Must-see shopping in Europe

  • Ka De We department store

    KaDeWe

    Schöneberg

    Continental Europe's largest department store is a temple to retail and gourmet food.

  • Shakespeare and Co bookshop.

    Shakespeare & Company

    Latin Quarter

    Enchanting nooks and crannies overflow with new and secondhand English-language books. The original shop (12 rue l’Odéon, 6e; closed by the Nazis in 1941)…

  • Galeries Lafayette Department Store

    Galeries Lafayette

    Paris

    Grande-dame department store Galeries Lafayette is spread across the main store (its magnificent neo-byzantine stained-glass dome dates from 1912), its…

  • Walking streets of Florence old town. View of "Benheart" shop entrance.

    Benheart

    Duomo & Piazza della Signoria

    This flagship store of local superstar Ben, a Florentine-based fashion designer who set up the business with schoolmate Matteo after undergoing a heart…

  • Smoked sausage meat hanging at food stall at Nagycsarnok Market.

    Nagycsarnok

    Budapest

    Completed in 1897, this is Budapest's biggest market, though it has become a tourist magnet since its renovation for the millecentenary celebrations in…

  • Meat section at deli Peck, Via Spadari 9.

    Peck

    Duomo & San Babila

    Milan's historic deli is a bastion of the city's culinary heritage, with the huge ground floor turning out a colourful cornucopia of fabulous foods. It…

  • Bouquinistes

    Paris

    With some 3km of forest-green boxes lining the Seine – containing over 300,000 secondhand (and often out-of-print) books, rare magazines, postcards and…

  • Eataly Torino Lingotto

    Turin

    The global Slow Food phenomenon began here in Lingotto. Set in a vast converted factory, the Eataly mothership houses a staggering array of sustainable…

  • Lorenzo Villoresi

    Boboli & San Miniato al Monte

    Artisanal perfumes, bodycare products, scented candles and stones, essential oils and room fragrances crafted by Florentine perfumer Lorenzo Villoresi…

  • Marché aux Puces de St-Ouen

    Montmartre & Northern Paris

    Spanning nine hectares, this vast flea market was founded in 1870 and is said to be Europe’s largest. Over 2000 stalls are grouped into 15 marchés …

  • Le Bonbon au Palais

    Latin Quarter

    Kids and kids-at-heart will adore this sugar-fuelled tour de France. The school-geography-themed boutique stocks rainbows of artisanal sweets from around…

  • Jennifer's Hamam

    Sultanahmet

    Owned by Canadian Jennifer Gaudet, this shop stocks top-quality towels, peştemals (traditional bath wraps) and robes for both adults and children. All are…

  • Merci

    Le Marais, Ménilmontant & Belleville

    A Fiat Cinquecento marks the entrance to this unique concept store, which donates all its profits to a children’s charity in Madagascar. Shop for fashion,…

  • A Vida Portuguesa

    Bairro Alto, Chiado & Cais do Sodré

    A flashback to the late 19th century with its high ceilings and polished cabinets, this former warehouse and perfume factory lures nostalgics with its all…

  • Cave du Félibrige

    Aix-en-Provence

    Run by committed oenophiles Francois and Vincent, this trove of rare and delightful bottles aims to cover the many French styles and terroirs, paying…

  • LN Mattei

    Bastia

    Run by Bastia’s famous distillery, this iconic boutique has the look and feel of a grocer from the 1900s. The enticing array of bottles naturally includes…

  • La Grande Épicerie de Paris

    St-Germain & Les Invalides

    The magnificent food hall of department store Le Bon Marché sells 30,000 rare and/or luxury gourmet products, including 60 different types of bread baked…

  • Le Bon Marché

    St-Germain & Les Invalides

    Built by Gustave Eiffel as Paris’ first department store in 1852, this is the epitome of style, with a superb concentration of men’s and women’s fashions,…

  • Svenskt Tenn

    Stockholm

    As much a museum of design as an actual shop, this iconic store is home to the signature fabrics and furniture of Josef Frank and his contemporaries…

  • Heimatgold

    Styria

    A wonderful place to stock up on picnic supplies, self-catering needs or take-home gourmet gifts, Heimatgold champions the products of local farmers, from…

