Shopping in Spain
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Gamaya
A breath of fresh laid-back Ibiza air runs through this new ladies’ wear store tucked away on a street that has gone from near abandonment in the 1990s to become a delightful shopping lane today. The lady who runs this shop designs the breezy summer dresses, pants-and-tops combinations and prints herself.
reviewed
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Los Bebés de Chamberí
This small shop showcases that wonderful individuality of Spanish children’s clothes; you’ll leave laden with bags for your own kids and for friends back home.
reviewed
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Mercat de la Boqueria
Shop in the Mercat de la Boqueria, one of the world’s great produce markets, and complement with any other necessities from a local supermarket.
reviewed
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El Rastro
El Rastro, Europe’s largest flea market, is a Madrid institution. It’s been an open-air market for half a millennium.
The madness begins at Plaza de Cascorro and the maze of streets branching off it. Cheap clothes, luggage, antiques, old photos of Madrid, old flamenco records, faux designer purses, grungy T-shirts, household goods and electronics are the main fare, but for every 10 pieces of junk, there’s a real gem waiting to be found.
A word of warning: pickpockets love El Rastro as much as everyone else.
reviewed
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Coquette
With its spare, cut back and designer look, this fashion is automatically attractive in its own right. Women will love to browse through casual, feminine wear by such designers as Tsunoda, Vanessa Bruno, Chloé Baño and Hoss Intropia. To complement the clothes there are bags, footwear and costume jewellery. The store is a leading light on a street replete with fashion outlets.
reviewed
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Caelum
Centuries of heavenly gastronomic tradition from across Spain are concentrated in this exquisite medieval space in the heart of the city. Sweets (such as the irresistible marzipan from Toledo) made by nuns in convents across the country make their way to this den of delicacies. You can sip on a tea down in the medieval basement from 3.30pm to closing time, Tuesday to Sunday.
reviewed
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El Corte Inglés
In the great tradition of department stores the world over, there’s everything you need here from food and furniture to clothes, appliances, toiletries, electronics, books and music. Although you’ll pay extra for the convenience of one-stop shopping, the after-sales service is better than most.
reviewed
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Iñaki Sampedro
Arguably Spain’s most colourful and innovative collection of hand-painted handbags and other accessories are available at this wonderful little shop. They’re not cheap, but are unmistakably Spanish and superstylish.
reviewed
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Xampany
Since 1981, this ‘Cathedral of Cava’ has been a veritable Aladdin’s cave of cava, with bottles of the stuff crammed high and into every possible chaotic corner of this dimly lit locale.
reviewed
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Nu Sabates
A couple of modern-day Catalan cobblers have put together some original handmade leather shoes (and a handful of bags and other leather items) in their stylishly renovated locale.
reviewed
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FNAC
This four-storey megastore has a terrific range of CDs, DVDs, electronics and books; English-language books are available on the 3rd floor.
reviewed
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Mercado Central
The Plaza de Topete adjoins the large, animated Mercado Central, built in 1837, the oldest covered market in Spain.
reviewed
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El Corte Inglés
For general shopping, trendy clothes and shoes, try pedestrianised El Corte Inglés.
reviewed
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Zara
Popular men’s, women’s and kids’ wear with a sideline in homewares.
reviewed
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Mercantic
Antique collectors could set aside a Sunday morning for a trip to Mercantic, a collection of gaily painted timber huts occupied by antique and bric-a-brac dealers selling everything from restored furniture to dusty old telephones. The first Sunday of the month is delivery day, when the stall-holders take delivery of a new wave of old stuff. The permanent market, with some 80 stall holders, is open during the week too (9.30am to 8pm Tuesday to Saturday, 9.30am to 3pm Sunday). There’s also an activities and play area for children. A date to watch is the Antiquaris Barcelona antiques fair usually held between late March and the first week of April.
