Lala Bazaar is Almora’s most famous traditional market, a dense ribbon of shops running along the ridge just below Mall Road and the Nanda Devi temple. The bazaar is packed with jewellery stores, Angora and woollen shops, tailors, utensil and hardware shops, tiny cafés and mithai outlets. Narrow stone-paved lanes and old-style wooden houses with carved balconies give the area a distinct old-Himalayan look. For locals, this is the everyday market for essentials; for tourists, it is the best place to buy Kumaoni shawls, pichoda, copper/brass items and local snacks while experiencing the colour and noise of a working hill town.
About this place
History & highlights
Tourism and local history sources describe Lala Bazaar as a 200-year-old market “sermonised by the kings”, meaning it developed during the rule of the Kumaoni Chand rulers and later grew under the British. Because Almora served as a key administrative centre, the bazaar grew into a commercial hub where people from remote valleys came to sell produce and buy goods. Many shops have been run by the same families for generations, passing down traditional crafts and trading networks. The proximity of Nanda Devi Temple has also given the market a ritual role, with processions and fairs spilling into its streets during Nanda Devi Mela. Even as modern shops and vehicles appear on the upper Mall Road, Lala Bazaar remains the historic commercial heart of Almora, anchoring the town’s identity.
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