What to buy in Beijing? — Top 19+ must-have souvenirs & best things to buy in Beijing

April 5, 2024

As the capital of China, Beijing is an ancient city rich in culture and history, but also a bustling modern place. When traveling to Beijing, in addition to enjoying the specialties and immersing in the beauty of the scenic spots, buying a few Beijing-style souvenirs is also an experience not to be missed. So, what is famous in Beijing, what to buy in Beijing and where to buy souvenirs in Beijing? Let’s check out our Beijing shopping guide (best shopping Beijing) with the suggested 19+ best souvenirs from Beijing, cheap things to buy in Beijing including best Beijing gifts and Beijing souvenirs as follows!

Shopping in Beijing offers visitors a variety of fun experiences, and you can buy a lot of famous local souvenirs that remind you of your exciting travel journey in the ancient city. | what to buy in beijing

Traditional souvenir store | what to buy in beijing

Bustling shopping street at night | what to buy in beijing

Fashion and accessories (# what to buy in beijing)

Beijing is known as a fashion paradise from popular brands to luxury, class, with a wide range of different fashion items and accessories as well. With fashion items in Beijing, your wallet can quickly empty. Staying alert before deciding to buy something is something you should remember when shopping in Beijing. Fashion items from clothes, shoes to watches, fashion accessories, glasses, jewelry, belts… you can easily buy them from various brands.

With the question of what to buy in Beijing, you absolutely should not miss fashion items. You can find everything from clothes, belts, eyeglasses, watches, jewelry here.

Ceramics

Beijing ceramics has its origins in the Ming Dynasty, when kilns produced many unique ceramics and porcelains that gradually formed a northern style of ceramic art. During the Qing Dynasty, many traditional kilns were established in Beijing, where the concentration of crafts and technology fueled the development of Beijing ceramics.

There are many varieties of Beijing ceramics with high artistic value and famous such as painted ceramics, blue and white porcelain, pastel porcelain, red glazed porcelain and white marble porcelain, of which pale porcelain is very well-known. The enamel color of porcelain is gentle, the color will become more and more delicate over time, reaching the pinnacle of ceramic art.

Beijing ceramics not only have high artistic and collectible value but also have unique cultural value. Not only contributes a lot in terms of aesthetics, but also plays an important role in history, culture, customs and other aspects. Beijing ceramics has become a treasure of Chinese culture, demonstrating the Chinese culture and art of ceramics. Very suitable as a gift for relatives and friends after finishing your trip in Beijing.

Places to buy ceramics in Beijing, visitors can go to Silk Market, Yaxiu Market, Beijing Arts & Crafts Central Store at Wangfujing Road.

Silk (# best things to buy in beijing)

China is the cradle and origin of silk. When it comes to good Beijing gifts, don’t forget silk! There are many countries in the world producing silk now, but where there are esoteric recipes of silk as well as diverse and eye-catching silk samples, it is impossible to forget Beijing. You can buy ready-made clothes or make them yourself to your liking.

Traditional Chinese Beijing Ruifuxiang Silk Fabric (# what is famous in beijing)

Ruifuxiang silk | what to buy in beijing

The Ruifuxiang silk brand was founded in 1862, and has a history of more than 150 years. The hand-made clothing technique of the Chinese Xiang (Hunanese) people has been included in Beijing’s list of intangible cultural heritage.

Ruifuxiang’s products include silk, wool fabric, fur and other home textile products. Beijing Ruifuxiang high-class silk brand has become a must-buy souvenir in Beijing, which is famous for many tourists to choose as a gift.

Ruifuxiang’s silk brand became the first choice to be bought for making traditional Chinese clothes and costumes. You can find them at the shops on Dashilan Street, and the shop is also famous for its Qipao embroidery products.

Ruifuxiang is one of the oldest silk shops. Furthermore, the national flag of the People’s Republic of China, which was hung in Tiananmen Square on October 1, 1949, was made by Ruifuxiang silk shop. Ruifuxiang produces selected silk products, including high-grade silk and satin, as well as raw fabrics.

Ruifuxiang silk store in Beijing. | best things to buy in beijing

If you still wonder what to buy in Beijing, Ruifuxiang products are the answer for you. You can find this unique gift at Wangfujing 190, Dongcheng District.

Pearl (# best shopping beijing)

China is not only the most populous country in the world, China has many other most. Typically, China pearl market accounts for 96% of the total amount of pearls distributed worldwide. Coming here, you can find any type of pearl. And one of the beautiful gifts for loved ones is pearl jewelry.

