New York City is an undisputed shopper’s paradise: You can find anything here, from every corner of the globe. In the clothing category alone, there’s everything from the hippest new collections to world-renowned labels in stores ranging from tiny, cutting-edge boutiques to the largest department store in the world. Incredible variety and the opportunity to discover something special you can’t find back home await. And since notoriously picky New Yorkers demand the best of the best, luxury shopping here is unsurpassed.

Smack in the heart of Midtown Manhattan, Fifth Avenue is without a doubt the city's most glamorous thoroughfare, chock full of chic stores and galleries. Landmark department stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdales and Macy's provide all of the usual upscale department stores. In addition you'll find the usual assortment of designer shops such as Gucci, Henri Bendel, Tiffany, Bergdorf Goodman, Steuben, Christian Dior and Versace. During the holiday season, elaborate displays — doormen dressed as toy soldiers at FAO Schwarz, a 27-foot sparkling snowflake floating over the street outside Tiffany, the famous department store window dressings - make strolling Fifth Avenue a special treat. Whatever time of year you go, try to avoid the urge to look up, up, up as it not only marks you as a tourist, but also makes it hard to avoid crashing into rushing Manhattanites.

New York is a city of neighbourhoods, and New Yorkers are always inventing new ones as areas become gentrified and demand a new identity. Two of the latest are near Greenwich Village. Both reflect downtown Manhattan's penchant for acronyms.
Some of the city's trendiest shopping these days is in Nolita, which stands for 'North of Little Italy'. Several upmarket antiques and home decorating stores have spilled over from adjacent SoHo (South of Houston), but the hottest finds are in the boutiques selling fashions and accessories created by up-and-coming designers. Browse along Mulberry, Mott and especially Elizabeth streets. You'll also find art galleries, cafes and nightclubs.
Squeezed between the East and West Village is the triangular patch called NoHo, running 'North of Houston' to Astor Place. Artists live and work in the 19th-century loft buildings of this historic district, reminiscent of the old SoHo before it went upmarket. The Astor Place Theater and the Joseph Papp Public Theater where Hair debuted in the 1960s are set in grand old mansions, and there are plenty of trendy bars and restaurants.