Prices can vary like the weather in the summer - so location can mean the difference between expensive and bargain - especially for clothing, shoes, arts and crafts, and souvenirs.

Barra Shopping is Rio's largest and most popular mall - located in the district of Barra da Tijuca, it is almost a small city in itself, complete with restaurants and movie theatres in the adjacent New York City centre - home to more restaurants, pubs, and even fitness clubs. It is undoubtedly the place to go for a shopping spree, with hundreds of stores spread across a 4km-long stretch, from high-street names to independently owned fashion and jewellery stores. Not far in the same neighbourhood, the new comer on the shopping scene is the posh and trendy Village Mall, displaying only the best of the best of Brazilian and international brands.