Beijing is very famous for pearls and other pearl products. If you are wondering what to buy in Beijing as gifts for your family and friends, you can choose to buy some pearl items. Beijing pearl is considered to be among the most beautiful and highest quality in the world, very popular with tourists to the city and foreign customers.

Black Pearls | best things to buy in beijing

Electronics

One of the most prestigious addresses selling electronics in Beijing is Zhongguancun center which is sometimes known as “China’s Silicon Valley”. There are many electronic items here for those who are passionate about technology such as phones, cameras, computers… When buying these types of items, you should carefully check the quality and ask about the warranty to avoid being damaged.

Handicrafts (# beijing souvenirs)

What gifts to buy when going to Beijing? The Chinese are famous for their ingenuity. They make many sophisticated and beautiful souvenirs, which are popular with tourists when choosing to buy gifts. Besides, you can also buy items such as tea, dried fruits, Maotai liquor, candy… to take home as gifts for family and friends.

Neiliansheng shoes (# beijing gifts)

Neiliansheng is a famous shoe brand founded in 1853 in Beijing. A famous brand domestically and internationally for producing thousand layer bottom cloth shoes.

Neiliansheng inherits traditional folk crafts, choosing natural materials such as pure cotton, linen and pure wool. At the same time, we constantly develop and innovate ourselves, worthy of the name “refined workmanship and sturdy materials”. The main characteristics include: High technical requirements, many production processes, many styles of bottoms, many ways and styles of shoes.

The production process of Thousand Layer Bottom Cloth Shoes has a long history, and the production of Neiliansheng shoes is a great and remarkable achievement in the history of Chinese shoemaking. Condensing the essence of traditional craftsmanship, it has unique characteristics and advantages, and is a representative work of Chinese shoe culture. At the same time, it is also a valuable asset and heritage of the Chinese nation. Has extremely high historical, cultural, economic and craft value.

Neiliansheng shoes are considered famous souvenirs in Beijing. Neiliansheng shoe store has specialized in making fabric shoes since 1853. Made from natural materials, Neiliansheng shoes bring a comfortable, lightweight feeling when worn. You can buy these canvas shoes at Neilansheng shoe store in Qianmen.

Shengxifu Hat (# cheap things to buy in beijing)

Sheng Xifu hat shop on Wangfujing Street is a famous long-standing brand in Beijing, a branch of the main Sheng Xifu store in Tianjin. Sheng Xifu hats are famous all over the world for their exquisite materials, fine workmanship and high quality, widely welcomed by people at home and abroad. Not only does it dominate the domestic market, but it also exports to the United States, Germany, France and other countries.

Sheng Xifu was founded in 1911, and over its ninety years of development history has built up a reputation and remarkable achievements. This is also a hat loved by many Chinese leaders such as: Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Jiang Zemin, and foreign leaders such as Jin Richeng (Chairman of North Korea), Su Jiaonuo (President of Indonesia). This will definitely be the answer to the question “what to buy in Beijing?”. It’s yours!

Shengxifu Hat store | best souvenirs from beijing

Visitors can buy Sheng Xifu hats at Dashilan 34, Qianmen, Xuanwu District.

Beijing paper cutting (# best souvenirs from beijing)

Ancient tradition of Beijing paper cutting is one of the oldest folk arts, China’s national intangible cultural heritage. This is considered a long-standing traditional art profession and is preserved to this day.

Beijing paper cutting is an image cut out on a sheet of red paper using scissors. The art of paper cutting in Beijing is divided into royal crafts and folk crafts, one of which is lavish and the other that is simply generous. When it comes to the festival season, Beijing people will choose different types of paper cut according to their conditions to celebrate the festival.

Regardless of stage, period, war or peace, the development of folk art has never stopped. Although some traditional professions in China are gradually disappearing, the art of paper cutting is still alive and well. You should bring a piece of red paper cut home as a gift and keep it as a memory!

Paper cutting is an image cut out on a sheet of paper using scissors. The art of paper cutting can be traced back to the earliest stages in the ancient Southern and Northern Dynasties. The patterns are often designed from events during jubilant festivals, folk dances, children or animals and others. They are very beautiful and interesting, and are widely popular in China.

Where to buy: Nan Luo Gu Xiang 110, Dongcheng District

Beijing opera masks (# beijing shopping guide)

The art of Peking Opera mask painting boasts a long history. These masks are used by performers. The faces of these characters are limited to the roles of “jing” and “chou”.

