Saint Petersburg Shopping Tips by Audrey118

Name of Shop: Flea Market behind the Church of Spilled Blood

There are many stalls at this flea market; beware of pickpocketers.

Know your prices before you buy; bargain well, if you buy more than an item, ask for lower prices. Say if one is for 150 rubles, 2 can be priced at 250 rubles and three at 320 rubles etc. I managed to bargain and ask for small gifts after buying several dolls.

Pay either in dollars or rubles, work out the exchange rate that strikes the bargain deal. They are very comfortable with bargaining.

What To Buy: I shopped at this Slovenia girls shop. She sold to us at least 15 dolls, and we got very very good prices and also we managed to ask for small gifts.

Look at the dolls details; eyes, shape and expression, twinkle in the eyes, an also detailing in the scraves or patterns etc.

dolls can cost as low as 10 USD for 4 numbers - plain dolls, and as much as 50 USD for more detailing dolls. But for a reasonable good quality ones, with good detailing on the paintwork, around 100 -150 dollars or more for the super huge ones.

Besides the matryoshka dolls, there are other similar painted dolls. bought some small single dolls which can hold a small bottle of Vodka, and I also bought some Nevatryoshka which is a single doll which rocks and sounds like a baby toy. The small ones cost between 400-500 rubles to a large one around 1300 rubles (1 dollar = 29 rubles).

Painted fridge magnets cost around 120 rubles, but we managed to bargain for 100 rubles each.

Buy beautiful Xmas tree decoration; painted eggs, dolls with porcelain faces decked in Russian outfits...all priced around 100-150 rubles.

What To Pay: My friend bought from another stall a painted egg, about 5 inches tall, with the Kazan Cathedral Madonna icon on it; the lass wanted 60 dollars, and she managed to pay 50 dollars for it.
Amber....there are many colours. My fren said they looked like plastic!!. There is cherry amber - dark coloured, to the golden coloured ones, to the milky ones which are more precious as it is found deep in the ocean floor. The heavier and larger pieces cost more. I bought an amber gem tree to match my other gem tree I have at home. It is quite fun to look at each stall slowly!!!

There is a small river running behind the flea market, and on a spring day, I saw a guy jumping inside for a coool dip....geez...and one Russian lady who runs a stall joked with me...she said he has no profit n took his life!!! and I was to be blamed - becos I asked for too much discount!!!!

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Theme: Local Craft

Name of Shop: everywhere

You will see amber almost everywhere...all shops, even flea markets even at airports!!!

To see the height of amber, you must have visited the Amber Room at Tsarkoye Selo (Pushkin). There is huge inlaid of amber panels since 1750s and has recently been restored for public viewing.

In Russia, and countries around the Baltic Sea, and some other european countries like in Italy, Germany and also in Scotland, many women adorn with amber necklances to protect against evil spirits.

Amber is believed to restore blood homeostasis and helps to slow down tumour cells growth and lowers intracranial pressure.

What To Buy: There are many colour ambers; cherry red which is very dark, translucent golden which looks plasticky to me, and also the milky ones which looks like bone or yellowed ivory which is the most precious of them all becos they are found deeper in the sea bed.

All kinds of jewellery are available; from dainty ones to chunky avant garde ones which are awesome, and also home decoration pieces...i bought a mini amber tree, and there was even at the Tsarkoye Selo gift shop, they have a tiffany lamp embedded with amber...really nice...but pricey and never saw it anywhere else.

If you are buying individual stones, then the heavier and the larger they are makes it more pricey. Some have beautiful fossils in them as well.


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Theme: Local Craft

Name of Shop: Gostiny Dvor

You ride the metro and stop at Nevsky Pkt and you can get into the GD mall immediately.

Opens 9 am to 9 pm

What To Buy: I found most of the souveniers here extremely well priced - better than the flea market, and they have very nice ones to cheap ones as well...caters for all markets. Only thing is it only accepts rubles. and it is horrible to change money here...there is a money changer at one end of the mall at the ground level, but before you can get there, there are lots of locals offering better rates...scary!!! This end is where there is lots of viedo game shop. And the other end has a small convenient store to stock up vodka, n i bought some chocolate coated preserved strawberries here. There is a pizza shop and also public toilets for 10 rubles.

Upstairs is more upscale - they have all the international lables for designer wear.


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Theme: Department Store

Name of Shop: Souvenirs

Lots of places sell these birch wood products, very dainty carvings, and the cheapest i saw was at the kiosks at GDyor department stores.



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Theme: Local Craft