Shopping in Rio is famous amongst tourist and locals alike because the place is incomparable for their gemstone jewelry and beachwear which are exported around the world. The country of Brazil is the largest supplier of the world with colored gemstones that are composed of deposits of tourmalines, topazes rubellites, emeralds, diamonds, amethysts and aquamarines. The best place to shop for jewelries is the Minas Gerais or if you cannot go here, might as well stick to shops that are fully licensed and have certificates of quality and authenticity so that you can avoid being ripped off from fakes. Other famous local goods that you should add to your shopping list are shoes, the famous Havaianas flip flops, crafts and arts, local music, and summer clothing that are made with natural fibers and local music. Since there are a lot of low quality merchandise sprawling around the city, the trick to get the best shopping in this place is to know beforehand where to find the high quality items that are reasonably priced.
The most famous shopping district of Rio is Ipanema. It is filled with exclusive boutiques that are in various arcades in which majority of them are located along the Rua Visconde de Piraja. The shops that are found along the Rua Ataulfo da Paiva are newspaper kiosks, restaurants and cafes, mostly from Leblon. In the Copacabana area is filled with bookstores, souvenir shops and branches of some of the better shops of Rio that are along the Avenida Nossa Senhora de Copacabana and its connecting streets. For those who are on a budget, you might want to try out the maze of the shopping streets that is located behind the metro station of Uruguaiana. You can also find the famous Carnival costumes in this area as well.
For local crafts and arts such as handcrafted dolls, ceramics, quilts and purses, head to the Casa de Artesanato, which is a showroom for the state and city artisans of Rio de Janeiro. Wooden objects, baskets and pans that are made by the indigenous tribes can be found in the FUNAI Craft Shop which is part of the Museu do Indio. Another popular product that you should add in your list is the sugar cane brandy or known locally as cachaça which you can watch its production process at the Cachaçaria Petisco da Vila.
Be sure to bring an extra bag with you so that you can have it filled with your shopped items from the city.