Trip to Divisoria: Tips, Tricks, Hacks

It's that time of the year again when all roads lead to Divisoria, a shopping mecca in Manila, Philippines. For most, it's the place to go when you need budget-friendly gifts for inaanaks and Christmas decors. Most teachers and their families go to Divisoria to purchase items for the class Christmas party loot bags and prizes.

Here are some tips, tricks and hacks we have gathered from several trips to Divisoria over the years.

eco bags

• Bring an eco bag. Lots to put all your accumulated purchases. You can buy eco bags from stalls and street vendors there though.
• Go when it's not raining even if you plan on shopping only at the malls. Streets leading to the malls can get muddy.
• Wear comfy rubber shoes or closed-toe shoes to protect your feet not only from dirt but from getting trampled on.
• Bring water if you are okay lugging a bottle around. Carrying lots is a challenge while navigating narrow hallways and crowded streets. Also when eating, you are better off purchasing drinks from Puregold at the basement of 999. Unless you are getting value meals at well known QSRs like Jollibee, drinks at the stalls in the food court are wallet killers. P50 for 500ml Coke, what?!
• If food court dining is your thing (Try the stalls that offer Chinese cuisine at 999 and 168. We recommend the hand-pulled noodles at 999.), there are food courts at the second floor of Tutuban Center, third floor of 999 Mall, third floor of the main mall of 168, fourth floor of Lucky Chinatown, fourth floor of Divisoria Mall.
• We usually withdraw from the ATMs of Lucky Chinatown. There are also ATMs at the third floor of  the main 168 mall. 
•  I'm not sure what time the malls in Divisoria open but we were there once at 9AM and they're already doing business. Malls and stand alone stores close at 6PM. From then onwards, you've got the night market along Recto and around Tutuban Shopping Center. Most stalls at the night market sell clothes and footwear. I was once able to score a dress for P200 at a stall near the corner of Tutuban Center which I couldn't haggle lower than P250 at a store in 168. I was also able to score a cardigan for P35 just because there's dirt (which I was able to wash off) on one of the sleeves. I didn't even have to haggle for it and it was not even ukay-ukay or second hand clothes as there were other colors available. Note that there are stores in the malls that sell ukay-ukay.
•  Most stores do not issue a receipt. And unless you are a store's suki, stores have a no return, no exchange policy.
• For K-pop fans, there's a stall at the ground floor of 168 mall annex that carries K-pop merchandise. 
• For sci-fi fans, there's also a  stall at the ground floor of 168 mall, first hallway to the left that sells action figures among other  sci-fi merchs.

floral pens

When possible, check your purchases for defects before leaving the store. Ask the sales personnel that you would like to check your purchases first before having them placed in plastic bags. The flower pens above came in a plastic box which I didn't bother opening, hence I didn't notice that one was missing a flower.

pens with invisible ink

There are items though that are sealed so you wouldn't be able to check if they work. Like the invisible pens above. (Writes using invisible ink. Shine the torch on what you've written to make it visible.) Buy at your own risk. All the pens above worked but I've bought a dozen light-up whirlybirds before with two not working.

cute pencils

If you are able to, roam around. Do not buy from the first store or vendor you see. Compare prices.

squishy flashing balls look even great in the night sky

Usually, stores that are in hallways and floors with lesser foot traffic have cheaper goods. Stores that are not in the popular malls often have cheaper goods as well.

bracelets made of thread

It's cheaper to buy in bulk from the stores in the malls (168, 999, 11/88, Tutuban Center, New Divisoria Mall). Ask the seller how many items you need to buy for you qualify for the whole sale price. However, some sellers sometimes won't let you choose designs or colors. Or the items (like hair clips, combs, face towels) are already packed by the dozen, with some packs already  sealed. Sometimes, there are stores that do not sell small items by piece. Note that street vendors get their wares from the stalls. You can choose the design or color you want but it will cost more. For instance, we got a dozen cat ear headbands for less than P15 a piece from a stall but needed 2 more since there were 14 girls in the class. We decided to just get another dozen after we found out that the headbands were being sold at P35 a piece by street vendors.

plush fruit pouches

For loot bags and prizes, when it gets too crowded or when we're pressed for time, we usually just purchase from this small stall at the Tutuban Center (near the escalators outside) which sells predominantly hair accessories. It also sells combs, pouches like the ones above and some school supplies like colored pens and sets (pencil, eraser, ruler, sharpener). The items have price tags so you don't have to keep asking the store personnel. It doesn't get as crowded as the bigger hair accessories store beside it but for me, if the difference is just a few pesos, I'd go for convenience. Also, the bigger hair accessories store has a minimum purchase requirement of P500 I think.

We'd also go to the second level of 11/88 mall, a mall connected to Lucky Chinatown. There you'd find several stores which sell candies and cheap small toys for loot bags. These are the toys which you would often see at sari-sari stores: pogs, whistles, tops, jackstones, yoyos, etc. But when it ain't crowded or raining, we'd troop to the basement of (cheapest was at this stall to left at the basement entrance along De Santos St.) New Divisoria Mall and its surrounding streets since it's cheaper there and there's more variety.

One of  the carts/street vendors I often check when we go to Divisoria is parked near the McDonald's on Juan Luna St. They carry wooden bead necklaces at P10 to P35 and bracelets and earrings at just P10.

For gift wrappers, we would go to this vendor along Tabora, left side coming from Divisoria Mall. Her wrappers are displayed last year on a cart, this year on tables. They're cheaper than the ones sold by other street vendors. Yes, she sells them by the dozen but you can choose three designs. At some stalls in the malls and along Sta Elena street, wrappers may be as cheap but you can only choose one design for a dozen.

Safety Tips:

• Don't bring kids. Imagine if there's a stampede. If bringing kids, stay away from the crowds.
• Bring a shopping buddy to help you carry your purchases, for second opinion and to make shopping more fun. Also for safety reasons.
• Make sure that you are handing your payment to the store owner/keeper/personnel or tindera. There have been cases wherein thieves have made off with buyers' payments after pretending to be working for stores.
• Keep an eye on your belongings. Keep your bags in front of you. Some pickpockets would even slash  bags to get your valuables.
• Carry smaller bills. Street vendors usually don't have enough change and there have been instances wherein a vendor would insist that you've handed a bill lower than the bill you've really given them. There have been news reports of fake bills, usually being paid at stores. Sometimes, the sales personnel are unable to tell their authenticity and could pass off the bill to you as change.
•  I know that there are those that benefit from the sidecars plying the area. However I could only share bad experiences with regards to them. Most of the drivers do not care if they ran anyone over. There was also a time when my sister-in-law rode a sidecar with her sister. Upon reaching the street where they would take a jeepney, the driver demanded they pay him P200, 4x more than what they have agreed upon. They gave in because other sidecar drivers have converged on them and they feared for their safety.

For a clear map of Divisoria, visit  http://www.taralets.com/2012/10/divisoria-mall-tour.html
All the goodies in the pics above were purchased from Divisoria at one time or another. Each item, except for the eco bags which were at 3 for P100, is priced below P15 or just a little over a quarter.