317 Best Places to Shop in China

The Sheung Wan area is a quaint and pungent place to shop for traditional Chinese herbs and medicines, but this reliable Asia-wide chain—in operation since 1879—is a more straightforward and sanitized option. There are branches all over Hong Kong, including one past immigration in the airport's Terminal One.

Northwest of the Drum Tower, the Fabric Market sells silks, linens, and traditional cottons. Bargaining is necessary, but the prices are reasonable. Expect to pay Y50 to Y60 per meter of silk. Many vendors can also arrange tailoring.

This sprawling one-stop shop, just a stone's throw from the Kowloon Star Ferry terminal, carries a long list of high-profile and niche beauty brands. It can get overwhelmingly packed with tourists, so be prepared to rub elbows with other shoppers as you pick out your new lippie. 

Bookstores in China have come a long way, and now cater to the artsy and intellectual set. Located in the upscale TaiKoo Hui Mall, this bookstore offers a lot of open space, and a modish coffee bar where you can easily hook up with a laptop and latte.

This subterranean retail center contains literally hundreds of tiny shops all lit with colorful neon and hawking everything from bargain women's clothing and accessories to gems, jewelry, and beauty treatments like manicures and massages. A unique shopping experience (for the girls), it's great people-watching, too. Accessible directly from Xinjiekou subway station.

Fei Space more than holds its own against the other galleries in the 798 Art District, with a funky interior design and eclectic selection of clothes and housewares. Some of the fashion brands are unique to the store (including the first foray into China by Topshop and Topman), and all of them are uniformly stylish—and expensive. That includes the collection of jeans by Victoria Beckham.

Track down this tiny gem for secondhand CDs, DVDs, magazines, and wall-to-wall used books in English. The range is extraordinary, and the organizational system baffling, but the owner is knowledgeable, friendly, and willing to poke among the shelves for you. Books here average around HK$40, compared to a few hundred new.

Huge bucketfuls of roses and gerbera spill out onto the sidewalk along Flower Market Road, a collection of street stalls selling cut flowers and potted plants. Delicate orchids and vivid birds of paradise are some of the more exotic blooms. During Chinese New Year, there's a roaring trade in narcissi, poinsettias, and bright yellow chrysanthemums—all auspicious flowers.

A local favorite established in 1987, Fook Ming Tong is known for excellent service and high-quality longjing, oolong, and jasmine teas that have been painstakingly sourced by tea masters.

Fortress is a trusted staple when it comes to electronics shopping in Hong Kong. You can find the latest tech from computers, cameras, smartphones, and TVs to drones and beauty appliances here.

This Japanese home and living store has everything you'd need to equip your downtown apartment, from bookshelves to bubble bath. The funky, colorfully modern designs and intriguing gadgets will keep all types of shoppers entertained, and it's quite a feat to leave the store with empty hands.

This inexpensive chain carries men's and women's business wear. It's a great place to look for suits with matching shirts (and ties) for a good price. Expect a mix of city-chic and casual, and especially good fits for anyone petite.

The city's first gallery specializing in studio glass has a bilevel backdrop of modern glass sculptures by artists from Southeast Asia, Australia, and the United States. It has also branched out to include a variety of paintings from primarily Chinese-Australian artists—expect everything from watercolors to abstract, pop works to traditional oils. By appointment only.

This is the next-best option for midrange pearls if you can't make it to the Jade Market. Gallery One blends into Hollywood Road's backdrop of trinket-filled storefronts, but its selection of Japanese and freshwater pearls stands out. Prices are reasonable, and they will string together whichever combination of pearls and semiprecious stones you choose. Gallery One also carries Tibetan and Buddhist beads in wood and amber, as well as bronze sculptures.

Hong Kong's version of the Gap is the most established and ubiquitous local source for basic T-shirts, jeans, and casual wear. Like its U.S. counterpart, the brand now has a bit more fashion sense, but prices are still reasonable. Although the flagship store is in Manson House on Nathan Road, you'll have no problem finding one on almost every major street.

