Second Hand Stores in Bolivia
Thrift shops are a great solution for the poor backpacker who is seeking for something new (without holes…) on a tight budget. Bolivia is a great place for cheap second hand cloths: they are called Americanos, as many of the items sold are originally american Goodwill / Salvation Army stores. You can find anything, from hats to belts and even swimsuits and bags. You can find known brands and good quality stuff (though we couldn’t find any good hiking equipment). Prices very, but are around 3-20BOB for a T-shirt, for example.
In many cities and towns in Bolivia, there is a “thrift store street” where a few second hand stores are gathered together. In this article, we’ll mention the thrift store hot spots we discovered.
Second hand stores in Cochabamba
Cochabamba had really good options and a lot of competition that promises good prices (uniqlo overshirt for 10 BOB!). Many stores are located near Av. Aroma, around la Cancha, south america’s largest market (we read it somewhere. Though we are not sure it’s true – this market is huge).
- For women clothing – Calle San Martin / 25 de Mayo
- For men clothing – Calle Estean Erza
- For shoes – Cerro San Carlos (near Templo San Carlos) – see here a good video (in spanish) on how to arrive there.
Another area – Av. España between Equador and Colombia (thanks Tamar & Kobi!)
Second hand stores in Sucre
2 hotspots we found:
- Ravelo st. – left from the market direction park Bolivar (eat a yummy cuñape or sonso while you are around – here)
- Mercado Campasino – 30 min or a short bus from the center. We noticed it on the way to the Maragua Crater hike – the area was a bit dodgier than the center of Sucre.
Second hand stores in Samaipata
Small Samaipata has a few stores located around the old market in Arenales and Acre street.
Second hand stores in La Paz
We heard el alto market (Thursdays and Sundays) is a good place for second hand (or any type of) shopping, but beware of your belongings as pick-pocketing there is very common.
Another spot in the center is around San Francisco (again thanks Tamar!)
Second hand stores in Rurrenabaque
Rurre is for some reason a hub for secondhand shopping and stores can be found in:
- Sunday Feria along the river bank
- Calle Santa Cruz (all week long)
Before buying long shirts for the jungle, check out with your agency – they might have some to lent you (here is more about Rurre in general).
Second hand market in Oruro
We didn’t experience this place ourselves, but heard that “La Kantuta” fair (Tuesdays and Fridays) is the best place to find second hand / americanos in town.
Something is not accurate? found a great thrift shop area we didn’t know about? please share with us so we can share with fellow travelers!
Last tip: if you search in youtube or Tiktok the keywords “ropa americana” + city name, you can find some videos of people explaining you how to get directly to their store.
