7 Best Shopping in London, England

A manageably sized department store, Fenwick is a welcome haven of affordability in a shopping area where stratospheric prices are the norm. The store is particularly strong on accessories (notably lingerie, wraps, and hats), cosmetics, perfumes, and chic, wearable fashion by both big names and more niche designers such as Goat, J Brand, and Tory Burch. There are also three small spas (Chantecaille, La Prairie, and a Blink waxing room), various beauty services (including a hair salon, nail bar, and Blink brow bar), and three restaurants, plus a men's department in the basement.

Its distinctive black-and-white Tudor-style facade, created from the timbers of two Royal Navy men-o'-war ships, reflects this department store's origins in the late Victorian Arts and Crafts movement. Leading designers were recruited to create the classic Liberty silk prints that are still a signature of the brand, gracing everything from cushions and kimonos to photo albums and stationary. Inside, Liberty is a wood-paneled labyrinth of rooms stocked with well-chosen merchandise, including niche beauty, perfume, footwear, and housewares lines such as Soho Home, which features furniture from the membership club. Clothes for men and women focus on high quality and high fashion, with labels like Rixo and Roland Mouret. The store regularly commissions new prints from contemporary designers, and it sells both these and its classic patterns by the yard. If you're not so handy with a needle, an interior design service will create soft furnishings for you. There's also a florist, a hair salon, a men's barber, beauty treatment rooms, a brow bar, foot spa, and a body piercing studio.

This tasteful department store has been a beloved local institution since it opened in 1937, and the poet John Betjeman remarked that come the end of the world he would like to be in the haberdashery department of Peter Jones "because nothing bad could ever happen there." It's the traditional default wedding-list option of Kensington and Chelsea brides thanks to its outstanding selection of bed and bath linens (many from the in-house line of John Lewis, the store's parent company), flatware, ceramics, and glassware, with offerings at all price points. There's also an extensive and eclectic beauty department, as well as kitchenware and appliances, furniture, tech stuff, a florist, and clothing, shoes, and accessories for the whole family, plus pretty much everything else you can think of, along with a restaurant and a Clarins spa.

This giant bustling store (the second largest in the United Kingdom after Harrods) gives Harvey Nichols a run for its money as London's most fashionable department store. Packed to the rafters with clothes ranging from mid-price lines to the latest catwalk names, the store continues to break ground with its innovative retail schemes, especially the ground-floor Wonder Room (for extravagant jewelry and luxury watches), a dedicated Denim Studio, a Fragrance Bar where you can create custom perfume, an array of pop-ups ranging from spaces for designers such as Jil Sander to a healthy shot bar (if you need some colloidal silver to keep you going). The giant accessories hall has miniboutiques dedicated to top-end designers such as Chanel, Gucci, and Vuitton, while the new Corner Shop offers U.K.-themed gifts and souvenirs at all price points.

There are so many zones that merge into one another—from youth-oriented Miss Selfridge to audio equipment to the large, comprehensive cosmetics department—that you practically need a map. Don't miss the Shoe Galleries, the world's largest shoe department, which is filled with more than 5,000 pairs from 120 brands, displayed like works of art under spotlights. Take a break with a glass of wine at the rooftop restaurant or pick up some tea in the Food Hall as a gift.

While visiting tourists flock to Harrods, local fashionistas shop at Harvey Nichols, aka "Harvey Nicks." The womenswear and accessories departments are outstanding if pricey, featuring top designers like Tom Ford, Loewe, Bottega Veneta, Valentino, Tory Burch, and just about every fashionable name you can think of. The furniture and housewares are equally gorgeous and pricey, although they become somewhat more affordable during the biannual sales in January and July. The Fifth Floor bar is the place to see and be seen, but if you're in search of food, the same floor also has an all-day modern European café, a branch of Burger & Lobster, the carnivore-friendly Zelman Meats, or Kenyan-Punjabi fusion from Madhu's Brasserie. To keep you looking as box-fresh as your purchases, The Beauty Lounge features a menu of treatments from brands such as La Prairie, Sisley, and La Mer, plus makeovers, LED facials, cryotherapy, thermotherapy, laser treatments, and blow-dry, nail, and brow bars.

You'd be hard-pressed to find a Brit who doesn't have something in the closet from Marks & Spencer (or M&S, as it's popularly known). This major chain is famed for its classic dependable clothing for men, women, and children—affordable cashmere and lamb's wool sweaters are particularly good buys—and occasionally scores a fashion hit. The food department at M&S is consistently good, especially for frozen food, and a great place to pick up a sandwich or premade salad on the go (look for M&S Simply Food stores all over town). The flagship branch at Marble Arch and the Pantheon location at 173 Oxford Street have extensive fashion departments.

Before moving to Burlington Arcade, luxury housewares shop Thomas Goode had been at the same smart Mayfair address for over 150 years, but the classic style continues to sell at the new location. The china, silver, crystal, and linen, whether from the store's own line or from luxury brands like Christofle and Puiforcat, are simply the best that money can buy, a legacy of its original customer base of international royals and heads of state. The store still holds two royal warrants, but anyone who can afford it can commission their own bespoke set of china. If such luxury is beyond you, visit anyway for the shop's small museum of plates, either antique or designed for royalty, including some created for Princess Diana's wedding.