up buying a vintage camera since I’d been wanting one for a while and thought it’d be special to buy it in Cuba. I had fun bargaining for it and learning about how the operational camera works.
Shopping for Rum and Cigars
Americans traveling to Cuba can now bring back $100 worth of rum and cigars. Through our tour, we were taken to a nice shop where we bought Havana Club rum to make mojitos back home when going through withdrawals and Cuban cigars not available in the US. We were warned to use caution while buying cigars off the street since some counterfeits are sold. By going to a shop, you can ensure that the Cohibas and Montecristos you’re buying are real!
A Few Odds and Ends
On one of our walks we stumbled upon a stand selling postcards and bought a few. I still haven’t received the one I sent myself, and I doubt I ever will. Though if I do, I will be so excited! [Update: it took forever but I finally received my postcard months later and was absolutely thrilled!] The others I just brought home with me to give away or keep.
On the way to the beach resort town Varadero, our tour stopped at Matanzas and went to a cool store called Ediciones Vigía where they make handmade journals. My favorite incorporated Cuban stamps, and I bought one for a friend for her birthday.
Since coming home, I discovered and started following Alma Shop on Instagram (@almacubashop). I wish I would’ve found out about it before my trip so I could’ve visited, so I’ll just have to go next time. If you’re in Havana and want handmade goods, including Majagua wooden bowls, hand-painted bags, and colorful totes made from recycled plastic pallet ties, check out the store. A portion of Alma’s profits are donated to organizations helping Cuba’s stray animal population, which is very needed.
Stephanie grew up road-tripping across the U.S., but her first flight was to Australia, and she’s been hooked ever since. She lived abroad in Thailand, where she met Meagan, and in Ghana with Peace Corps and has been to over 30 countries on 6 continents. She travels for the adventure, the stories, and nature.
