21 Best Shopping in Basel, Switzerland

This fine selection of more than 250 types of cheeses comes from the Swiss Alps, the neighboring Jura and Vosges mountains, and beyond.

This cozy store specializes in clothes, shoes, bags, and cosmetics from young and often sustainably minded designers, both local and international.

This trendsetting concept store stocks clothes for women, men, and kids from both small and more established designers, as well as shoes, bags, and jewelry.

For the young (or young at heart), Bercher & Sternlicht is one of the top stores in all of Europe for model trains and accessories.

Bider & Tanner is Basel's largest international bookstore, with a large selection of English books. You can also book tickets to arts events here.

This shop carries everything for the well-dressed man: formal and casual shirts, cashmere pullovers, and underwear.

This shop carries a Basel specialty called Läckerli, a chewy cookie made of almonds, honey, dried fruit, and kirsch. There are also branches of Confiserie Bachmann on Blumenrain and Centralbahnplatz.

This store carries a wide selection of clothing and household goods, as well as groceries on the lower level.

Erasmushaus has one of the city's largest collections of fine antique manuscripts, books, and autographs, mostly in German but including a large selection of multilingual publications. If they cannot help you in the search for a particular tome, they will be happy to supply the names of the other specialist shops in the Basel area.

This upscale department store on four floors stocks everything from gourmet edibles to chic clothing.

This large shop sells a selection of exquisite Swiss crafts. It's the perfect stop for anyone looking to bring unique gifts home.

Highly specialized handiwork comes from Johann Wanner, which sells handblown, hand-painted, and hand-molded Christmas ornaments, Victorian miniatures, tartan ribbons, cards, and calendars.

Local designer Tanja Klein creates elegant, well-tailored basics for women and men along with leather bags and accessories.

The famous Läckerli-Huus sells a variety of sweets, including wonderful läckerli, and also has a café. A large selection of gift canisters and a shipping service make getting gifts home a cinch. There are also branches of Läckerli Huus on Greifengasse and Centralbahnplatz.

Whether you're in need of socks, toothpaste, or chocolate, head to Manor—the best midpriced department store in town. There's a second location in the St. Jakob Park shopping center.

This shop on one of the city's main shopping strips sells music, movies, toys, and books. There's a decent English section.

High-end designer shoes are on offer at Rive Gauche. This is the place to satisfy that Balenciaga, Jill Sander, or Chloé craving.

With an emphasis on wooden toys, Spielegge stocks chisel-carved puppets and whimsical watercolor puzzles of fairy-tale scenes.

This shop specializes in household items, including table decorations edged with St. Gallen lace. It also carries a selection of women's clothing with labels such as Hanro.

This boutique dominates the high end of fashion, with Balenciaga, Stella McCartney, Gucci, and Saint Laurent. There's also a men's shop at the same location.