Nanning Chaoyang Pedestrian Street (Chao Yang Lu)

Chaoyang Pedestrian Street, centered on Chaoyang Square near the Nanning railway station area, is the city's older and more budget-oriented shopping district, distinct from the newer upscale malls that have opened in the CBD and Wuxiang New District. The street mixes long-standing department stores with rows of small gold and silver accessory outlets, mid-priced clothing shops, shoe stores, and street food lanes selling Nanning-style laoyou noodles and grilled skewers. Goods here are aimed squarely at local residents and value-conscious shoppers rather than tourists, so the mix runs to everyday clothing, gold jewelry sold by weight, and household goods rather than crafts or souvenirs; vendors in the gold and jewelry outlets are generally licensed dealers pricing by the day's gold rate, while the clothing stalls carry a broad range from cheap fast fashion to mid-tier domestic brands. Bargaining is common at independent clothing and accessory stalls but not at the department stores or established gold shops, which post fixed prices tied to gold weight and purity. Mobile payment via WeChat Pay and Alipay dominates transactions, with cash as a backup; foreign cards are not commonly usable at small stalls. There is no tax-refund scheme here, as the area serves a domestic market. The street and surrounding square draw a steady crowd throughout the day, intensifying in the evening when the street food lanes fill up, and it tends to be noticeably less polished and more crowded with local shoppers than Nanning's newer retail districts. Food options are plentiful and inexpensive, concentrated along the side lanes off the main pedestrian strip. The layout centers on Chaoyang Square itself, with the pedestrian street extending from the square toward the railway station, and the department stores and larger retail anchors sit closest to the square while smaller stalls and food vendors line the connecting lanes.