8 Best Places To Shop In London – The Ultimate Shopping Paradise For Tourists

This is a list of 8 best places to shop in London for tourists! This vibrant city is the ultimate shopping paradise, boasting a myriad of luxury boutiques, trendy retail shops, huge department stores, and bustling street markets. The wife had a wonderful shopping experience here during our holiday.

Summary Of Best Places To Shop In London

1. Bond Street: The best for high end shopping. This shopping street is the mecca for luxury brands.
2. Oxford Street: The best for mid-market brands. Famous shops here include Selfridges, Primark, TK Maxx, Topshop, H&M, and Uniqlo.
3. Regent Street: The most beautiful shopping destination. It is home to many mid-market brands and luxury boutiques like Canada Goose, H&M, Furla, and Tory Burch.
4. Bicester Village: The best for discount luxury goods. Enjoy fantastic discounts off usual retail prices, especially for British brands.
5. Knightsbridge: The best for luxury department stores. This neighbourhood is home to Harrods, Harvey Nichols, Sloane Street, Topshop, and Tommy Hilfiger.
6. Covent Garden: The best for tourists. This popular tourist destination is home to various luxury boutiques and a bustling street market.
7. Camden Market: The best for boho chic fashion. This is the place to shop for vintage goods and handcrafted jewellery.
8. Portobello Road Market: The best for antiques and collectibles. This outdoor market is home to many antique dealers and retro shops.

1. Bond Street

Bond Street is a famous shopping street in Mayfair lined with many luxury boutiques. This is THE place to go for high end shopping.

Bond Street is actually made up of two connected streets: “New Bond Street” and “Old Bond Street”.

The wife and I started shopping at New Bond Street and made our way down towards Old Bond Street.

Along the way, we came across a dizzying variety of luxury brands, including Hermes, Tory Burch, Miu Miu, Fendi, Dior, LV, Prada, and many more.

All the shops had large and beautiful interiors, and the staff were mostly quite helpful and polite. Above is a picture of the Jimmy Choo store.

After reaching the end of Old Bond Street, we went across the street to Fortnum & Mason.

This classy department store specialises in unique gifts like confectioneries, premium teas and coffees, perfumes, hampers, and more.

It was nice to walk around this elegant store and check out the vintage wooden elevator in the building, but we didn’t spend much time here because we were not really interested in the products.

Famous brands in Bond Street: Burberry, Cartier, Chanel, Dior, Hermes, Jimmy Choo, Louis Vuitton, Prada Ralph Lauren, Tiffany & Co, etc.
Directions: Google Maps

2. Oxford Street

Oxford Street is a well-known shopping street in Mayfair home to hundreds of retail stores. This is a good place to shop for popular mid-market brands.

My first stop here was Selfridges, a high-end department store home to fashion boutiques, accessories shops, tech stores, and more.

I was greeted by Gilbert Bayes’ winged polychrome statue, “Queen of Time”, as I entered the shopping complex. Above her are the twin dials of the Selfridges Clock.

Some of the brands I saw in this large building included Celine, Burberry, Gucci, Givenchy, Hermès, Prada, Nike, Jimmy Choo, and many more!

There is a large food hall in the building if you’re feeling hungry.

After the wife was done, we continued walking down the street and came across many popular mid-market brands like Pull & Bear, Foot Locker, Adidas, Gap, Topshop, H&M, Uniqlo, Zara, etc.

My next stop was Primark, a popular bargain store known for its affordable fashion products like womenswear, menswear, fashion accessories, shoes, and cosmetic products.

Walking around the store, I saw plenty of cheap clothing on sale. For example, the above T-shirt was selling for just £2.50, and the blazer only cost £17.

I also came across sunglasses and shoes going for just £3.

Overall, this store is worth visiting to look for hidden gems selling at great prices!

I also recommend checking out TK Maxx, another bargain fashion store that opened its newest branch on Oxford Street in June 2019.

This mega outlet boasts the largest selection of shoes, handbags, and jewellery across all its UK stores.

Famous Brands & Stores in Oxford Street: Selfridges, Primark, TK Maxx, Pull & Bear, Adidas, Gap, Bershka, Topshop, H&M, Uniqlo, Foot Locker, Zara, etc.
Directions: Google Maps

3. Regent Street

Regent Street is another popular shopping street in Mayfair.

It is home to a number of popular mid-market and luxury brands like H&M, Canada Goose, Molton Brown, Ted Baker, Longchamp, Furla, and Tory Burch.

This elegant street is lined with charming European style architecture, and I feel that it is the most beautiful shopping destinations in London.

The wife spent some time in the Molton Brown shop browsing through their fragrance and body care products. The staff here was really friendly and helpful.

After she was done, we continued walking down the street towards the famous road junction Piccadilly Circus, where we saw the iconic Piccadilly screens and statue of Eros.

