Shopping

As a major tourist destination, Copán Ruinas [1] has its share of souvenir shops, many with Guatemalan and Salvadoran as well as Honduran crafts, including junco palm goods, leather, ceramics, jade and wood sculptures, and the ever-present T-shirts and coffee.

The high-end shops at the Yat B’alam mini-shopping complex have unique pieces of Lencan pottery and stylish jewelry, as well as other goodies such as hand-carved candle holders and candles made by a women’s cooperative.

Algo Maya also has a good selection of well-made items, including San Rafael eco-sustainable coffee (head to the tiny coffee shop across the street for a brewed cup) and glass plates and trays made by a cooperative near Tegucigalpa [2].

Across from the Hotel Marina Copán [3] is another mini-shopping center, Casa Villamil, housing classy shops selling cigars, jade, silver jewelry, and handicrafts, as well as a coffee shop and gourmet deli (6:30 a.m.–10 p.m. daily).

On the road leading south out of town (past Hotel Popol-Nah [4]) is Yax Pasah, selling stone carvings in Mayan designs. If you’re looking for something bigger, head out of town toward Ostuman, where the Lara family has a wide variety of stone carvings available for sale right along the highway—and will even carve a full-size stela for you if it’s what you want.

An association of Honduran artisans manages a shop called Pabellón Maya, one block south of the Copán Archaeological Park [5], and there is an artisan mercado next door, although both have a fairly uninspired selection of crafts.