A chou is a face characterized by a white nose and relatively few facial makeup patterns. There are a large number of facial makeup patterns for jing namely, “full face”, “three-segment face”, “quarter face”, “six face parts”, “face tiny with flowers”, “misaligned face”…

Peking opera facial makeup is a special makeup method imbued with Chinese culture. The created opera mask will have many colors and extremely high cultural decorative meaning. Each type of makeup on the mask has its own unique symbolic meaning and is an indispensable part of opera performance. Buying a Peking Opera mask as a gift not only gives the recipient an elegant gift, but also shows them the uniqueness of traditional Chinese art.

Where to buy: Silk Market, Yaxiu Market, Hongqiao Market

Zisha teapot (# what to buy in beijing)

Zisha teapot is one of China’s traditional tea sets and is a must-buy souvenir when traveling to Beijing. The Zisha tea pot is exquisitely made, unique in shape and complete function. In the alleys of ancient towns such as Nanluoguxiang and Qianmen Street in Beijing, many small shops sell purple clay teapots. If you are a tea culture lover, then an exquisite zisha teapot will make a unique souvenir.

Jasmine tea (# must buy in beijing)

With a unique aroma, jasmine tea was a favorite drink of ancient China, has been present since the Song Dynasty and began to gain fame from the Qing Dynasty. This jasmine tea is made from green tea and fresh jasmine flowers, providing a refreshing feeling and pleasant aroma. This jasmine tea can now be purchased at Zhang Yiyuan, or at its headquarters at Dashilan 22, Qianmen, Xuanwu District.

Jasmine tea, a typical Chinese fragrant tea. It originated in the Song Dynasty, flourish during the Ming Dynasty, and became famous during the Qing Dynasty.

High quality jasmine tea is produced from green tea and fresh jasmine fragrance. It is one of the best flowering tea varieties.

Dried fruits

Dried fruits are bought by many tourists as gifts. Its unique and a wide range of flavors and carefully packaged make dried fruit a favorite Beijing specialty. Dried fruit is made from many different types of fruit and has a sweet or slightly sour taste. Visitors can buy these dried fruit packages in supermarkets or large grocery stores.

Confectionery

The Chinese palate is very fond of sweets, so almost everywhere you go, there are sweet specialties. So, you should buy some sweets as a gift.

Erguotou rice wine

Niu Lan Shang Erguotou wine is a typical wine representing Beijing wine, with a long history of more than 800 years. The taste is mellow and the aftertaste is long, with a hint of sweetness and wheat aroma. Niu Lan Shang wine is a distilled product and is produced within 6 months. In addition, this type of wine is also known as Chinese vodka. If you travel to Beijing and don’t know what to buy as gifts for relatives and friends, this is definitely a great gift for you!

This is a Chinese white liquor and is also known as Chinese vodka. This wine is made from sorghum and most commonly has the red star label. The name Erguotou means distillate and is produced within 6 months.

Liubiju pickles

Almost no one in Beijing is unaware of the famous Liubiju brand, formed a long time ago (1530), with the main products including: sweet and sour pickled radish, sweet and sour pickled cucumber, and a variety of pickles… You should choose this specialty buy it as a gift, or using in your daily meals.

Folding fan

According to history, paper fans were widely used in the palaces of ancient concubines. Paper fans are designed to be very eye-catching and unique, moreover, in the hot weather of summer, the paper fan is like a savior to soften the summer sun.

In Beijing, paper fans are very popular and vary in price depending on the quality of the material and whether the fan is made by hand or by machine. Paper fans can also be made of silk or hand-painted with many decorative motifs from Chinese nature to charming scenes such as grass, trees, birds… With a paper fan priced from 20 CNY will be a meaningful gift for these hot summer days.

The Chinese paper fan is a gift that most clearly shows the characteristics of Chinese culture and art. | beijing souvenirs

Chinese calligraphy

All the essence and soul of China are gathered in calligraphy paintings. You can buy calligraphy scrolls or paintings depicting charming landscapes of mountains and water, with breathtakingly beautiful fairy cranes. Each graceful stroke with brush and ink shows extreme elegance, sophistication and poetry.

Chinese calligraphy and painting scrolls | beijing souvenirs

At Beijing airport, you will encounter artisans passionately writing or painting. Enjoy this art and buy a painting as a souvenir for your trip to Beijing.

Cultural and creative products of the Forbidden City

If you want to gift something special, you can choose cultural and creative gifts around the Forbidden City. Made with excellent workmanship and many types to choose from, such as: dolls, mugs, coasters, bookmarks, round fans, shoulder bags, miniature models, refrigerator magnets, calendars, stationery, etc.

