An Alternative Shopping Experience in London

London is a city that's expensive to stay in and expensive to shop in. Especially if you want to keep things central and not verge off the tourist trail. While we've already guided you on where to stay in London for a cheaper, and more authentic local stay, we thought we'd couple that with an alternative guide to shopping in London. Here are some of the places in London that we like to go to for a spot of shopping.

Pop Brixton

Brixton had some cool indoor marketplace w/ deadly food and music all under one roof.

A post shared by conor hynes (@henriflame) on

With a local heart and hipster vibe, this community project area has a little something for everyone. And while it's home to 53 independent businesses of all sorts, we like to check out the pop-up shops on the bottom floor to see what's new. Have a look at their events to see what's on when.

Vintage shops and stalls in Shoreditch

Never underestimate the power of a good outfit on a bad day

A post shared by || G I N N Y (@poopcutie9) on

The east inner city London district of Shoreditch has much more to offer than trendy boutiques; it's also now a hub for all things vintage. Wander around Hanbury Street and Brick Lane to enjoy a vintage shop crawl and bag as much as you can for a ridiculously reasonable price.  A lot of these shops pride themselves on selling most items for around £10 or less. Don't forget to check out The Vintage (up)Market while you're in the area.

Spitalfields Market

Spitalfields Market

Once you’ve cleaned out Brick Lane of its vintage goodies, you’ll be pleased to find Spitalfields market nearby.  Filled with rows of stalls of clothes, bags, and jewellery, it is a bit more high-end and expensive. A lot of the goods are hand-made.

Broadway market on a Saturday

For the craft and food lover, this is the place to be on a Saturday. It's one of the oldest chartered markets in London, and it is now home lots of stalls selling food, records, jewellery, art, hand-made crafts, and vintage clothes. If it's a smaller and less frantic version of Spitalfields market you're after, this is the one for you. Get there early to avoid the crowds and to snap up the best buys. It's not a replenish stock kind of place.

The boutiques of Seven Dials

Neals Yard London

For something a little more upmarket but still away from busy high streets, browse the boutiques of Covent Garden. You'll still find the retro vintage goodness that Shoreditch has on offer, but you'll also see some more familiar names, as well as homeware, beauty and specialty shops. It has a wide selection for lots of tastes if nothing else.

Southbank Book Market

Southbank Book Market

When you’ve bought all the clothes and accessories on offer (and trust us, this is possible), head over to the book market nestled under Waterloo Bridge. Grab a walking coffee, and browse some second-hand classics and contemporaries to your heart’s content.

A music fix on Denmark St.

Guitars on Denmark Street

Photo credit: Chris Brown

What’s next on the list? Some records? A rare, vintage guitar perhaps? Denmark Street is your spot. The famed ‘Tin Pan Alley,' although a lesser version of what it once was in its 1960’s and 70’s hay day, is still the place you’ll want to centre your musical search around. You’ll find some of the rarest guitars in the world here if one of those happens to be on your shopping list.

So there's our favourites, have you any of your own?

How about an alternative shopping trip to London?

See Homestays in London

Older 

 Newer

This website uses cookies