There are two kinds of shopping in New York …the kind
where you browse the expensive stores along Madison and Fifth avenues just for
fun and dream about a Tiffany's ring, an Armani sweater, or a Burberry bag…and
then there's the shopping for all the funky, fun stuff you can actually afford.
We don't mean to be a name dropper,
but when it comes to designer boutiques, you simply cannot think of one label
which you will not find in New York: Gucci, Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpel, Louis
Vuitton, Prada, Ferragamo, Hermes, Chanel, Alfred Dunhill, Brooks Brothers, Bvlgari,
Harry Winston, Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, and on, and on, and on…. Don't be intimidated
by the fancy stores or high prices…everyone deserves a chance to dream so go on
in and browse to your heart's content — unless, of course, you can afford what
they have to sell. If you are the kind
of person who loves department stores, New York City has its share — the most
famous being Macy*s, which bills itself as the “World's Largest Department Store.”
A stop at Macy*s, in the area called “Midtown West,” puts you in the center of
a good amount of affordable shopping including the nearby Manhattan Mall (with
a selection of stores and boutiques); the European department store H&M; Victoria's
Secret; Banana Republic; and a wide variety of shops up and down 34 th Street.
Hotels like the Holiday
Inn Martinique, the Hotel
Pennsylvania, the Howard
Johnson at Penn Station, and the Americana
Inn (a great budget choice) all put you right in the heart of this shopping
area. Another department store — Lord & Taylor — is an easy walk from here
as well. For something a bit more upscale,
consider Sak's Fifth Avenue (right across the street from Rockefeller Center )
and Bloomingdale's — both of which have an incredible selection and often some
really good sales. If you don't need to worry about the price tag, the city's
more upscale department stores include Henri Bendel, Bergdorf Goodman, and Barney's
New York . They all provide a wonderful and highly personalized shopping experience
and are fun to browse in as well. Hotels which put you just footsteps from these
elegant stores include The
Melrose Hotel, The
Plaza Hotel, and The
Regency. True bargain hunters go
to one of two places: Century 21 or Syms. The
Holiday Inn Downtown puts you right in the heart of these discount shopping
mecca's (Syms also has a store on 54 th and Park). These stores are not to be
missed for great deals on clothing, shoes, and accessories If
you're looking for the places where New Yorkers are shopping, head over to the
Meatpacking District and Chelsea — both of which have an unusual selection of
stores and boutiques. For the cool, hip crowd, Stella McCartney's and Scoop are
down in the Meatpacking District (near Ninth Avenue and Little West 12 th Street)
while the indoor Chelsea Market is a great place to spend a rainy day browsing
among the flower market, bread shops, and other unusual boutiques and gourmet
food outlets…including the unbelievable Fat Witch Brownies, Amy's Bread, and Sarabeth's.
The Chelsea area around Sixth and Seventh avenues at Eighteenth Street is also
home to a lot of stores like Bed, Bath & Beyond; Old Navy; the Container Store;
TJ Maxx; Filene's; Burlington Coat Factory; Loehmann's; Barnes & Noble; and
many others. Next-->>
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