The market in Victoria is called the Sir Selwyn Selwyn-Clarke Market, but nobody calls it that. It is on Market Street, in the middle of the city, and it is not a museum: this is where the island shops.
What you will find
Fish at the front, on ice and in the sun: tuna, bonito, grouper, parrotfish, octopus. Next to it fruit and vegetables, bananas in several varieties, breadfruit, mango, chillies. And the stalls with cinnamon bark, nutmeg, pepper and vanilla pods, which are mostly what a visitor actually takes away at the end. Upstairs on the gallery fabrics, sarongs and souvenirs.
When you should come
Early. Between seven and ten the market is full, the fish is fresh and the light is good. By midday things are being packed up, in the afternoon only part of it is still there. Saturday is the biggest day, closed on Sundays.
Prices and photos
The prices for spices are tourist prices, and friendly haggling is part of it. For fish and vegetables there is no bargaining, everyone pays the same. Photography is fine, just ask the traders briefly anyway, most will nod and are pleased.
What is worth taking home
Vanilla pods and cinnamon travel well and still smell like holiday at home. Fish does not. If you are staying somewhere with a kitchen, the market is perfect: a piece of tuna, limes, chilli, done.
How to get there
On foot, if you are in Victoria. On our city tour the market is an early stop. On the island tour we stop in Victoria for photos. A proper market visit takes extra time, and we are happy to take it if you say so.
Close by
The Botanical Garden is ten minutes to the south, Mont Signal with a view over the city ten minutes to the west, Eden Island ten minutes to the east. Everything about the city itself is in our article about Victoria.
