Fashion and more
Paris is the fashion metropolis of Europe. Numerous designers live there and have their studios there. Regular fashion shows attract numerous visitors to Paris every year, because there not only are the trends for the coming year born, but the current haute couture is presented. Even for the average consumer there are many opportunities to snap up great fashion. In the famous Parisian department store Galeries Lafayette, for example, you can find designer clothing by Chanel, Armani or Gaultier. In the important Printemps Haussmann department store there are always current trends, and to this day it is regarded as a pioneer of Parisian fashion. There you should also try one of its eight different restaurants and cafés. Even hundreds of years ago Paris valued good shopping opportunities, which is why the first covered shopping arcades arose there, forerunners of today’s shopping centres. The Galerie Vivienne and Galerie Colbert near the Bourse, for example, are two nostalgic arcades from that period. For a shopping tour it is best to choose a hotel in central Paris, because on the magnificent Champs-Élysées you find numerous souvenir shops, shopping centres and also exquisite boutiques in the many side streets.
Weekly markets for gourmets
From the underground shopping centre Les Halles, which lies east of the Louvre and offers a huge range of goods on six floors, head up to one of the many weekly markets. They are found in almost every district of Paris and offer their delicious wares. There you can buy not only exotic fruit but above all local cheese and wine specialities. So you should definitely go there with a big appetite! Collectors of antiques are in good hands in the Marais district. There you find very many paintings and pieces of furniture from three centuries ago.
For bargain hunters
To snap up the real bargains you have to go to the designer outlet. La Vallée Village is about 40 minutes from Paris and you can get there quite comfortably by bus, the “Shopping Express”. The express bus picks visitors up at various stops and brings them comfortably to the gates of the huge outlet village. Once there, you can save up to 60% in the 900 shops and boutiques in 9 different little villages. If you buy especially much, you even get further discounts. Every bargain hunter’s heart will rejoice!