Haggling at a market in Bali, or in any developing nation for that matter is a rite of passage any traveller must go through. But it is certainly not for faint of heart, and it’s certainly not for the generous.
But if you’re going to buy something from a market, regardless of how you feel about it, or how wealthy you are, haggling is an unavoidable part of the game. Haggling is expected and if you don’t participate, you just know you’ll be a trophy that the salesperson will tell all his mates about later.
I happen to know that it is expected because I was explicitly told this by a sales guy when I refused to do so. But I’ll get to that in a moment.
Even though I’ve travelled through my fair share of developing nation markets, it wasn’t until I visited Indonesia with my pal Little Grey Box who showed me the ropes. She’s the real deal when it comes to haggling with strangers in strange places; it’s a real spectacle.
My biggest laugh while haggling in Bali
My first hilarious moment came in the Seminyak Flea Market. I’ve walked away from many negotiations at a market because I didn’t want to pay the price they were asking or their original price was just absurd; this is generally par for the course. But never have I had a vendor walk away on me because my opening offer was absurd. This was a first for me. I was inquiring on a Tottenham Hotspur jersey. He opened at 350k rupiah, or about AUD$35. Now you have to bear in mind that this jersey was not even close to being genuine quality. I mean, you know it’s not genuine, but you expect it to be at least passable.
I promptly laughed at the guy and came up with my own absurd opening bid of about 50k (or about $5). The guy just said “thank you” and walked back to his post without another word. Suited me fine because I wasn’t going much higher.
My sorriest moment while haggling in Bali
A little later I went to another stall, still in Seminyak, a few blocks from the market and again enquired about a Spurs jersey. This shirt was of similar quality; parts on the shirt were faded, there were dots on the sponsor on the front, and the fabric used didn’t feel heaps nice either. I mean, it’s never going to be close to genuine, but I’d still like it to not be shithouse. I thought I could handle it the poor make for a cheapy shirt but that made it hard to negotiate when I’m finding these flaws as we’re going.
He started at 450k (about $45), which we both knew was ludicrous and laughable. He’s obviously fishing to see where I’d start but I started to walk away at that point. This became my signature move because it shows I don’t have time to mess around. He then actually explained to me that this is a bargaining process and we can negotiate.
So again, I opened at 50k, or about $5. I honestly wouldn’t have paid much more for the shirt. He went to 350k and 200k pretty quickly as he knew I wasn’t mucking around. But we still weren’t even close.
He went to 120k, then 100k and I started walking away because I started noticing more flaws and it got to the point where I simply didn’t want the shirt at any price. In this time I had gone from 50k to 70k and then reluctantly to 80k and went firm on 80. He stopped at 90 and I began to walk away again because I decided I genuinely didn’t want it anymore.
Even though it’s only $8, is it worth it if it’s still junk? I tried to picture situations when I’d wear it, especially since I do actually have a genuine one in my suitcase. He went to 85 and I stayed firm to 80. I walked away and he met me at 80 but I was already down the street. At this point I felt a bit bad because we had just found an agreed-upon price — and he was obviously desperate for the sale — but the moment was lost.
But I reckon if he got there quicker I would have bought it.
Getting my marching orders again
After lunch on our last day in Seminyak, I went shopping to try and fill up my suitcase with as much cheap crap as possible before our flight that night. I was only somewhat successful, buying a mere 2 shirts and one pair of sunglasses. I was also marched out of 2 shops for completely low balling them on counter offers. I was offended but not offended enough to not laugh while being sent out.
It just amazes me that they can’t see the irony.
In one shop, I asked for a price on a shirt and a salesguy gave me a price for 2 shirts, which was fine, but that price was like $40. Now I ain’t no idiot, I can buy knock-off shirts at home for less than that. At this point I carelessly tossed the shirts back on the stand and without even offering a counter I said, “that’s so ridiculous I’m not even going to bother”. Like I said, signature move, but I stand by that statement. As I turned to leave he quickly came back to me and pleaded with me to counter. So I think I started at like $5 or thereabouts. A low ball offer for sure, but it’s a starting point, he should know that. It’s a game. Upon receiving that offer he then asked me to leave and gently guided me by shoulders out of his store.
