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Paris, the city of lights and love, is perfect for a shopping break any time of the year, but I've always found the French capital to be especially beguiling during the month of December. And as Paris is a mere hop skip and a jump away from the UK, and you should be able to pick up a good value hotel deal, it's a trip that won't blow your Christmas budget.
There's no denying that Paris is beautiful all year round; during the crispness of autumn and the welcome warmth of spring. However, for me, the city becomes truly magical during the winter month when the whole city lights up in anticipation of Christmas and the shopping opportunities ramp up a gear.
Parisians seem to take the festivities very seriously, and the December city scenes as they rush, bundled up oh so stylishly, from shop to shop as they purchase their Christmas gifts, have an almost Victorian quality to them.
The Champs Elysee is the most famous and prestigious shopping street in the city, and the wide tree-lined avenue is illuminated from late November to early January with pretty, twinkling fairy lights come dusk. Flanked by shops selling luxury goods from chocolates to leather, perfume to patisseries, it's the place to go for stunning gifts for your lucky loved ones back home.
Why not take tea in the Laduree tea rooms and nibble on a delicious, buttery palmier? Of course, it's impossible to come away without an exquisitely packaged box of their famous multi-coloured macaroons and these delicate little morsels make gorgeous gifts to take home; if you can resist them for that long that is!
Another mesmerizing gift sure to make you very popular with the recipient is a beautifully ornate bottle of fragrance from master perfumier Guerlain. At the Champs Elysee workshop you can even take a workshop and compose your very own personal fragrance.
Those with some serious money to spend will be in heaven on the Champs Elysee as it is home to some of the most luxurious design stores. You can purchase twinkling jewels at Cartier, a fabulous bag at Louis Vuitton or divine leather goods at French leather company Lancel.
Of course, those on a tighter budget can still glean great pleasure from window shopping, or simply sipping a cafe au lait or chocolate chaud at a Champs Elysee cafe and watching others rush from store to store laden down with shopping bags.
Outside of the Champs Elysee you can find the finest silk scarves at the Hermes flagship store at Rue de Sevres, which also features a tea salon and bookshop to refresh you after the hard toil of Paris shopping. Just ensure that whatever gifts you buy they are beautifully packaged in the tres chic Paris style.
If you have children to buy for then An Nain Bleu at 5 blvd Malesherbes is the city's most exclusive toy store, stuffed full of beautifully crafted delights for the discerning little ones in your life. Alternatively, Anna Joilet at 9 rue de Beaujolais, Palais Royal sells delightful,cartier love bracelet replica real gold, old fashioned wind-up music boxes.
Those who have a foodie in their life can make themselves very popular indeed by returning from their trip laden with some of the city's culinary offerings. Alleosse at 13 rue Poncelet is one of the prettiest Paris cheese shops and Chocolaterie Jacques Genin, 133 rue de Turenne is a shrine to all things chocolate. You can spend a happy hour watching the chocolatiers at work in the workshop, before selecting a delicious chocolate box for your chocoholic back home.
The vast selection of flavoured oils at Huilerie Artisanale J. Leblanc will make your friend who loves to cook very happy, and Spring has a great selection of French wines.
With Christmas fast approaching, why not arm yourself with a list of lucky recipients and head to Paris for amazing gifts this year? Paris can be reached very reasonably and in under an hour by air,cartier love necklace pink gold, or directly from St Pancras International by train in just two hours and 15 minutes.
Make sure that you have plenty of cash for shopping by seeking out a great hotel deal at d3als.co.uk. This fantastic website, which collects all the best deals in one easy to use destination, could save you money on your hotel, leaving more in your purse for silk scarves and macaroons.
Published at Sooper Articles - Free Reprintable Articles
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