Great Shoppings Deals at Various Port of Calls...

[calex]

Just curious what people think are must buy deals at various Ports of Call. Here are some examples that I know about:

• Cayman Islands - Rum Cake
  
• Costa Rica - Coffee Beans
  
• Ensenada - Leather Goods
  
• Puerto Vallarta - Tequila
  

What other things have people discovered? I know the collective knowledge of CC should come up with a pretty impressive list.

 

Chris

[calex]

It is kind of amazing with all the opinionated folks on CC, no body has any opinion of what is a good shopping deal at any port of calls.

[NorthernOntario]

Correct me if I am wrong (and most likely many will) but isn't St Thomas known for their deals on jewelry?

[Illyria]

Really no such thing as "must buy" deals anymore, what with the internet and global economy (and all the new annoying airline regulations that make transporting your purchases home safely that much more difficult). Most of the ports of call are now so inundated with "tourist trap" shopping areas anyway, you can only get a good deal if you know exactly where to look for it.

 

St. Thomas may have good deals on jewelry - if you know which shops are reputable (and very few are). But jewelry isn't something you buy on every vacation.

 

I used to buy maple syrup in New England - but you have to put it in checked luggage now (liquid), and it's just easier to order it from a catalog (it'll still come from Vermont...but someone else will make sure that it's packaged so that it doesn't break en route). Still, some stuff I'll buy just because it "feels" more authentic just because of where it was purchased - not because I couldn't get same or better deal otherwise (Murano glass in Venice; jade jewelry in British Columbia; skincare products from the Blue Lagoon in Iceland).

 

Well, okay, I will buy lots of cannolis in Sicily...and most of them will get eaten before I even get back to the ship :D

[Lupush]

I agree with the previous poster, I don't think there are any "must buys" in the Caribbean at least. I will say that St. Maarten has the best jewelry and booze deals from what I've seen. That's the only port that I end up buying anything in.

[Seanote]

With the global economy, there is not much you can get in ports-of-call that you can’t get in the US. Twenty years ago, Goslings Black Seal rum could only be had in Bermuda. Now it’s widely available in the US—for the same price! Sure, you could save two dollars on a Tortuga rum cake in Grand Cayman, but you also order one from Amazon for $15 and not have to fly it home.

One thing that I do buy in ports is the local beer that is not available in the US. Such as:

Banks Beer -- Barbados

Gull – Iceland

Salva Vida – Honduras

Belikin – Belize

Not saying that any of these are great but they are unobtanium in the US. So, when in Rome, do as the Romans do and drink Peroni. :D

Edited August 21, 2014 by Seanote

[aubreyc1988]

I usually try to find something I like and is "unique" in the sense that I havent seen it in another port before. We like getting ornaments for our tree so we usually snag one of those from the ship and from ports.

 

Last thing we got from out last cruise in Grand Cayman, were these glass coke bottles that were painted/dyed. they looked pretty cool so we got them. Whether they were actually handpainted or not I do not know, but we liked them so we got them

 

In Cozumel, we haggled and got this small little stool that had this leather cover on it. I thought it was pretty cute and it sits as a decorative piece in our house. Its nice to have little things that remind you of the places you've gone, valuable or not.

 

Rum cake is always good, I like to get samples, but I never buy any usually. Maybe we will this time. Alcohol is always cheap, but again, never buy any as we don't have room to fly it home. As for jewelry, like other posters said, it is personal preference and you can probably find it cheaper online...or at least the same price.