Beijing Curio City is a four-story complex hosting dozens of stores where you can buy souvenirs. The market specializes in antique wooden furniture, antique pottery, Chinese art, bone carvings, intricate carpets, antique timepieces, pearls and jade. If you have the eye for what's precious and what's not, then this is your place. You should certainly bargain, but do it with a smile. (Payment options vary by vendor.)

Guang Han Tang is an antiques store for fine Chinese hardwood furiture, jewelry and art. Among the most prized items are Qing dynasty mahoganay canopy beds and Ming dynasty rosewood furnishings. Emerald and jade jewelry, Chinese oil paintings and bronze sculptures are all on display. Collectors' items are expensive but timeless. Exporting / shipping arranged.

Southwest of Tiananmen Square, Liulichang Street was once a flourishing cultural center during the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911) where scholars, painters and calligraphers gathered to exchange ideas, compose poetry, write books and paint pictures. Nowadays you can enjoy a nice walk along this charming part of the city center and browse the (mostly fake) antique stores, artists' shops and curios, perhaps even purchase an old scroll of Chinese calligraphy.

CHAOYANG DISTRICT. The Great Flea Market of China ­ this is the place to get in among the crowds and haggle. Panjiayuan Market has over 3000 stalls, selling everything from Tibetan carpets to porcelain tea sets to medicinal herbs to pirated DVDs. It's especially busy at weekends, but certain zones, such as the Arts and Crafts Warehouse Zone are open only on Saturday and Sunday.