Beijing Shopping
Wangfujing
As the most famous commercial area of Beijing, Wangfujing is located at the northern side of Chang’an East Street of the center of the city.. With a long history of more than 700 years, it came into being in the Yuan Dynasty. In the middle of the Ming Dynasty, there was the earliest business activity. Wangfujing became a commercial center when the Dong’an market was founded here in 1903.The street is less than one kilometer long, but it is crowed with specialty shoes and long-history shops, which are full of modern atmosphere and high taste. Now it is considered as the sister street of Champs Elysees in France. Besides of its modern feature, the street also preserves the Chinese traditional style, such as the Oriental Plaza, Gongmei Building ,Wangfujing Department Store, Moslem Building, Sun Dong An Plaza and so on. Full of beautiful things in eyes absorb 500,000 people everyday to feel its attractive charm.
Qianmen
Qianmen is just in the south of the Tian’anmen square.The Qianmen street was a commercial center of Beijing more than 500 years ago. If you are interested in the Chinese traditional products, then it will be a good place to go. Qianmen area has been remedied as per the architecture style of the Ming and Qing Dynastyt from last year and now the old and famous shops just like the Quanjude, Pianyi Workshop, Douyichu, all of which are the representative of the Chinese traditional culture, are congested there.. Indubitably, the atmosphere of the Chinese traditional culture will be felt.
Silver Street
Silver street is in the Dongdan Beidajie. In the old times, it was the vane of the fashion. All the franchised foreign name-brand were concentrated here. However, after reworked, the Silver street present another different feature.
With a length of 2.7 kilometers from the entrance of Dongdan to the entrance of the Dongsi, it is the combination of tradition and modern, simplicity and fad. The regionally characteristic of the products is in the leading station. You can find the accouterment of Tibet just like the ring, necklace and so on. There are too many stores like this. Undoubtly, you will find the suitable things for yourself.
The Silk Market
“The Chinese Silk Street, the World Brand”, as “the third best known tourist destination of Beijng after the Great Wall and Forbidden City, the Silk Street has been popular with the foreign tourists.
The old open market was demolished back in 2005, and in 2006 the new one has been opened with a bang in its new bright and spacious home. This is a seven story building which has everything included. A supermarket, bags & suitcases, shoes, caps and leather goods. Men's clothing and cashmere, Ladies' fashion and cashmere. Tailor shop, knitted dresses, silk, kid's clothing, bedding and carpet. Jewelry, ornament, traditional crafts, cosmetics, toys, glasses, electrical appliances, watches, and sporting goods. Jewelry, coral, pearl, crystal.
It holds more than 1,700 retail bargainors, well-known among the worldwide tourists for its abundant selection of fake designer brand apparels. On weekdays the Silk Street attracts assumably 20,000 visitors daily (9am to 9pm) and about 50,000 to 60,000 on weekends.
Just as its name, the Silk Street is full of the beautiful silk products (pyjamas, robes, shirts, scarves and so on )as well as the textiles (cashmere scarves, clothes of all types, tableclothes, etc.), and handcrafts. Besides of these, the Silk Street has much more than just silk. The new Silk Street have introduced traditional Chinese handicrafts, antiques, calligraphy, carpets, table cloths, bed coverings, paintings, hand-knit dresses, toys, electronic gadgets, trinkets, and fine jewelry. Everything here can be had way cheaper than at any of the stores in the city, but remember to make the bargain for it.
Sanlitun Market
Besides being famous for its Bar street, Sanlitun is also well-known for its free market. During the daytime, the side of the street across from all of the bars is lined with stalls selling mostly clothing. The good thing about this market as compared to department stores is that you can bargain for prices, and they have larger sizes.
Tourism-administration-designated-stores
Century-old stores, like those in Beijing's hutongs(alleys) and siheyuan (courtyards), have become part of the city's history. Their fame and location in some of the most bustling downtown areas keep them busy but, at the same time, the stores are small and offer a relatively poor shopping environment. And competition is rising from the rubble of modern construction. In recent years, most traditional stores have made changes to keep up with their rivals, including renovating their rivals, including renovating their facades and interior decorations, and upagrading services. Shopping in some of the best of the stores can be a unique Chinese experience.
Antiques
A good place to find a wide selection of antiques is at Liulichang. Liulichang is a street in Xuanwumen, and many of the stores are quite old. This area has everything from scrolls, to jade articles to decadesold cigarette ad posters. There are definitely treasures to be found here,but it is hard to tell genuine antiques from dirty fakes. Real antiques are supposed to bear a red official seal that proves their authenticity, but sometimes real ones don't have it and fake ones do. The best attitude to have is: if you like it and you can bargain down to a price you can accept, just go for it. Small jade articles and silver trinkets make great presents for people at home and they are easy to take on the plane.
Another large antiques market is the Antiques City at Panjiayuan. This is a multi-story building which is full of antiques and general kitsch. The same rules apply here as in Liulichang: if you like it, get it. Don't worry if it is fake or not. Many of the things are not real antiques, but on the other hand, recently a 50,000-year-old fossil was confiscated from one of the sellers there. The fossil was on sale for about US$150, so you never know.
Beijing Curio City, gathering more than 250 curio shops under one roof, is China's largest trade center for antiques and fold art works. Many of the dealers are themselves connoisseurs and curio collectors. Antiques that date before 1795 are forbidden for sale or export. Those dated between 1796 and 1949* should bear a small red seal and a Certificate for Relics Export from the Beijing Cultural Relics Bureau(BCRB), to allow them to be taken out of Chin. The seal also proves the genuineness of the items. A word of caution: keep receipts which should indicate the name and age of the antiques if these items are bought in BCRB designated stores.
Porcelain
Porcelain, the original China, is still a major industry, producing dinner services, figurines and reproductions of antique vases, teapots and the like. The finest porcelain in the world can be easily purchased in China.
Cloisonne
Cloisonne (enamel formed in patterns of copper wire) is an art form developed in the 15th century, and now used to decorate vases, bowls, lamps, jewelry and ornaments.