Markets in Sucre, Bolivia

One Fresh Juice Stand of Many at Mercado Central

The main farmer’s market in Sucre – Mercado Central – is a budget grocery shoppers dream… stand upon stand of fresh fruits, vegetables, bakery items (including rustic french bread rolls!), meat and chicken, spices, dried goods; you name it and most likely you will find it in one form or another.

For a ‘day in the life’ view of Mercado Central check out this walking tour video: YouTube Video of Mercado Central in Sucre.

Hungry while shopping? Upper level restaurants serve hot meals from 8 a.m. to closing (around 7 p.m.), then a night market with food stalls accessed from the entrance on Ravelo street until 11 p.m. or so.

The main level of the market has a section with fresh fruit stands (see photo above), a spot to buy cheap hamburgers and choripan (chorizo with bread) as well as a lady who spends her afternoons deep-frying chicken to serve with french fries and rice.

Six blocks or so north of the market on Junin street (towards the bus terminal) is “Mercado Negro” (Black Market in English). This is where many locals go to buy clothes and shoe wear.

For another ‘make your mind spin’ shopping excursion (in addition to Mercado Central) you need to hop on a bus or in a taxi (10 minutes, under $2 USD) and venture to Mercado Campesino. There is an indoor food market but that is a only a small portion of this mammoth shopping extravaganza.

Outdoors in where most of the action is, blocks upon blocks (maybe 10 or so long by 3 blocks wide…) of shops line the streets and vendors push everything out to the edge of the sidewalk (what sidewalk?) in an effort to gain the attention of someone in the crowd strolling by.

Thinking of a long-term stay in Sucre? Read: Sucre, Bolivia – Cheap Place to Live in South America. For a short visit view our Travel Guide to Sucre.