Cloisone

Cloisonne is a traditional Chinese craft and one of the cultural characteristics of Beijing. Cloisonné products mainly have unique blue colors, bright colors, sophisticated patterns, and have high decorative and collectible value. There are many types of cloisonné handicrafts, such as jewelry, decorations, stationery, etc.

Cloisonne handicrafts are sold at Beijing palace museum, national museum of China, Tiananmen square and other places. With its excellent craftsmanship and cultural significance, cloisonne has become one of the must-buy souvenirs for Beijing tourists.

Breakfast cakes

Breakfast cakes in Beijing are also extremely famous for their light sweetness with fillings mainly from green beans, red beans, taro, green tea… This is also something you can buy as a gift when traveling to Beijing. Eating these cakes is very suitable when served with tea.

Vacuum packed Beijing duck

The dish that made Chinese cuisine famous can now be easily bought for your family or friends to enjoy if they have not had the opportunity to go to Beijing. Some brands that you can refer to include roasted duck from Quanjude, Bianyifang, Dadong…

Peking opera doll

As a famous historical and cultural city, Beijing has many famous Chinese handicrafts. Cloisonne’ handicrafts, Beijing embroidery and Peking opera dolls are extremely popular souvenirs. You can buy opera dolls with many different character designs as gifts for your loved ones.

Dragon’s beard candy

Beijing dragon beard candy is a famous snack in China, This candy with layers of sweet sweet candy is white like cotton layers. Candy melts in your mouth.

Where to buy souvenirs in Beijing?

Xidan Commercial Street

When you are wondering what to buy in Beijing, you should not miss Xidan street. This street is located about 1 hour walk west of Tiananmen Square. You can also get here by bus or subway line 1 or 4. This is an ideal shopping place for tourists to buy gifts in Beijing with a lot of fashion stores and lots of many other products. This place also has interesting dining and entertainment areas to combine when exploring the street.

Sanlitun Village

Sanlitun Village is located on the east side of Chaoyang area, you can travel by bus or subway to get here. This place has become a famous shopping place in Beijing with 19 large buildings built in modern architectural style with fancy art. Tourists love shopping here because in addition to souvenirs, this place also has restaurants, cafes, luxury bars and reasonable prices, cinemas, amusement parks… combined.

Wangfujing (# what to buy in beijing)

This neighborhood is located to the east of Tiananmen Square, accessible by bus or subway. This is the oldest and most famous shopping street in Beijing. Here you can find book stores, traditional photography studios and snack shops. This place is also suitable for visitors buying gifts in Beijing with traditional items, handicrafts sold in abundance.

Those who love antiques will not be able to ignore this familiar street, you can choose unique souvenirs when coming here. There are also many delicious food shops waiting for you to explore when you come to Wangfujing neighborhood.

Nanluoguxiang and Drum Tower

Nanluoguxiang and Drum Tower area, with its ancient-style buildings, is also a famous shopping destination in Beijing. You can find unique jewelry when you come here, especially delicately crafted pearl products.. According to shopping experience in Beijing, don’t forget to bargain even when buying in stores.

Some useful tips for shopping in Beijing

Stores in China are usually open every day from 9am to 7pm. Night markets are often very vibrant and bustling, open very late, some stores can stay open until morning. The time that vendors open also depends on the weather of each season, for example, in the summer the markets will open later than in the winter.

Joining a Beijing tour, visitors often go to many places, so you should not focus on buying many things in the same place, but instead you choose the typical items of that place, buying a little from each place.

When walking in the markets, you don’t need to pay too much attention to whether you buy or not. You can freely look at clothes or other items and then leave. There is no forcing or coaxing of customers here, so you can walk around with peace of mind.

China is famous for being a country that specializes in producing counterfeit goods, so when shopping you should carefully check the goods before buying. This is really important when you buy branded electronics and fashion items in Chinese markets. Don’t be cheap when many sellers offer bargain prices because you may buy them and not be able to use them.

Learn how to bargain according to the quality of the goods: When buying goods in small stores, even in some stores in large shopping centers, the seller will “shout” at very high prices. If you do not know clearly about the quality of a product, before buying anything in Beijing, you should look up information online or ask knowledgeable people to avoid making a “mistake” or losing money unfairly.

Be careful with professional marketing tactics: When figuring out what to buy in Beijing, please note that besides quality items, Beijing as well as China is considered a “paradise” of fake and poor quality goods. When visiting production facilities and product introduction stores, staff will enthusiastically advise visitors about the “miraculous” quality of the goods. However, you should be alert and consider carefully before deciding to spend money to buy things.