🛍️ Haiti: souvenirs
Haitian art is the Caribbean's most celebrated - metal drums become sculpture, sequins become flags, and the galleries of Port-au-Prince and Jacmel sell it at source. Here is what travellers bring home from Haiti, where the good versions live, and the export questions worth a look - alongside our 53 written places.
🛒 The classic buys
Fer decoupe (cut-metal art)
Oil drums flattened and chiselled into openwork scenes - the village of Croix-des-Bouquets is the world centre; buy from the ateliers.
Sequined drapo (flags)
Dazzling beaded banners - collectors' pieces made by named artists; galleries document the maker.
Paintings
The naive-school tradition that filled the world's museums - galleries in Petion-Ville and Jacmel sell originals across every budget.
Papier-mache from Jacmel
Carnival masks and bright animals - Jacmel's workshops make them year-round.
Rhum Barbancourt
The island's celebrated rum - the 8-year Reserve is the classic bottle to carry home.
Vetiver products
Haiti supplies much of the world's vetiver oil - soaps and scents from local makers.
⚠️ Check before you buy
- Art of significant age or importance may need export paperwork - galleries handle it; keep receipts.
- Rum counts against allowances - the Reserve tempts people into extra bottles.
✗ Better left behind
- Mass-produced 'Haitian' art imported for cruise stops - the ateliers sign their work.
- Turtle-shell and coral items - protected.
Markets shift, workshops close and open, and the best souvenir is still the one with a story you were there for. Buy from makers where you can, keep receipts for anything substantial, and when a deal feels too good, it usually is.