Shopping

Shopping Estação (Av. Sete de Setembro 2775, Centro, tel. 41/2101-9000, www.shoppingestacao.com [1], 10 a.m.–10 p.m. Mon.–Sat., 2–8 p.m. Sun.) is built around Curitiba [2]’s original 19th-century railroad station. Apart from over 100 stores, it has bars, restaurants, movie theaters, and a trio of small museums devoted to the history of Paraná [3]’s railways, the Brazilian environment, and perfumes (featuring some great old TV commercials and lots of fragrance testing).

The Shopping Crystal Plaza (Rua Comendador Araújo 731, Batel, tel. 41/3332-2744, www.crystalplaza.com.br [4], 10 a.m.–10 p.m. Mon.–Sat., 2–8 p.m. Sun.) is Curitiba’s chic shopping, with upscale boutiques as well as restaurants and a cineplex.

Rua 24 Horas (entrance Rua Visconde de Nacar, Centro, tel. 41/3225-1732) is a small gallery of stores off Rua das Flores [5] where a few (but not all) stores are open 24 hours daily. Aside from making purchases, you can get a late night/early morning bite. It has been abandoned in recent times, but a renovation is pending.

For authentic Paranaense handicrafts, Arte Nossa (Alameda Dr. Murici 950, tel. 41/3234-1118, www.artenossa.pr.gov.br [6], 9 a.m.–6 p.m. Mon.–Fri.) sells everything from local indigenous art to hand-painted Ukrainian eggs. You can also find a good range of local arts and crafts, as well as food, at the animated Feira de Artesanato, which takes place in the Largo da Ordem and Praça Garibaldi on Sundays between 9 a.m. and 3 a.m.