If Giordano is the Gap, giordano ladies is the Banana Republic, albeit with a more Zen aesthetic. Find clean-line modern classics in neutral black, gray, white, and beige; each collection is brightened by a soft highlight color, such as leafy green, indigo, or rusty orange. Everything is elegant enough for the office and comfortable enough for the plane.

This small shop in PMQ makes mah-jongg tiles with unique designs and themes, which are also customizable.

It's the most famous—some would say infamous—computer arcade in town. Know what you want before you go to avoid being dazed by the sheer volume of computer equipment and software.

Goldfish are thought to bring good luck in Hong Kong (though aquariums have to be properly positioned for maximum benefit), and this small collection of sellers is a favorite local source. Shop fronts are decorated with bags of glistening, pop-eyed creatures, waiting for someone to take them home. Some of the fish for sale inside are serious rarities and fetch unbelievable prices.

Elegant lacquerware makes a wonderful gift. The pieces sold here—tabletop items and picture frames among them—are reasonably priced and come in classic red and black as well as silver and gold. In addition to the Stanley Market store, there's a second one in Ap Lei Chau's Horizon Plaza.

The Grand Lisboa Palace’s 800,000-square-foot, multilevel mall is a sight to behold. The flagship CDF department store houses 170 brands and is a go-to for luxury items—watches, cosmetics, jewelry, fragrances—but NY8 New Yaohan is superior if you want to shop for souvenirs. This department store is filled with Macau exclusives and has a deluxe supermarket, which is a great place to pick up artisanal goods like cured meats, fine chocolates, and wine. If you want something local to bring home, don’t miss the Made in Macau shop on level one for clothes, gadgets, accessories, and food products.

This mega mall (one of the largest in Guangzhou) is worth a visit if you want to get a sense of Guangzhou's rapidly growing middle class. There are hundreds of stores, many of them well-known international chains including the likes of Nike, H&M, and Benefit.

Director and chief curator Henry Au-yeung writes about, curates, and gives lectures on 20th-century Chinese art. His tucked-away gallery focuses exclusively on local Chinese artists, with an interest in the newest and most avant-garde works. Look for paintings, sculptures, prints, mixed-media pieces, and conceptual installations.

If you head east down Zhongshan Xi Lu to Gulou (drum tower) Pedestrian Street, you'll come to a row of restored buildings packed with everything from inexpensive DVDs to tea to ceramics. In between the busy shops, there's the odd restaurant and night club. The area can get pretty crowded on weekends, but it is a great place to soak up modern Chinese culture while shopping for souvenirs.

Haizhu Plaza is a massive flea and souvenir market where casual shoppers and wholesale buyers alike bargain for kitsch—think toys, faux antiques, and Cultural Revolution–themed knickknacks. Merchants keep calculators at hand for entering figures in the heat of negotiation, and vendors sell a variety of snacks from carts located by the exits.

This shop is chock-full of luxury secondhand bags, all of them in excellent condition. Chanel lovers will appreciate their collection of vintage Chanel bags.

This is a rare opportunity to compare and contrast cutting-edge and experimental Chinese art selected by one of the field's most respected authorities. Unassuming curatorial director Johnson Chang Tsong-zung also cofounded the Asia Art Archive and has curated exhibitions at the São Paolo and Venice biennials.

Running alongside the Id Kah Mosque is a narrow lane known as Handicraft Street. In either direction you'll find merchants selling everything from bright copper kettles and wedding chests to Uyghur instruments and wood carvings.

When this legendary British retailer announced its Hong Kong opening, locals were skeptical, saying nothing would ever live up to the original London store. But Harvey Nicks quickly had them eating their (Philip Treacy) hats with the sheer volume of hypercool labels the store stocks. The menswear section has been a particularly big hit with local celebs, while local tai-tais (ladies who lunch) have declared the fourth-floor restaurant the place for mid-shopping-spree coffee breaks. The flagship store covers 83,000 glorious square feet; and there is a second sprawling location in Admiralty's Pacific Place.