Cathay Members’ Choice Awards 2024: World’s best shopping destination

Welcome to the Cathay Members’ Choice Awards: our flagship awards which celebrate everything that makes the world so amazing – as voted for by you, our global community of members. Discover the winner that captured your hearts – and your votes – as well as the contenders that made it to the shortlist. 

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Winner: Tokyo 

Tokyo’s reputation for shopping spans every interest under the sun. Those after high-end fashion and decor will find more than 200 luxury stores in glamorous Ginza. Shibuya and Harajuku house countless youth-oriented pop shops, while designer boutiques line uber-hip Daikanyama. With the yen at its lowest in decades, there has never been a better time to jet off to Japan’s capital for a shopping spree.

Seoul

Home to expansive malls and trend-setting street fashion, Seoul takes shopping to a whole new level. But retail therapy goes beyond Myeong-dong’s bustling street stores and malls. Whether you’re a bookworm exploring the depths of underground Coex Mall’s Starfield Library, a bargain hunter looking for the best deals in Lotte Mart or a K-pop fan celebrity-spotting on Cheongdam Fashion Street, South Korea’s capital will delight shoppers of all stripes. 

Paris

The global capital of fashion, Paris offers excellent shopping experiences for every budget. Fashion mavens will want to make a beeline to the world’s first department store, Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche, while vintage lovers will adore the world’s largest flea market in Saint-Ouen, where weekends turn the out-of-the-way neighbourhood into a vintage treasure trove. And then there’s the countless luxe boutiques on Champs-Élysées. A shopper’s paradise, indeed. 

Milan

Milan needs no introduction to fans of high fashion. Brands such as Prada, Gucci, Armani and Versace made their names in this sartorially minded northern Italian city, and that’s just the beginning. Milan has a burgeoning reputation for its creative concept stores, like 10 Corso Como. After exploring the high-end boutiques on Via Montenapoleone, visit destinations like the creative Lambrate district and the buzzing Isola flea market for a different side to Italy’s famed fashion hub.

New York City 

When it comes to shopping, this city has it all: historic department stores, designer ateliers, hole-in-the-wall vintage shops and cosy bookstores. Of course, Soho and Fifth Avenue have long been magnets for travellers with big budgets and an eye for style. Outside of Midtown, Canal Street exudes New York’s bargain-hunting free spirit, the West Village has a lovely collection of one-of-a-kind shops and Williamsburg delights with charming boutiques.