Cancún Shopping: The Mercados

Cancún is a great place for shopping. There are several malls, a handful of markets and a plethora of smaller stores in between. Brand names items may sometimes be bought a lot more cheaply than back home; while handcrafted products might provide that perfect souvenir of Mexico.

In today's blog, we'll be having a little skim around the mercados (markets). There are two major mercados in downtown Cancún, and many smaller ones. Each have a different feel to them and many specialize in certain kinds of merchandise. The vendors will expect you to haggle to secure the right price.

Mercado 23

(Pron: mare-cah-doh vain-tee tres)

Open: 7.30am - 6pm



Mercado 23 is the place to go for local produce. It was the first market created in Cancún and it is where the residents go shopping. There are fewer tourists there and, accordingly, many of the vendors are monoglot Spanish speakers.

This local feel is also reflected in the merchandise on offer. This tends towards those items which are only useful if you live there, for example, fresh food, hardware, clothes and shoes. However, pressure from the many new malls and supermarkets means that Mercado 23 is slowly taking on more tourist trade. Those looking for souvenirs will be able to pick up some pottery, pinatas, hammocks, small pieces of jewelry or Mexican clothing, otherwise you would be better off at Mercado 28.

Where Mercado 23 really comes into its own is with the fresh fruit and vegetables. Those more used to buying such produce in supermarkets have possibly never smelt fruit and vegetables. (Supermarkets coat them in a very thin layer of wax, so they survive longer on the shelves.) The scent of the food, at Mercado 23, will therefore be guaranteed to start the mouth watering for some healthy food.

This isn't the only food there though. Gigantic pork scratchings; dried and cured herbs, grains and beans; meat; and confectionary are all on offer at local prices. For those with a sweet tooth, then the candy stores, supplying contents for the pinatas, are truly something to behold.

There are restaurants and small food vendors here too. The meals are cheaper than most in Cancún and are authenically Mexican. Their main customers are, after all, the local people.

Stall-holders will haggle for prices, but it's not as aggressively as at Mercado-28.


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Mercado 28

(Pron: mare-cah-doh vain-tee ocho)

Opening times: 9am - 8pm



Mercado 28 is the place to go for souvenirs of your Mexican vacation. It is the largest market in Cancún and, while the other markets specialise, this one has everything.

Its brightly colored streets are home to a variety of shops and stalls, ranging from bric-a-brac to quality items. This is the place for handmade Mexican crafts, art, books, calendars, hammocks, herbs, rugs, blankets, pottery, handbags, baskets, statues, hats; as well as silver jewellery.

Dotted here and there are the food vendors offering some of the most delicious fare in the city. The seafood is especially good; it's caught on the same day and prepared on site. More mainstream establishments include banks, ATMs, Internet cafes, pharmacies/drugstores and the post office. Mercado-28 is a vibrant place, where those with an eye for a bargain can be sure to get it. Some of the cheapest items, tickets/tours to local attractions and food in Cancun can be found in this market.

There are over 100 shops, packed around a large square, which make up the Mercado 28. The buildings wind through maze-like aisles, covered over for shade. It should be noted that this is a vast area, so, if travelling with a party of people, arrange a time and place to meet up again later on. You can and probably will get separated in the market, then never find each other again. There are quiet areas to sit back, chill out, watch a bit of street theatre or a band, soak up the local atmosphere and sip a cold drink.

Though primarily tourists are the main customers here, there will be many local people too. They are likely to be heading for the restaurants and cafes on the site. Originally, Mercado 28 was a market for local people, but they gave in to the demand from the tourists for more souvenir type goods, while the stores catering for local produce tended to congregate in Mercado 23. Nevertheless, the eateries are the same establishments that have always been there. The food and prices in them are authentically Mexican, rather than gearing towards other nationalities.

Please note that you may be approached here to buy recreational drugs. Just say 'no gracias' and walk on by (assuming that you don't want to take up their offer).

The easiest way to get there is via bus from the hotel zone. The market is then two blocks away. (Taxis will likely take you to their friend's stores.) The return bus can be caught from near to the Walmart. The maximum time it will take to get there on the bus is 45 mins and that's from the most southern tip of the hotel zone.


