What to Buy in Tibet - Tibet Shopping

Shopping is an interesting part of travel. It is an amazing experience that you possible find a lot of spectacular stuffs, such as foods, handcrafts, paintings, jewelry, etc. (Note: we never cover shopping in our tour service.) You may want to buy your friends or families some interesting souvenirs before leaving Tibet. You may also want to bring a valuable art or other works home to keep your journey memorable after visiting Tibet.

Recommended commodities you can buy in Tibet

There are much special, rare and precious stuff which are worthy buying. Some of them are beautiful arts of Tibetan culture, such as Thangka, Tibetan jewelry, Tibetan carpet, Tibetan knife, Tibetan mask, etc. Some are useful specialties of Tibet, such as Buttered Tea, Saffron Crocus, Yak Meat, etc. Following are some recommended commodities you can buy.

Thangka

Thangka is an exquisite Tibetan scroll, most of which focuses on the motifs of Tibetan Buddhism, such as depicting a Buddhist deity and describing historical Buddhist events. Thangkas can be made by cloth, embroidery, paper, brocade, silk tapestry or applique. Sometimes, jewels and pearls are decorated on Tibetan Thangkas.

• Thangka

Tibetan Jewelry

Tibetan jewelry is usually made from metals such as silver, gold, and copper, and stones like turquoise, agate, wood, and bamboo, as well as from pearls, corals, and bones of dead animals, especially from yak bones. Most visitors like to buy Tibetan ornaments especially jewelry because they are not only exotic and aesthetically pleasing with vivid carvings of animals as well as Sanskrit, but also representing blessing and keeping evils away.

• Tibetan Jewelry

Tibetan Carpet and Textile

Tibetan carpet, with bright and harmonious color, is soft, exquisite and durable in addition to its strong ethnic-flavored pictorial pattern. Hand-woven woolen cloth Pulu comes in many colors and is used for making clothes, shoes, and caps. Pulu is durable, warm, as well as beautiful.

• Tibetan Carpet

Most Popular Tibet Tour Packages

• 4 Days Holy Lhasa City Tour
• 8 Days Mount Everest Base Camp Tour
• 9 Days Lhasa to Kathmandu Overland Tour via EBC

Tibetan Knife

Tibetan knife is essential to Tibetan people's life. For Tibetan people, knives are not only a tool for daily life and a weapon to protect themselves, but also an adornment to add more color to their life. Tibetan knife is favored by tourists because of its unique style and the exquisite carving of the silver sheath. Prices of Tibetan knife can range from a few RMB to several thousand according to the material quality and the level of workmanship. Tibetan knife are not allowed on plane or as consigned goods. It needs to be sent by post.

• Tibetan Knives

Tibetan Mask

Tibetan mask (Ba in Tibetan language) is a sort of handicraft deriving from religious art and Tibetan opera. The masks are well-known for their unique style, diversity of shapes, and characteristically simple and primeval beauty. There are 3 types of Tibetan mask - religious mask, Tibetan opera mask, and folk dance mask.

• Tibetan Mask

Tibetan Medicine

Tibetan people have developed a unique system of Tibetan medicine and pharmacology during the course of their struggle against the nature and diseases. With a history of over 2,000 years, Tibetan medicine has attracted much curiosity from home and abroad for its good curative effect on some diseases and its special processing method. Tibetan herbs such as saffron, aweto and snow lotus are popular Tibetan medicine among tourists. Some tourists also like to visit the Tibetan doctors for treatment during their trip.

• Aweto
• Saffron

Tibetan Incense

Tibetan Incense is another good tourist souvenir. Tibetan people use them to worship the Buddha, exorcise evils, and conduct religious activities. Stored in wardrobe, the Tibetan incense can not only keep the clothing fragrant but also protect them from insects.

• Tibetan Incense

In Tibet, there are numerous specialties for you to choose from. A single page is too limited to show you all. The only way is bring your pocket full and go to have a shopping spree on your own.

Tibet Shopping Tips

• Always remember to bargain at the price.
• Don’t believe any jewelry selling at very high price on the outdoor booth. They are usually made of fake materials.
• If you need to buy jewelry, go certificated stores, and carefully examine jewelry for quality.
• You are not suggested buy any items pricing higher than 10,000 RMB unless you are good at checking authenticity, such as gold stuff, diamonds, antiques, etc.
• Don’t believe any people who advise you to buy something during sightseeing.
• Dancing and singing shows which are operated by private organizations are usually not worthy trying.
• Tibetan people call white copper "silver", so the cheap silver ornaments are usually mixed with copper. If you want to buy real silver jewelry, go to shops or department stores.
• If some locals try to sell you souvenirs but you are not interested, don’t be afraid to refuse.