Renowned for its beautiful handmade pottery, ceramics, art, and blown glass, Puerto Vallarta is a shopping paradise where you can find authentic Mexican silver, blown glass, pottery, sarapes, clothing, leather sandals, huaraches, furniture masks and arts and crafts – which can be shipped back to the US. Shop along the downtown Malecon strip, lined with designer shops, boutiques, gift stores, art galleries and marketplaces, or browse the main downtown shopping area along Juárez and Morelos Streets which boast antique store and art galleries where you can buy signed Mexican paintings. Vallarta’s Muncipal Market houses dozens of stalls with everything from leather bullwhips to T-shirts. Check out Vallarta’s three major plazas – Marina Plaza, Plaza Caracol and Plaza Genovesa, which house designer shops, boutiques, up-scale furniture stores, department stores, cafes, and restaurants. The city’s is also an art center where you can purchase works by Mexico’s contemporary painters and sculptors. Don’t leave Puerto Vallarta without purchasing Talavera pottery, tapestries from Oaxaca State, colorful hammocks, and the stunningly colorful pictures made from natural yarns and dramatic beaded painted masks created by the Huichol Indians!