reviewed
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Mercat de Santa Caterina
A 19th-century market, built on the site of a 15th-century monastery, made way in 2005 for this original, colourful version designed by the adventurous Catalan architect Enric Miralles. The outstanding element is the bright, ceramic-covered, wavy roof – a splash of pastel loopiness. Out the back, remnants of the monastery, known as the Espai Santa Caterina, uncovered during excavations, are on public show with explanatory panels. Heading towards the waterfront along Via Laietana, the market is off to the left on Avinguda de Francesc Cambó.
reviewed
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Portal de l’Àngel
This is one of the annual markets that is worth looking out for. For 10 days in mid-May (dates change each year), stands set up in the Portal de l’Àngel for the Fira del Llibre Antic (Antique Book Fair). The same spot hosts the Fira de Terrissa (Pottery Fair), which lasts for five days starting around 20 September, coinciding with the Festes de la Mercè and the similar Fira de Ceràmica Creativa (Ceramicists Fair), around 23 December to 5 January.
reviewed
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Zara
Fashion fans may want to make the pilgrimage to the original Zara, in A Coruña’s main shopping area at the southwest end of the isthmus. Opened in 1975, it today looks much like the other 1400 Zara shops around the world. This was the small beginning for Galician Amancio Ortega’s mega-successful Inditex group, which has since launched Pull&Bear, Bershka, Stradivarius and other international brands but still has its headquarters in Arteixo on A Coruña’s outskirts.
reviewed
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Jordi Labanda Store
Uruguay-born and Barcelona-raised cartoonist Jordi Labanda made a name for himself with his colourful pointed portraits of contemporary 30-somethings in top-flight magazines and newspapers, and murals in the Sandwich & Friends fastish food chain. Now he also does original women’s clothes, in which he has toned down the colours but remains playful in design. In all his work there is an element of biting social commentary, so these are thinking-women’s clothes!
reviewed
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Gil
The exquisitely fringed and embroidered mantones and mantoncillos (traditional Spanish shawls worn by women on grand occasions) and delicate mantillas (Spanish veils) are stunning and uniquely Spanish gifts. Gil also sells abanicos (Spanish fans). Inside this dark shop, dating back to 1880, the sales clerks still wait behind a long counter to attend to you; the service hasn’t changed in years and that’s no bad thing.
reviewed
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Plaisir Gourmet
This is not your ordinary delicatessen. With products from every corner of the globe, you’ll find all manner of things that you didn’t know existed (who knew that essence of cotton from Mali could be used in cooking?) or can’t find anywhere else in Madrid. At noon on Saturday, it has tastings of wine and cheese, a nod to the shop’s French owners. In 2008 this stylish place won second prize for Madrid’s best deli.
reviewed
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Mercat de la Llibertat
Barcelona is bursting with bustling markets, which for the most part are tourist-free: try Mercat de la Llibertat. Markets generally open from Monday to Saturday from around 8am to 8pm (although some close around 2pm on Saturday). They are all at their animated best in the morning.La Boqueria is not the only market in Barcelona. Try the Mercat de la Llibertat open from Monday to Saturday from around 8am to 8pm.
reviewed
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La Botiga del Barça
For some, football is the meaning of life. If you fall into that category, your idea of shopping heaven may well be this store at the football museum next to Camp Nou stadium. Here you will find shirts, key rings, footballs – pretty much anything you can think of, all featuring the famous red and blue colours. It has branches all over town, including at Maremàgnum and Carrer de Jaume I 18.
reviewed
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Papabubble
It feels like a step into another era in this candy store, where they make up pots of rainbow-coloured boiled lollies, just like some of us remember from corner-store days as kids. Watch the sticky sweets being made before your eyes. For all its apparent timelessness, this is a relatively new venture. Started by Australians in Barcelona, this sweet reminiscence now has shops in Amsterdam, New York, Seoul, Taipei and Tokyo.
reviewed
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Lunic
The eye is unfailingly attracted to this corner shop, with its lipstick-red walls and sanded white furniture. All about hangs an eclectic collection of handbags, from glaring red leather to more modest hues, with broad appeal. Daring ladies’ hats offer further inspiration. Those in search of light summer dresses, in a seemingly limitless variety of colours but mostly straightforward in style, have come to the right place.
reviewed