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Mercado Ki Huic

(Pron: mare-cah-doh key-wick)

Opening times: 9am - 10pm



Ki Huic is one of the historic markets of Cancún and is set out as a maze of aisles in the open air. It is billed as a crafts market and it deals primarily in souvenirs for tourist trade.

This is the place for tequila shot glasses, serapes, blouses, shirts, silver jewellery, handicrafts and curios, though there is also a bank, a money exchange and some restaurants.

Haggling is expected here, but as it's a smaller market than Mercado 28, the bargains might be harder to achieve. Still there are 100 stalls here, so there's plenty for visitors to see.


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Mercado Coral Negro

(Pron: mare-cah-doh co-ral nee-grow)

Opening: Every day, 8am - midnight.



Coral Negro is like a smaller version of Mercado 28. There are only 50 stalls there, compared to the hundreds in the larger markets. There are no price-tags and the vendors will quote whatever they think they can get away with. It is up to the buyer to then haggle their own price. (Tip: The stalls deeper in the market sometimes have better deals than those on the edges.)

Where Coral Negro does come into its own is with the jewellery. In the depths of its market is the jewelry quarter, enclosed within sliding glass doors and air-conditioning inside. Here every surface glitters and sparkles with Mexican silver and gems of all shapes and sizes. Note: When buying silver, look for the .925 hallmark. That ensures that it's genuine.

Mostly though the market is filled with souvenir items, like handicrafts, hammocks, sombreros, t-shirts, charro suits, Mexican candy, carvings, local art, tequila and hammocks. There are also people offering to braid your hair or to give you a temporary Henna tattoo. Inside, there may also be spray paint artists, offering planetary landscapes for you to take home.

As with Mercado 28, you may be approached by people selling illegal drugs. The same advice applies.


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How to Haggle for Goods at the Mercado

The mercados (markets) of Mexico may be a very different experience to what many Western people expect from the markets back home. Those used to the ability to wander around speaking to no-one, looking at shops with fixed prices on their items, will find themselves in a different world. This is not how it's done in Mexico.



The mercados may be in a static location, Mercado 23 and Mercado 28 in Cancún spring to mind; or they may be ad hoc ones, which set up for the day then completely disappear at night, like those around the Mayan archaeological sites. Either way, they work the same.

This is undoubtedly the place to test out haggling skills. This is the Mexican way in markets. You will be approached constantly on the street and invited into shops to see the merchandise. If you take up the offer, then this is where the fun begins. You may be given something free, like a shot of tequila, to win your interest. Their first offer will probably be up to twice as much as the item is worth. Your job is to do your maths and state a price much less than the item's value. This is a competition and a battle of wills. You will probably be told many stories to encourage you to buy or to raise your price. If your price does remain way too low, then they will refuse to sell it to you. It's a case of forming your strategy, going in prepared for a period of haggling and paying only what you're comfortable paying. Along the way, you will have taken part in an aspect of Mexican culture and will definitely have stories to tell back home.

Places like Mercado 28 should be entered with a hunter's spirit. None of it is aggressive, so the expectation that the best haggler wins will make every good purchase feel like a winner's trophy. Those who are happier with their native culture of fixed prices would be better placed at Flamingo Plaza, which caters more to tourists. Those with the knack of haggling return to Mercado 28 time and time again, reporting that it is a lot of fun. They also report that it's the cheapest place in the city, once the correct price has been settled. For those used to the souks of Marrakech, this market will seem tame; for those more at home in passive Western hypermarkets, it will be shopping at its wildest. The question is, are you up for the challenge?

Winners arm themselves with information. Here are your tips on how to haggle for goods at the mercado.

Preparation

1, Know your prices first. If you are after a certain item, then shop around in the big stores before you go to the mercado. Then you can judge what is a fair price and when you are getting a bargain. This also forestalls the shock of finding it cheaper in the plaza next to your hotel.

2, If anyone in your party speaks Spanish, then this is the perfect moment to use those skills. A Spanish speaker automatically gets a slightly lower price, mainly because the seller isn't being forced to haggle in a second (or third, if Mayan) language. So don't let your Spanish speaker lounge by the pool, you need them at the mercado.

