Maribor Shopping

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The farmers market in Maribor is great! It is located in a big area in the Lent, the stands are under some big awnings and they have a good selection of fruits, vegetables, fresh mushrooms and local crafts.
All the farmers pile up their products nicely so it is not just good tasting stuff, it also look good!

What to buy: We bought different kind of belly peppers, yellow carrots, some dry herbs and a wodden spoon hand carved by a local artisan.

The organic market takes place on fridays at the main square - Glavni trg from morning until 12 am or so. It is not really 'big' nor crowded and in fact numer of stalls and sellers vary - depends on season and whether there're other activites around.
This is good chance to buy fresh and healthy fruit and vegetable; also home made products such as herb teas, spreads, home baked breads and cakes.
All these product are certified organic, so don't need to doubt whether these are just some people trying to sell you just 'a little sprayed' food.

What to buy: Take healthy herbal teas which are hand picked from Slovenian soil - can be there any nicer yet simple gift? They come packed in small paper bags and are of different plants with medicinal properties, also used in traditional medicine.
Maybe now it is finally right time to buy dried fruits which come from local apples and pears, sometimes kaki.
Or why not seeds? These are of wheat, oat, buckwheat... to make delicious central european dishes. How about pumpkin seed from slovenian 'golica' (dark green colored make perfect pumpkin oil and yes, it's good gift too).
Maybe juices for their great amount of vitamins. Apple or grape juices are really nice when they're from 'real' fruits and you know you don't have to drink 'pesticide cocktail' and other suspicious additives.
Finally, home made jams and marmelade... honey products and true home made Slavic 'slivovica' from plum trees near Maribor.

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This market has vegetables and fruit, and inside the nearby building has cheese and meat products. There are also craft sellers there, especially basket makers, which seem to be a specialty of Slovenia.

What to buy: They have awesome peppers in the summer, huge ones, they call these paprika.
I took some home, and saved the seeds for next summer.
The items in the market are exceptional, not bruised or over ripe.
Check out the sunflower seeds, if you are from America, they are different here, bigger and more tasty.
Honey is also a specialty, of course.

What to pay: The prices are not lower just because these farmers raise their own products, just the products are better than you find in the store, usually.

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Behind the Judgement Tower in Lent, lies this market which is split into two halves. The first half, south of Koroska cesta, is mostly full of clothes stalls whilst the northern half features fruit and vegetable stalls. Up until the 2nd World War, the market used to be located in front of the Town Hall in Glavni trg.

Dont forget to ask for tax refund pper for every item that costs over 50 euros.
It is 20% of the total coast and it can be refunded in total amount back home or you can take less at the airport in the cash.

The picturesque outdoor food market is located in the heart of the city. it stretches from the Vodnik Square to the Round Tower on the Drava. Some of the nice small shops can be foun arround the market.

well, everything I wrote abuot Europark can refer to this center too.
I think in this one you can find more suvenire shops than in Europark. I bought a nice doll in Slovenian folk costume:)
I forgot to add that the toilets are nice and clean.

Europark is a big complex of shops, caffes and restaurants. It is a good choice to spend some time on the rainy day. Lot of different shops offer a variety of goods. When you get tired you can rest in one of the restorants for a coffee or the light snack.