#GUIDES
11 April, 2023
The best small museums in old Paris: Seven hidden gems to seek out
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Published
12 April, 2023
Edited
9 June, 2023
Think elegance, indulgence, and the finest haute couture; it has to be luxury shopping in Paris. The City of Lights is the epitome of stylish living and high-end retail and has an incredible variety of luxury shopping opportunities. It is so upmarket that the most affluent retail streets are located in an area known as the 'Golden Triangle', where you'll find the most famous brands and prestigious department stores in Paris, all within easy walking distance of one another.
From the most influential names in fashion to the finest jewellery, perfumes and accessories, it's a paradise for those who want nothing but the best from their retail therapy. Luxury shopping in Paris introduces you to a new level of opulence, with personalised shopping experiences interspersed with charming café stops.
Paris designer shopping is an indulgence that everyone should partake in at least once in their lives. If you're staying at one of our onefinestay apartments in Paris, the world's finest luxury shopping is yours to explore.
While there are plenty of delightful independent boutiques to discover across Paris, for serious luxury shopping in Paris you should make your way to the 8th and 1st Arrondissements. You'll find the Golden Triangle, where the most exotic, elegant stores and the most famous Paris shopping streets are located.
Radiating off the Champs-Élysées like the spokes of a wheel are a host of smaller yet just as elegant streets and boulevards, turning this part of Paris into the high-end retail hub of the city. As well as the Champs- Élysées, other streets to explore include Avenue George V and Avenue Montaigne, each home to some of the most exclusive designer shops in Paris.
At the top of the list of the best shopping streets in Paris has to be the Champs-Élysées. A mile of Art Deco architecture, flagship stores and elegant eateries make this famous avenue a mecca for high-end fashion lovers. The Champs-Élysées sits in the heart of the affluent 8th Arrondissement and is home to the true couture giants such as Louis Vuitton and Cartier.
For something a little glitzy, you can stroll to Tiffany & Co and pick up something special, beautifully presented in one of their iconic little blue boxes. Or treat a loved one to a new timepiece from Rolex. The Louis Vuitton store is the place to be for some timeless luggage that will last a lifetime.
The Galeries Lafayette Champs-Elysées offers a truly memorable experience. Danish architect Bjarke Ingels designed the shop's interior. Rather than partitioning different departments, he created a flowing, organic retail experience where displays combine various categories for a more fluid shopping experience and is one of the finest luxury department stores in Paris.
Nestled in the heart of the 1st Arrondissement is the historic Rue Saint-Honoré, home to the pride of Paris, the Hermès flagship store. From the wood-panelled façade and the gilded lettering, Hermès is a Parisian institution that epitomises the concept of a luxury department store selling everything from exclusive handbags and accessories to exquisite fashion.
Further along, the avenue stands Hermès’ rival Longchamp, the home of the iconic Le Pliage tote bag and one of the best luxury shops in Paris to find leather goods and luggage and limited editions from Longchamp's collaboration with international artists and designers.
This leafy boulevard has long been a destination for more sophisticated shoppers looking for the capital's finest perfumes, such as Yves Saint-Laurent and Givenchy. Perhaps the most famous perfumier on the boulevard is Chanel, located at Maison Chanel. Chanel has called Rue Saint-Honoré home since 1918 and this is still where new lines and couture collections are created today.
Rue Saint-Honoré is also home to Paris' Jewellery Quarter, the elegant Place Vendôme square, where you'll find outlets for Repossi, Chaumet, Boucheron, and Piaget. You'll also find timepieces by Rolex and Hublot and Chanel Jewellery, Guerlain, and Jaeger-LeCoultre, making it the epicentre for Paris luxury brands.
While the crowds may fill the pavements of Avenue de Champs-Élysées, Avenue Montaigne is a much more refined shopping experience and is home to some of the best boutique shopping in Paris. Originally called the Allee des Veuves or 'Widow's Alley', it was renamed after writer Michel de Montaigne, one of the country's greatest writers from the French Renaissance period.
The boutiques may be smaller than the flagship stores, but they offer exclusive service with personal assistants to ensure your visit is simply sublime. This is home to Paris' top French fashion stores, including Dior. Founded on Avenue Montaigne in 1947 at 30 Avenue Montaigne, Dior still occupies the same building, which is home to their premier boutique.
Along this charmingly elegant avenue, you'll also find the bright and fresh couture of Chloé, and the sophistication of Prada, Armani, Dolce & Gabbana, and Nina Ricci. You'll also be able to enjoy an evening of classical music at the utterly beautiful Théatre des Champs-Elysées.
Avenue Montaigne is the destination for a more refined Paris designer shopping experience. Personal assistants are allocated to shoppers to tailor their visit and ensure that the customer is treated as a VIP from the moment they enter the door.
Since the 1960s, YSL has been a byword for French chic and has a more edgy, youthful clientele representing the height of Parisian culture. YSL's Paris flagship store is where you'll find those iconic handbags that adorn the pages of Vogue, as well as their latest ready-to-wear collections.
This iconic Parisian landmark is one of Paris's most famous luxury department stores. Hermès has two key outlets, the flagship store on Boulevard Saint-Honoré and a second on Avenue Georges V. You cannot go high-end shopping in Paris without at least one visit to this quintessentially Parisian store and its superb collection of luxury goods.
There are various Chanel boutique stores in Paris at Rue Cambon, where you can pick up a bottle of No.5, including Galeries Lafayette and the specialised Avenue Montaigne, which offers ready-to-wear couture.
Combine heritage, stunning architecture and a superb level of service, and you have the elegance and sophistication of Dior. From perfumes to accessories and catwalk-inspired couture, Dior is a must-visit store if you're serious about your Paris designer shopping trip.
Described by its Chief Executive as a 'Gateway to couture', Balenciaga provides an exclusive, made-to-measure service for clientele with that ubiquitous Parisian flair and style. Transitioning its catwalk collections into off-the-peg options, Balenciaga is giving the more established salons some stiff competition when it comes to high-end shopping in Paris.
The best luxury shopping mall in Paris has to be the ultra-chic Galeries Lafayette. With its towering glass Coupole that can be seen as a landmark across the city, it exudes Art Nouveau elegance and refinement. Bright and airy, it houses some of the city's major brands and branches of Paris' most famous stores, including Hermès, Armani, Balenciaga, Prada, Dior and Karl Lagerfeld.
If you haven't got time during your stay to explore the whole of the Golden Triangle, visiting Galeries Lafayette gives you a luxurious 'snapshot' of the best of the city's couture, jewellery, perfumes and fashion for men and women.
Spread across three buildings and covering more than 750,000ft² of shopping and fine dining, it's the finest luxury mall in Paris and captures the essence of luxury shopping in Paris.
Many luxury designer department stores and the best boutique shopping in Paris are centred around the Golden Triangle. This makes it accessible by foot and also lets you explore this fascinating part of the city at your leisure. A stroll along the Champs-Elysées also lets you discover the eateries and galleries that line this elegant boulevard.
The Paris Metro is quick, clean and efficient to travel a little further afield. The Uber app also operates in Paris, and plenty of taxis are on offer too. Planning a full-day shopping spree? Your dedicated onefinestay concierge can organise your own private chauffeur to take you from shop to shop.
Many galleries and fashion houses along Avenue Montaigne operate a booking policy rather than a walk-in storefront. If you wish, this and more can all be arranged by your dedicated onefinestay concierge.
Turn your Paris luxury shopping trip into a leisurely city break with onefinestay. Your dedicated concierge can help arrange restaurant reservations, taxi or private driver bookings, and even appointments in some of the city's most exclusive high-end retail outlets.