Paris
Department Stores
Shopping Centres
Fashion - Haute Couture
Fashion - Boutiques and Accessories
High-Class Jewellers
Miscellaneous Gifts
Art, Antiques and Handicrafts
Books, CDs, Videotapes and Hi Fi
Children's Shops
Food and Wines
Markets
Meaux
Fontainebleau
Barbizon(Drive in and Around the Forêt de Fontainebleau)
Soisy-sur-Ecole
Saint-Germain-en-Laye
Versailles
Duty-Free Shopping Residents of non-EU countries are entitled to a VAT refund (about 14 per cent) if they spend over 1,200 Metro: in the same shop. Export receipts issued by shopkeepers must be presented on the day of departure to the Customs Officer, who may wish to see the goods. The refund will be credited within 30 days. More information from: Cashback France SA, Address: 68 rue de Paris, 93804 Epinay-sur-Seine Cédex, Phone: 01 48 27 24 54
Fashion Most top fashion houses are located in the Concorde/Champs-Elysées area, in particular, avenue Montaigne, avenue Marigny and rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré. Fashion boutiques selling ready-to-wear designer clothes are to be found in place des Victoires, in the Marais district (rue des Francs-Bourgeois) in the Palais-Royal area (rue Saint-Honoré), and in and around Saint-Germain-des-Prés (rue Saint-Sulpice, rue Bonaparte, rue de Rennes, rue de Sèvres and rue de Grenelle).
Shopping Arcades A number of the covered shopping arcades built at the end of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th centuries still survive, retaining their old-world charm. Lined with boutiques and tea-rooms, they offer a moment's respite from the city's bustle. The most attractively decorated are the Galerie Vivienne, Galerie Colbert and Galerie Véro-Dodat, near the Palais-Royal. Others, such as the Passage Jouffroy along the Grands Boulevards, have a more exotic flavour.
'Carré Rive Gauche' The 'square' formed along the Left Bank by the quai Voltaire, rue de l'Université, rue du Bac and rue des Saints-Pères, which includes the rue de Verneuil, rue de Lille and rue de Beaune, is famous for its high concentration of antique dealers; every year in May, the area hosts the 'Cinq jours des objets extraordinaires', an exhibition of unusual antique objects.
Art and Antiques Antique dealers and art galleries are often concentrated in the same area: in the Marais, stroll along rue Vieille-du-Temple, rue Debelleyme and rue Saint-Gilles. On the Left Bank, rue Jacob and rue des Saints-Pères are particularly interesting. You can't browse in the exclusive shops in the avenue Matignon and rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, since you need an appointment to see the dealers! The Bastille area is definitely avant-garde and artists often exhibit in their own studios.
Open Late Some shops at the heart of the city are open until midnight or later every night, including Virgin Mégastore and Drugstore Publicis in the Champs-Elysées and the chain store Prisunic in rue de la Boétie near by.
Street Markets It is a tradition in France to buy food, and in particular fresh vegetables and fruit, from a market stall and Paris is no exception. Each arrondissement has its covered market, but open-air ones are much more colourful and lively and their higgledy-piggledy displays are definitely more picturesque. To get the feel of these typical Parisian attractions, go to the rue Mouffetard (Metro: Monge), the rue de Buci (Metro: Odéon) and the rue Lepic (Metro: Abbesses). They are open daily except on Mondays.
| COUNTRY |
| France |
| REGION |
| French Riviera |
| CITIES |
| Paris
|
| Viewing |
| Top Ten |
| What To See |
| Where To ... |
| Eat & Drink |
| Stay |
| Shop |
| Take The Kids |
| Be Entertained |
| What's On When |
| Practical Matters |
| Lyon |
| Nice |
| Strasbourg |
| MAPS |
| World |
| Europe |
| TRAVEL BOOK |
 |