At first glance, you may wonder
where to start when it comes to
shopping
in a big, chaotic city like
Rome. In fact the city is a more
appealing shopping experience
than you might think, abounding
with pleasant shopping streets
and colourful markets, most of
which are in the city centre.
Many shopping areas have been
pedestrianized, and, perhaps
best of all, the city hasn't yet
been entirely overrun by
department stores and shopping
malls, or by the international
chain stores that characterize
most European city centres.
One-stop shopping opportunities
are rare, but you will find
corners of the city that have
been colonized by stores
featuring the same sort of
merchandise - fashion, antiques,
food - making it easy for you to
check out the competition's
products and prices. You will
also find true artisans in Rome,
who take great pride in their
crafts.
You can find the best of
Italy in Rome. Fashion
straight from the catwalk is
well represented on the
fashionable streets close to the
Spanish Steps - Via Condotti,
Via Borgognona , and Via
Frattina - where you'll find
chic boutiques like Gucci, Prada
and Valentino. If you want to do
more than window-shop, head to Via
del Tritone , Via
Nazionale , below piazza
della Repubblica, or Via Cola
di Rienzo , near the
Vatican, for more middle-range
and affordable fashion. The
stores on and around Via del
Corso are a mixture, selling
mainstream, and fairly
youth-orientated, fashions,
while Via Veneto , off
Piazza Barberini, caters to
those who were youthful when
Fellini's La Dolce Vita
opened, and are now the
fashionably well-off patrons of
the street's expensive leather
shops and boutiques.
Antiques shops - a
huge selection - line Via dei
Coronari and neighbouring Via
dell'Orso and Via dei
Soldati , just north of
Piazza Navona; Via Giulia
, southwest of Campo dei Fiori,
and Via del Babuino and Via
Margutta , between Piazza
del Popolo and the Spanish
Steps, are also good sources of
art and antiques. As for food
, if you want to take home a
bottle of extra virgin olive oil
or some vacuum-packed porcini
mushrooms, end your day visiting
the food shops and markets
around Campo de' Fiori or
Via Cola di Rienzo across
the river.
The city's many markets
offer a change of pace from
Rome's busy shopping streets.
Many of these are bustling local
food markets, and, even in the
centre, are still very much part
of Roman life. The Campo de'
Fiori market is probably the
most central of these. Otherwise
there's Trastevere's Porta
Portese flea market, a venue
for antiques, clothing, books,
and indeed virtually anything
else, every Sunday morning.
These days some shops in the
centre of Rome stay open all
day. However, many still observe
the city's traditional hours
- Monday 3.30-7.30pm,
Tuesday-Saturday 9.30am-1.30pm
& 3.30-7.30pm, and closed on
Sunday. Food shops are also
often closed on Thursday
afternoon in the winter and
Saturday afternoon during the
summer; and most shops close for
at least two weeks in summer,
usually in August. Most places
accept all major credit cards
.