  • Gabriele

    Brussels

    For amazing vintage finds, try eccentric, elegant Gabriele. There’s a gorgeous jumble of cocktail dresses, hats, Chinese shawls and accessories; only…

  • Hands making shoes. Shoemaker

    Negen Straatjes

    Western Canal Ring

    In a city packed with countless shopping opportunities, each seemingly more alluring than the last, the Negen Straatjes represent the very densest…

  • Kurazh Bazar

    Kyiv

    Kurazh Bazar is a fantastic monthly weekend flea market on Kyiv's left (east) bank. You'll find some 400 vendors selling all manner of new and used…

  •  Harrods store at night

    Harrods

    Kensington & Hyde Park

    Garish and stylish in equal measure, perennially crowded Harrods is an obligatory stop for visitors, from the cash-strapped to the big spenders. The stock…

  • John Sandoe Books

    Kensington & Hyde Park

    Steeped in literary charm and a perfect antidote to impersonal book superstores, this three-storey bookshop in an 18th-century premises inhabits its own…

  • Moomin mugs by Arabia

    Arabiakeskus

    Helsinki

    Arabia refers to a whole district where the legendary Finnish ceramics company has manufactured its products since 1873. The complex, 5km north of…

  • Lvivska Maysternya Shokoladu

    Lviv

    A chocoholic's dream, nothing quite prepares you for this branch of Lviv's most famous franchise export. Over several floors of a seemingly endlessly…

  • Makadam

    Belgrade

    Make your way to Makadam across the original Turkish cobblestones of Kosančićev venac, a lovely slice of old Belgrade. The concept store only sells…

  • Uashmama, shop front

    Uashmama

    Oltrarno

    Modern craftsmanship shines out of this loveable boutique, the pride and joy of the Marconi family, whose washable paper bags – tanned just like leather…

  • Fashion at Corso Como 10 (name as well as address).

    10 Corso Como

    Porta Garibaldi & Isola

    This might be the world's most hyped 'concept shop', but Carla Sozzani's selection of desirable things (Maison Margiela jewellery, Gucci bathers, Yayoi…

  • Parfimerija Sava

    Belgrade

    With its old-fashioned interior, gorgeous vintage bottles and delectable scents wafting throughout, this traditional perfumery is a doorway into the…

  • Aquaflor shop in Florence

    Aquaflor

    Santa Croce

    This elegant Santa Croce perfumery in a vaulted 15th-century palazzo exudes romance and exoticism. Artisanal scents are crafted here with tremendous care…

  • The Eataly shop front

    Eataly

    Porta Garibaldi & Isola

    A cult destination dedicated to Italian gastronomy, this three-level mega-emporium showcases the best locally sourced products, including artisanal gelato…

  • Vila Viniteca is a Corner wine & deli store offering regional & international vino, meats, cheeses & gourmet food.

    Vila Viniteca

    La Ribera

    One of Barcelona's best wine stores (and there are a few…), Vila Viniteca has been hunting down the finest local and imported wines since 1932. There are…

  • Athens, Greece - 3 March 2023 - People buying fish at the local Varvakios Central Municipal Market in Athens
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    Varvakios Agora

    Athens

    A wonderful sight in its own right, this huge old wrought-iron market hall is dedicated to fish and meat, especially row upon row of lamb carcasses,…

  • 66 North

    66° North

    Laugavegur & Skólavörðustígur

    Iceland’s premier outdoor-clothing company began by making all-weather wear for Arctic fishermen. This metamorphosed into costly, fashionable streetwear:…

  • Stilleben

    Copenhagen

    Owned by Danish Design School graduates Ditte Reckweg and Jelena Schou Nordentoft, Stilleben stocks a bewitching range of contemporary ceramic, glassware,…

  • Stilleben

    Copenhagen

    One of Copenhagen's top design stores, Stilleben is famed for its graphic prints, not to mention its stock of unique objects from mostly smaller-scale…

  • Feelin' Venice gift shop

    Feelin' Venice

    Venice

    Tired of bemoaning the increasing number of tatty souvenir shops, Venetians Mattia and Filippo decided to open a design-led alternative featuring the work…