Tag: shopping

Guide For A City Break To Milan

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When it comes to travelling throughout Italy, it sounds like the most romantic holiday getaway and you might leave many jealous. Between Rome, Naples, Milan and more, it can be a daunting task trying to make sure you see all the best parts of each. Not familiar with some of them? No problem! It can be time consuming to look into each of them, so check out this easy to digest guide to a city break in Milan to help you plan the ultimate visit to this beautiful and fashionable northern Italian city. So get your taxi booked and hit the town – this is one place you will want to visit time and again!

Churches

If there’s one thing that Italy is famous for, it’s churches. While many think about the likes of St Peter’s Basilica in Rome, but Milan has a whole variety of churches which are beautiful and welcome visitors. In fact, there’s so many that you probably won’t have time to see them all unless you’re a real church aficionado, but if you want to see at least one, make it the Duomo. The Duomo is Milan’s main cathedral and at around 800 years old, it’s one of the oldest. Visitors can climb to the top for some spectacular views around the piazza it’s built on. If you like artwork and architecture though, check out the Saint Mary of the Graces church – home to some impressive examples of renaissance art, sculpture and paintings. It’s also a UNESCO World Heritage Site and entry is free.

Squares

It’s no surprise that Milan would be a city of squares – and we don’t mean the eating kind. Town squares, known as piazzas in Italy, are beautiful open spaces often with fountains, cafes and restaurants, usually home to a church or two and often paved with marble tiles or the like. The resulting feel is a cosmopolitan and beautiful example of architecture and building ideas that allow for an open air meeting space of locals and tourists alike. One of the most popular Milan piazzas is the Piazza Mercati, a beautiful medieval style square that comes alive with lights and music at Christmas time with a small market. The rest of the year you can enjoy the gorgeous examples of Italian homes that are on display before sampling some of the cuisine or gelato off the square in one of the shops or restaurants. You can book a great Milan tour to make sure you see a few more of the special sites including other piazzas and points of interest as well.

Shopping

Milan is essentially the heart of the Italian fashion scene and it hosts the world famous Milan Fashion Week each autumn. This is the big fashion party of the year where up and coming models can make their debut and popular fashion houses like Gucci, Versace and others showcase their new creations. If you can’t make it for fashion week (good luck getting tickets!), check out the shopping district for your own look at the fashions of Milan. Via Dante is the street you will want to hit as its home to some of the world’s most high end designers and their street level shops. It’s a great place just to wander around as well though because with all sorts of street vendors, street art and food it’s a lively street that blends a number of styles and curiosities.

So if you’ve been looking for a great way to spend your summer getaway, have a look at Milan. You won’t be disappointed!

5 Amazing travel locations for those who love to shopping until dropping

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Some people travel for the experience, some for leisure, and others just to plain-see. And there are those who travel for the purpose of shopping. And for shopper-travellers, there are those who shop to their heart’s content to the last penny, and those who make the most out of their money – the more affordable, the better.

If you’re itching to shop for the holidays, you may want to check first some of the best travel money cards to secure your shopping costs especially when you’re out of the country. And here are some of the best destinations to start.

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Hong Kong. This top Asian shopping destination also boasts to be one of the cheapest there is. Hong Kong offers bargain shopping unlike you’ve ever seen before. Tourists who visit here are left with a handful of items, giving the shopping region an incredible satisfaction rate.

If you’re an experienced shopper, persistent clerks could mean a great deal. They will mostly show you the ropes, so if you know what you want, they’ll tell you and even follow you around until you find what you’re looking for. Don’t get intimidated by a persistent clerk; they’re paid to be like that.

Madrid, Spain. Madrid offers more than 50, 000 boutiques. There’s a variety of goods to satisfy your shopping desire. Big department stores, up and coming designer boutiques, weekly flea markets, and others. If you’re a haggler and a bold shopper in general, don’t miss El Rastro, Spain’s biggest and most diverse flea market that takes place every Sunday. Regardless, at any given day you could just visit every store in the area, but be reminded that smaller stores close from 2 to 5 in the afternoon for their Spanish siesta custom.

Tokyo, Japan. The capital of Japan offers everyone a piece of everything, from clothing, modern electronics, and yes, all your fashion needs while being easy on the pockets. The Globe Shopper City Index reported Tokyo to be Asia’s fourth cheapest city and an affordable shopping destination.

Head over Harajuku for an easy on the pocket yet trendy clothing. Visit Ameyoko Arcades for a variety of street shops and bargain stores where you can get discounted garments, shoes, and even exotic spices. Souvenirs and other novelties come cheap yet stylish at Hasegawa.

Bangkok, Thailand. Apart from its good accommodations and tourism, Thailand’s biggest city, Bangkok is also an affordable shopping mecca. Big markets, some only open on the night or during the weekend, shops of all types – handicrafts, clothing, electronic gadget – everything! They have it, and these goods are all sold at clearance-like prices. The trick here is not to accept the first price because you need to bargain for an even better deal.

Mexico. Shoppers from all over the world are looking for a nice bargain flock in Mexico. It may not be as big a manufacturer as China is, but Mexico is just as awesome as a place to find designer goods that are manufactured locally and are available at cheap wholesale prices. Also, the quality of their handmade products is unique and can’t be found anywhere else. Cheap and you get your money’s worth. What more can you ask for?

Remember: It pays to do your research in order to find the best travel money card online to accompany your spending while shopping for all the things you need (and mostly just want) abroad. Have fun!