Wales is a great place for retail therapy, whether you love hitting the high street, rummaging through boutique stores, or sniffing out a bargain at the local market. Almost every town and village has a market of some sort where local products, antiques, and other delightful one-off items can be found.
Cardiff is home to some of the best shops in Wales, with something to suit every taste. Saunter through the Victorian arcades, which are brimming with unique stores selling unusual musical instruments, local cheeses, and vintage vinyl at the world’s oldest record store, Spillers Records. A variety of great eateries and cafés are also located in the diverse arcades, offering some respite from a hard day’s shopping.
Built in 1891, the architecturally impressive Cardiff Market houses hundreds of stalls selling an array of goods, making it almost impossible to leave this authentic Victorian marketplace empty-handed. The city also has its fair share of crisp, air-conditioned shopping malls, such as St David’s, which is packed to the brim with popular high-end brands.
The bustling market town of Abergavenny has long been renowned as a destination favored by farmers, bargain hunters, and antique dealers; however, the seemingly endless list of events, ranging from the Wednesday Flea Market to the regular Antiques and Collectors Fair, draw crowds from all over Wales.
If you are passing through Hay-on-Wye, be sure to check out the largest collection of antique books in Europe, found in the 40 second-hand bookshops dotted around this serene riverside town.