I couldn’t help but laugh at the ludicrous irony of what had just occurred.
My most frustrating market moment in Bali
The worst experience I had in a market was most certainly in Ubud. I’ve already stated how much I like markets, but when people get pushy I push back. I’ll get to that in a sec, but first, let’s discuss the actual market. The official name is “Ubud Traditional Art Market”. Ok, a few things here. How many traditional markets are filled with Bintang singlets and wooden cocks? (Not the bird). I would expect a traditional market to be one where locals might be expected to buy and trade items, rather than every store being clearly setup for tourists.
Secondly, how many art markets do you know that, well, same question as above. I don’t think many people find Bintang singlets and wooden dongs particularly artistic. (Of course, there are many other items like trinkets, backpacks, hats, etc, just using these as an example).
Ok, with all that off my chest lets get back to the point. The Ubud Traditional Art Market is very large, that’s good, it takes a bit of time to explore. Part of it is inside and in the upstairs part, the women stall holders were especially aggressive. Most stall holders will invite you to peruse their wares, this is normal, you just keep walking if you don’t want to. But for some reason every lady in this section was almost pushing me into their stall, tugging on my arm. Very uncomfortable. We left asap. Their marketing strategy needs a bit of work.
My best haggling moment in Bali
I’ll finish with a somewhat touching story from the markets in Tanah Lot Temple. Because it is such a huge tourist attraction I guess the local council feel they should allow some locals to cash in by having an absurd amount of markets just past the entry gate. I had a wander, such is my weakness, and came to a stall that had hanging some backpacks with fun Balinese patterns on them. I asked the lady how much, expecting the usual ludicrous response. 80,000 was the response. This actually seemed quite reasonable for an actual backpack; I was taken slightly aback.
I felt like $8 was a fair price but I wanted to shop around. So then, in full genuineness (and not a negotiation tactic, I can’t stress this enough), I said “I’m going to look at some other bags to see what else is around”. (Remember, we’ve been over this, there was no shortage of competition). Quick as a flash the lady said “Ok how about 50,000rp”, or about AU$5. Now this was an offer I could not refuse. The bag was worth $5, hell, it was probably even worth $10 to me, and I liked the design. Screw it, I’ll just get it. Even if I found another bag liked more, I figured I could just buy that one too.
My best haggling tips
They’ll always start ludicrously high, so you start ludicrously low. We’ve been over this. If they laugh you out of the store, it was just not meant to be.
Never ask a price until you are absolutely certain that you want it. As we saw, I made this mistake and for the sake of $8, it made me feel like a crap person.
If you are interested in multiple items, mention that and ask for a better deal. In another instance (geez did I do anything BUT go to markets in Seminyak??) we bought 2 pairs of shoes and 2 shirts and were able to negotiate a better price for the total, even though we’d already agreed on a price for the first 2 items.
Just because they put it in a bag does not mean the sale is final. This is a tactic they use to try and quicken the deal or put some pressure on. Similarly, don’t feel bad or pressured if they unpack a new stack of shirts just so you can try one on. They would be opening this at some point anyway, it’s not big deal.
Always play it cool. And I mean this from the time you enter the store to when you begin haggling. If you let on that you are desperate for an item they’ll know they’ve got you. But if it seems like you’re just as happy without it then they’ll keep coming down. Just like the second guy and the Spurs jersey. He knew I wasn’t sold so even though I honestly didn’t think I’d get him lower than 90k, he came down twice. I also like to do a full lap of the store before settling on something to inquire on price. You never know what you else you might find, and can usually get a better deal if you buy more items.
Just do it. At the end of the day, if you want it and you’ve come to what seems like an actual fair price, don’t fight for that extra dollar. I know they are not a charity case, but it probably means more to them than to you anyway so just let them have it.
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