3, Change your money into pesos first. Find out the exchange rate for that day, so you know, in advance, precisely how much the peso is worth. While in the mercado, pay only in pesos (you'll get it cheaper), though most vendors will take crisp American dollars. An American dollar which is crumpled or torn might be turned away, while foreign small change will definitely be unacceptable. It is better by far to pay in cash and for that cash to be pesos.

4, Do not take your credit card. While most mercado stores will take credit cards, you may have a shock when you get home, to discover that the amount charged is higher than expected. Most vendors are very honest, but you might not be able to distinguish from them the occasional bad egg, who might be very inventive with the exchange rate.

5, Take your own calculator. You will be dealing with people who do complicated mathematics all day long. They will demonstrate their figures at lightning speed on their own calculators. You have no way of knowing if those calculators have been 'fixed', especially in regard to the exchange rate. Remember that their aim in this game is to receive as much money as possible, while yours is to pay as little as possible. Therefore make sure that you're the one armed with the calculator and that you use it to check your own figures.

6, Pick your time. The best bargains are to be gained at closing time at the attractions; or the beginning of the day at the static mercados. Those selling at the attractions often have to cart all of their stuff home again on their backs or on bicycles, so they would rather sell it to you instead. Those selling in the mercados have the advantage of leaving their stock on site or else driving away in vehicles. There is, however, a superstition that the first sale of the day bodes well for the rest of it, therefore they will be more inclined to bargain in your favour then.

Entering the Mercado

1, If someone calls out, '1 dollar! 1 dollar!', then they usually mean a Mayan dollar. This is roughly $10 USD.

2, If you do not wish to buy nor be enticed into a shop, then a polite, 'no gracias', coupled with walking on by will usually work just fine. For really persistent vendors, then there have been reports that saying, 'yo vivo a key' (I live here) will make them lose interest. This is also helped if you look casual and not so 'touristy' at the time. In their minds, local people more likely to know how drive a hard bargain for items, while the rich foreigners will pay well over the odds, as they don't know how to play the game.

3, Always remain polite and light-hearted. You won't be having fun, if you let yourself feel beseiged; and they aren't deliberately being rude. The more harassed that you look, the greater the neon sign above your head flashes, 'foreigner who doesn't know what to do!' and the more interest vendors will take in you.

Preparing to Buy

1, Fix your price in your head, while you ask for the vendor's price. Never let on what you are initially prepared to pay.

2, Vendors will be prepared for a 25% discount on their goods. Whatever price you are offered, deduct 25% and that is what you're reasonably aiming for. At the Mercado 28, you can deduct 50%.

3, Never let on when you have a price you're willing to pay, if it seems the vendor will go lower.

4, Feign disinterest if the price quoted is too high. Walking away will often lower a price instantly.

5, Watch out for your non-verbal signs. It's no good saying, 'no, I'm not interested', when your eyes are glinting with want.

6, Be prepared for a long period of haggling, but remain polite and light-hearted.

7, If the price remains too high for you, then walk away completely. You are under no obligation to buy, no matter how many glasses of tequila you've been given, nor what sob stories you've been told. They won't respect you in the morning for giving into the drama now.

8, If the price remains too low for them, then they are equally under no obligation to sell to you. If you've hit a brick wall, then that is their lowest price and they do have a livelihood to make. This isn't a charity event.

9, Once you have agreed on a price, work out via your own knowledge and mathematics what that is in your native currency. If you're happy with that, then pay in pesos and pat yourself on the back for a successfully haggled bargain!

A final word about the mercados at the Mayan archaeological ruins. At some places, like Tulúm, the mercado is outside the gates and could be avoided if desired. At others, like Chichén Itzá, the inner pathways are lined with sellers. There is a reason for this. The villages around Chichén Itzá are exclusively Mayan, but also very poor. When the ruins were opened up for tourism, these people watched distant owners and tour operators getting very rich on the proceeds, but none of it was trickling into the local community. In the grip of poverty, these people argued that all of this was being done around their own ancestral buildings and artifacts, dispossessing them in the process. After a prolonged struggle for justice, they earned the right to set up their mercado inside the ruins. Everyone you see selling items inside the ruins will be a local Mayan villager, as no-one else is allowed to do so.