How to Shop for Souvenirs in New York City

New York City is one of the largest and busiest tourist destinations on the planet. Every year, New York City receives thousands and thousands of tourists from every corner of the globe. Naturally, as a result of that, there is a large souvenir industry in the city. From "I Love New York" T-shirts to magnets of the Empire State building, here are the best places to shop for souvenirs in New York City.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Shop at 234 W. Souvenirs on West 42nd Street. Located in the heart of everything that is New York City, near Times Square, this souvenir shop stocks the best New York City T-shirts around, from the classic "I Love New York" T-shirts to unique shirts with crazier slogans. This is a wonderful place to shop for creative T-shirts as souvenirs.

2. Go to Lola Staar Souvenir Boutique on the Boardwalk in Coney Island. Brooklyn's world famous Coney Island is a vastly popular tourist attraction for tourists, whether they're from Chicago or Brazil. The souvenirs here are burlesque inspired and perhaps more unusual than some of the other standard souvenir stores one might find in the city. Be sure to check out the selection of "New York Burlesque" T-shirts at Lola Staar.

3. Check out Canalberry Pharmacy on Mulberry Street downtown. Although Canalberry is a drugstore, there is a good selection of classic souvenirs sold here. There are magnets, T-shirts, keychains, New York City snow globes, pens and anything else you could possibly imagine. The best part is everything is cheap.

4. Visit Grand Slam Stores on Broadway in the Theater District. Located in the center of all that is crowded, hopping, bustling and touristy about New York City, Grand Slam is the ideal place to shop for New York City souvenirs. T-shirts, New York mugs, postcards, magnets, Yankee gear--you name it, you got it at Grand Slam. The selection is seemingly endless. The store is large and easy to get lost in but perfect for anything New York related.

5. Shop at Chinatown located in downtown Manhattan. On Grand Street and surrounding streets of Chinatown, there are lots of outdoor stalls selling New York City souvenirs for very cheap prices. T-shirts, mugs, keychains and everything else you could possibly ask for in a souvenir are all available here. Be sure to check out Chinatown for some great New York City deals.

Tips & Warnings

• Times Square in midtown Manhattan is full of tourist gift shops. Take a walk there if you dare (the crowds are unbelievable) and look at all of the souvenir shops available. Good luck!

[soccermom72]

on 11/5/2009 I found much better luck online too. When I got back So much easier than dealing with the crowds in times square. One place you may want to try is http://souvenirandgiftshop.com They were super nice and had very reasonable prices.

[nharkrader]

on 11/27/2008 I have shopped in Times Square before, but it's so much easier (and sometimes cheaper) to shop online. There's a great New York souvenir shop online at nycwebstore.com. You may want to check out this website for I Love NY stuff, NYPD, FDNY and other NYC things.