Shopping and shops in Paris

You can tackle Paris'huge department stores, or there are endless little speciality shops tucked into nearly every district. Most shops close on Sundays and Mondays. The area around the Opéra is one of Paris' liveliest shopping district, where the managers still send hucksters out on to the street to demonstrate vegetable choppers.
Come and discover all the huge and famous stores in Paris!

 

Galeries Lafayettes, 40 Bd Haussmann, 9e A bit of Art Nouveau splendour has survived the current management. But better than anyone, they know what the Parisiennes like.

Au Printemps, 64 Bd Haussmann, 9e
On the whole, Printemps is a wee bit posher, stuffer and nearer the cutting edge of fashion for women's designer clothers and accessories. Good household and linen departments, and a good view from the café on the top floor.

The area around Place de la Madeleine is one of Paris' gourmet paradise, with famous restaurants such as Lucas Carton, and many of the city's finest food shops. You can find here good eatable souvenirs to bring back home. There is also a small flower market (Tues-Sun).

Ladurée, 16 Rue Royale, 8e and 75 Av des Champs-Elysées
Maker of heavenly chocolates, perfect for the greedy ones!

Au Nain Bleu, 408-10 Rue St-Honoré, 1er
Paris' oldest and most magical toy store. If you have some children, you should go there!

The Champs-Elysées is still the street to stroll, to see and be seen, with high-class designer shops and perfumeries. This is for sure a street that you shouldn't miss. This is the most known and famous avenue in the world!
Rue de Rivoli is a long, busy street, lined with imposing buildings, and arcades.

W.H. Smith, 248 Rue de Rivoli, 1er
Especially good for English-language magazines and books.

Louvre des Antiquaires, next to the Louvre, 1er
The poshest, biggest antiques centre and a great place for browsing for reading lovers.

Bazar de l'Hôtel de Ville, 52 Rue de Rivoli, 4e
BHV has been around since 1854 and lacks the pretensions of other department stores. A good bet for practical items not easily found: brake fluid, electric outlets and mixing bowls.

La Samaritaine, 19 Rue de la Monnaie, 1er
The most beautiful department store in Paris, with its Art Nouveau façade, skylight and balconies (in the old building) – though the present management thinks more like Woolworth's than Harrods. The café on its 10^th-floor terrace has one of the best of all view.

The Forum des Halles is a subterranean labyrinthine 'new town' of shops and fast food outlets. The streets around are full of shops and you will surely find everything you need here.

FNAC, a Paris institution – the city's biggest and fullest book chain (including some titles in English).

Although you'll have to save up your pocket money just to be able to afford a 'café au lait' in St-Germain, the bustling narrow streets, legendary cafés and trendy bookshops invite you to explore and tempt you to spend. The Latin Quarter is the district of publishers and bookshops.

Le Bon Marché, 24 Rue de Sèvres, 7e
The only department store on the Left Bank, but the grand-daddy of them all – its extraordinary food halls are a gourmet cornucopia.

Shakespeare and Co, 37 Rue de la Bûcherie, 5e
Just what a bookshop should be – a convivial treasure hunt, crammed full of inexpensive second-hand and new books in English.

The most ambitious restoration effort in paris has spruced up the elegant streets and old palaces of the Marais, ready for your inspection. The shops are small, exclusive and individual: antiques, jewellery, crafts, books and unusual objects that make it the perfect area for gift-hunting.

You will find the main department stores and shops in the 1st to 9th Paris districts. You can have a look to our hotels in Paris and do a search by district.