Peace Avenue
And the circus area are the main shopping areas.
State Department Store
The 5th floor of the State Department Store has a section with souvenir paintings, but prices are higher than in some of the smaller stores.
How to get cash
Tellers at the Golomt Bank can give up to USD500 per day cash advance on Mastercard and Visa.
The only ATM machine to accept CIRRUS cards is the one at the airport.
It is relatively easy to find an ATM with a VISA logo to withdraw cash. As long as your ATM, debit or credit card has the VISA logo, you can withdraw tögrög, the local currency. Other card types are also accepted, simply not as widely, for example, the machines in the central Post Office and main street will not accept foreign MasterCards although they bear the logo. The machines in Golomt Bank branches are more reliable. Also on the 2nd floor of the State Department Store you can find on ATM accepting foreign cards. The more expensive shops take credit cards, but almost everywhere else runs strictly on cash. Note that most credit card companies will pass on the 3% "foreign currency conversion fee" to you.
There are many exchange offices in the center along Peace Avenue to change your currency into tugrugs. One is on the ground floor of the State Department Store. Better rates are at the Exchange Center on the second floor of the Flower Center. The Flower Center is located on Peace Ave. one block west of the Post Office. At the corner with traffic lights between the Post Office and State Department Store. Large Hotels like the Ulaanbaatar Hotel one block east of Sükhbaatar Square will exchange money 24/7 at the reception, which may be your only option if you arrive very late in the day.
(AKA Black Market)
The Naran Tuul AKA Black Market, known to locals simply as zach Ð·Ð°Ñ , is the place to haggle over cheap clothes, toys, swords or soviet propaganda pins. Only take a minimum of cash with you in a money belt or inner jacket pocket and leave all valuables at your accommodation, as pickpockets are common here. It's a 10 minute bus or taxi ride from the city center. Don't expect a tourist market though. This is a huge open air market for locals to primarily buy clothing. Difficult to locate items of interest to tourists.
Librairie Papillon
If you want to find very high quality books about mongolia or the mongolian language in european languages french and english mostly this place has a very large selection. they are located on university ave, just past the main mongolian national university building. the atmosphere is very nice, and is almost like taking a little break from mongolia and entering france. they also have a large selection of european language classics if you would like reading material for your journey.