Home › Travel Guides › Asia Travel Guide › India › Chennai › Shopping in Chennai
Image gallery

Statues of Ganesha, Chennai

© 123rf.com

+530
Chennai (Madras) Local time

Weather in Chennai (Madras)
Sunny
3
2
°C
Thailand

Shopping in Chennai

Key areas: 

George Town is the wholesale area of Chennai, where you can find everything from paper and textiles to cosmetics and decorations. The streets are an atmospheric place to wander around. If searching for souvenirs, the Victoria Technical Institute, 765 Anna Salai, a government outlet promoting high-quality Indian handicrafts (with artists receiving a share of the profits), has a wide range of fixed price arts and crafts. SIPA'S Craftlink, 70 Kodambakkan High Road, Nungambakkam, is an artisan's collective and fair trade craft shop.
The small stalls and shops lining Sir Thyagaraya Nagar Road, known as Pondy Bazaar, have an array of great fabrics, cheap clothes and jewellery, plus the divine smell of jasmine from the colourful flower stalls. For quality fabric including raw and hand-spun silks, Nalli Silks , 9 Nageswaran Road, is recommended. Higginbothams, 814 Anna Salai, is an institution, a huge bookshop with a vast selection of English-language titles.

Shopping centres: 

Spencer Plaza, Anna Salai, is a massive mall with everything from clothes, cosmetics and shoes to household items, CDs, and souvenirs. On the second floor, Fabindia offers top quality handmade textiles (from garments to cushion covers) with lovely contemporary designs. There are government emporia from many states along Anna Salai.

Opening hours: 

Shops and bazaars opening times vary, but most open daily from around 0900-1030 until 2000-2100 (some places close on Sunday).

Recommended Sites:

Protect yourself from malaria
Before you travel, find out if your holiday destination is in a malaria zone.
(An educational initiative organised and funded by GlaxoSmithKline Travel Health. UK/MARK/0173/10 September 2010)
Travel insurance
For residents of over 150 countries. High levels of medical, evacuation, emergency & most adventure activities covered.