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It's safe to say that if Carrie Bradshaw ever visited Barcelona for a long weekend, she would be in no hurry to get on the plane back to JFK - and not just because of the six-packed Don Juans playing volleyball on Barceloneta beach! As millions of shopaholics have already discovered, the city offers a dizzying array of cash-splashing opportunities, and retail therapists of all budgets will discover thousands of tantalising ways to part with their money in Barcelona, whether they prefer shopping for designer names like Prada, Armani and Custo (Barcelona's own homegrown cloths' guru) or browsing vintage fashion shops, off-the-wall boutiques and second hand stores. If you've come to Barcelona for the sole purpose of spending, then you won't go home disappointed!
Without doubt the Catalan capital is a very fashion conscious city, but the style in Barcelona is very different from that of Milan or Paris for example. Whilst chic chicas may strut the sidewalk in Versace dresses and 200 euro sunglasses, you'll find many more counter culture hipsters in ragged pants and recycled accessories, their skin covered in tattoos, flaunting a rockstar attitude. Barcelona adopts a very much live-and-let-live policy when it comes to individual style (ie. anything goes!) and if you're up for an extreme fashion make-over you've definitely come to the right place!
Not that shopping in Barcelona is about fashion alone - if your wardrobe is already oversubscribed you'll find plenty of alternative options when it comes to maxing out your baggage allowance on the flight back. Barcelona is rich in food and flea markets to visit, bookshops to browse, antique stores to stumble upon, and there's plenty of gift and souvenir shopping to be done too - and that needn't mean a sombrero from Las Ramblas and a 'I heart Barcelona' T-shirt. How about some Catalonian Cava, some delicious Spanish farmhouse cheeses or bags made out of recycled PVC posters? As long as you remembered to bring your credit card you won't be bored in Barcelona! To search for individual stores you may proceed straight to our shop section, or read on for a guide to the best shopping districts in the city...
Barcelona Shopping Streets & Districts
Passeig de Gracia
Barcelona's second most famous street (after La Rambla), Passeig de Gracia is without doubt the city's best boulevard for spending serious amounts of salary. Designer brands wink seductively at you from every window... Chanel, Luis Vuitton, Dolce & Gabbana, Diesel and many more. And with some of the city's most famous Modernista landmarks on the same street, including two buildings by Antoni Gaudi, you can justifiably call this particularly shopping spree a cultural activity.
Avinguda del Portal de l'Angel
Leading down from Placa Catalunya (the central square which links Passeig de Gracia and Las Ramblas together, amongst others), Portal de l'Angel is not quite as posh as the Passeig but a great place to stock up on high quality high street bargains from shops like Zara and Bershka, with one or two high-end treats like Massimo Dutti in store.
Las Ramblas
More famous for street performers, pick-pockets and prostitutes, Barcelona's thriving - and sometimes conniving - Las Ramblas boulevard also boasts its fair share of shopping opportunities. Some are squarely aimed at tourists, but the flower markets and pet stalls are well worth a gander at least out of curiosity's sake whilst La Boqueria Market is an unmissable treat for anyone vaguely interested in the gastronomic galaxy. Spain's finest food and drink all in one place!
To check out the above areas you'll need to book your flights to Barcelona and start shopping, but if you want to do some browsing before you arrive then check out our Barcelona shops section, where you can search for markets, fashion, accessories, shoes, books, antiques, souvenirs as well as department stores and shopping centres and malls. Happy bargain hunting! | | | |