Shopping is one of
Barcelona’s greatest attractions, with a bountiful five-kilometre
(three-mile) shopping strip, all the way from the water’s
edge at Port Vell right up La Rambla to
Diagnol.
International chains, designer shops and modern department stores
can be found in the area around Plaça de Catalunya,
Passeig de Gracia and along Avenida Diagonal.
The most famous shop in Barcelona is the imposing El Corte
Inglés, on Plaça de Catalunya, part of a
national chain, generally considered to be Spain’s leading
department stores. La Rambla and the Barri
Gòtic are the places for tourists to hunt for souvenirs.
A visit to La Boqueria market, officially Mercat
de Sant Josep, off Rambla Sant Josep, is an unmissable
experience. The market is open Monday to Saturday 0800 hrs –
2000 hrs, for the sale of fresh fish, meat, vegetables and dairy
products.
Other food markets for keen shoppers to try are Concepció,
Carrer Aragó, Ninot, Carrer Mallorca, and
the Gastronomic Fair, which takes place in Plaça
del Pi, on the first and third Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the
month.
For antiques and curios, the Els Encants market
is held on Plaça de les Glories, every Monday, Wednesday,
Friday and Saturday from 0900 hrs–1900 hrs. Another antiques
market is held on Plaça Nova every Thursday
(except in August). Representative gifts include Catalan black pottery,
handwoven baskets or Barcelona lace.
In recent years, a number of urban-chic orientated fashion stores
have opened in Barcelona. Camden Town, Calle Hospital
4, has all the latest fashion, as well as some more esoteric PVC
and ‘erotic’ creations. Jean Pierre Bua, Avenida Diagonal
469, is the more conventionally trendy home of designer names such
as Gaultier and Miyake.
Shops open at 0900 hrs or 1000 hrs and close again for an
extended lunch, between 1330 hrs and 1600 hrs or 1700 hrs. In the
evening, shops shut at 2000 hrs or 2030 hrs.
Large department stores do not generally close for lunch. All shops
are open on Saturday afternoons but are closed all day on Sunday.
IVA (value added tax) of 7 per cent is charged on all goods and
services in Spain. Upon departure, visitors from outside the EU,
who have been in the EU for less than 180 days, can get a VAT (IVA)
refund from the airport, on goods worth €90 or more. Tax return
forms are available from shops on request. IVA on services is not
refundable. |
