Shopping in london

RU4REAL

Hi Gals,

Am planning a shopping trip to London but have never been there before. What airport is the best to fly into - Gatwick or stanstead?

I think I'm just going for the day, getting an 8am flight over, and a late flight home - so am wondering which shopping streets are the best for 'concentrated shopping!'

I'm up for going to the usual high street stores (cos the exchange rate is better than buying uk stuff here) but would also like to hit a few quirky places. Is harrods crazy expensive?

Does anyone know of any 2nd hand or discount stores also?

Thanks a mill for all your shopping tips!!

Oryx

RU4REAL wrote: »

Hi Gals,

Am planning a shopping trip to London but have never been there before. What airport is the best to fly into - Gatwick or stanstead?

I think I'm just going for the day, getting an 8am flight over, and a late flight home - so am wondering which shopping streets are the best for 'concentrated shopping!'

I'm up for going to the usual high street stores (cos the exchange rate is better than buying uk stuff here) but would also like to hit a few quirky places. Is harrods crazy expensive?

Does anyone know of any 2nd hand or discount stores also?

Thanks a mill for all your shopping tips!!

I flew into Gatwick, theres a rail line straight in, which connects to the tube.

Oxford street has all the usual generic shops, and Harrods is good for window shopping, but I found it out of my reach. I dont know if they charge over the odds or if its just that they carry a lot of prestige goods.

But its worth it just for the chocolate hall, imo.:)

Thats all I know about, I did the London eye instead of intense shopping!

bronte

Hey!
You will love London, it's a great city!
Heathrow has access to the tube , so you can get into the city fairly quickly.
If you're going to Gatwick or Stansted I would allow an hour and a half to get into the city by bus (plenty of good services available and you can buy tickets at the airport)
When buying bus tickets I'd advise you to make sure and purchase a return journey.
Not only is it cheaper, but it guarantees you'll get a seat.
The train takes around 45mins and is slightly more expensive.

As for Shopping...I'm still getting my head around that aspect of london!
Oxford Street is one of the main shopping streets.
It's Heeeuge! and has about any shop you can think of on it.
Others may be able to give you an idea of alternative places to go.
You'd need about a week on Oxford street to get around everything!

Have fun!

Personally I wouldn't go shopping on Oxford street on a Saterday again.
I was involved in a people crush the last time when some threw promotional material into the air. Usually I love that kind of thing (opportunity for tooth and nail) but this was scarey.

I love the Dali museum beside the london eye...well worth a visit if your out in that direction.

Twee.

RU4REAL wrote: »

Hi Gals,

Am planning a shopping trip to London but have never been there before. What airport is the best to fly into - Gatwick or stanstead?

I think I'm just going for the day, getting an 8am flight over, and a late flight home - so am wondering which shopping streets are the best for 'concentrated shopping!'

I'm up for going to the usual high street stores (cos the exchange rate is better than buying uk stuff here) but would also like to hit a few quirky places. Is harrods crazy expensive?

Does anyone know of any 2nd hand or discount stores also?

Thanks a mill for all your shopping tips!!

You can get the Stanstead Express from the airport right to Liverpool Street and then you can get the Tube from there. I did it last year and found it no hassle. Took just under an hour I think.

Oxford Street has all the usual high street names about four times over! It repeats it self every few blocks! There really isn't a "quiet" shopping time, it's jammers all the time. I had to go to TopShop twice because it was so big, packed and warm inside!

Harrods is expensive because it sells luxury brands- YSL, Chanel, Dior etc. The food hall is something else though

The Camden area is EXCELLENT for one offs, quirky, vintage, second hand stuff. The market is ****ing huge though you'll want to spend the day there! http://www.camdenlockmarket.com/flash_main.htm

Piste

Again I'd recommend Oxford street, but there's not much there that you wouldn't find in town in Dublin. Harrods is a great department store, treat yourself to afternoon tea in their georgian tearoom!

phasers

Carnaby street is right around the corner from Oxford street, so give it a look! They have a Benefit shop which is amazing, and there's so many different kinds of shops there. Topshop on Oxford street is another must, they have absolutely everything.

Twee.

phasers wrote: »

Carnaby street

Lovely little street, lots of nice shops.

Piste

Regent's street has Hamleys to bring out the kid in you but also a lovely shop called Desigual.

Twee.

Piste wrote: »

Regent's street has Hamleys to bring out the kid in you but also a lovely shop called Desigual.

Ooh I was in Desigual in Barcelona last week and got a really cool pair of pants :pac: They had nice clothes too!

Piste

I've actually never been there >.< My mum got me clothes from there whih are really nice and she said the rest of the stuff there is gorgeous, I really want to go there!