Famous brands & stores in Regent Street: Liberty, The Apple Store, H&M, Canada Goose, Molton Brown, Ted Baker, Longchamp, Furla, Tory Burch, Desigual.
Directions: Google Maps

4. Bicester Village

Bicester Village is a famous luxury outlet mall located less than an hour from central London by train. This is a great place to enjoy wonderful discounts on high end brands.

Some of the brands here include Coach, Jimmy Choo, Gucci, Burberry, Ferragamo, Michael Kors, Celine, and many more. Check out the full list of brands on their official website.

The wife really enjoyed shopping here because many of the luxury products were much cheaper than retail stores in London.

Based on our experience, the best discounts here are on British luxury brands. There are good deals for non-British luxury brands too, but the discounts are definitely not as attractive.

Case in point: the wife managed to buy a pair of Jimmy Choo flats for just £250 (after tax refund), which is much lower than its usual retail price.

Other British brands with great discounts include Burberry, Ted Baker, Clarks, Paul Smith and Mulberry.

Remember to bring along your passport to enjoy tax refunds!

Famous Brands in Bicester Village: Coach, Jimmy Choo, Gucci, Burberry, Ferragamo, Michael Kors, Celine, etc.
Directions: How To Go Bicester Village From London

5. Knightsbridge

Knightsbridge is a retail district home to several luxury department stores and high-end fashion boutiques.

The most famous shopping destination here is the luxury department store Harrods.

The wife enjoyed shopping in this giant complex, where we saw many luxury brands like Hermes, Celine, Dior, Prada, Polo Ralph Lauren, etc.

I also came across sport stores like Nike and Adidas.

Other than fashion boutiques, Harrods also has a food hall, restaurants, and confectionery stores.

Other well-known shopping spots in Knightsbridge include Harvey Nichols (British luxury department store), Sloane Street (high end shopping street), Topshop at Brompton Road, and Tommy Hilfiger’s Europe flagship store.

If you want to pamper yourself, you can consider booking Klook’s afternoon tea at Harrods experience, which includes a cruise on the River Thames and a vintage bus tour.

Famous brands & stores in Knightsbridge: Harrods, Harvey Nichols, Sloane Street, Topshop, Tommy Hilfiger.
Directions: Google Maps

6. Covent Garden

Covent Garden is the famous shopping and theatre district of London. This vibrant neighbourhood is a good place for tourists to shop and explore.

There are some luxury boutiques here, but not as many as Bond Street. The shops are also quite small.

The wife spent some time shopping at shops like Chanel, MAC, Michael Kors, Molton Brown, and Kate Spade.

For more unique items, check out the historic Covent Garden Market which is home to artisan shops selling handmade crafts and goods.

Famous brands in Covent Garden: Chanel, Burberry, Kate Spade, MAC, Michael Kors, Molton Brown, Mulberry, Zara.
Directions: Google Maps

7. Camden Market

Camden Market (also known as Camden Lock) is a huge street market home to many independent boutiques selling handcrafted goods, jewellery, books, furniture, and other eclectic items.

I entered a building that had many artisan shops selling stylish handmade jewellery and vintage goods.

My favourite shop in the building was a retro store selling posters and vinyl records of classic rock bands like Queen, Guns N’ Roses, Oasis, Pink Floyd, etc. These brought back fond memories of my teenage years!

After leaving the building, I walked around for a while and was happy to come across a big souvenir shop. I bought many affordable gifts for my family and friends here.

I also came across a shop that sold custom-painted Converse sneakers.

There were some shops selling counterfeit goods too, if you are into that kind of stuff.

The market is home to many food stalls and restaurants, including the famous Poppies fish and chips restaurant.

Directions: Google Maps

8. Portobello Road Market (Notting Hill)

Located in the quaint neighbhourhood of Notting Hill, Portobello Road Market is a famous antiques market with over 1,000 dealers selling a myriad of antiques and collectibles.

Other than antiques, there are also many shops selling street food, clothes, flowers, and local produce.

The market is open every day, but the main market day is Saturday when you will see a tidy sprawl of antique stalls, street performers and street vendors.

Unfortunately, I visited on Sunday so most of the market was closed. Luckily, there were still some shops and stalls that were open.

It was interesting to see many shops selling quirky antiques and collectibles. I also came across a stall selling cheap vintage vinyl records.

The street market is home to several souvenir shops selling the usual tourist merchandise like keychains and cups.

The market is home to several fashion boutiques, but the wife and I didn’t find anything suitable for us.

There were quite a number of street food stalls, selling bites like the “Portobello Crepes” and “Portobello Spring Fries”.

Directions: Google Maps

Conclusion

As you can tell, London is truly a shopping paradise for tourists. Most of the places listed above are really crowded on weekends, so I suggest visiting on weekday afternoons if possible.