Top shopping neighborhoods in New York City

MIDTOWN

Herald Square & The Garment District: Herald Square -- where 34th Street, Sixth Avenue, and Broadway converge -- is dominated by Macy's, the self-proclaimed world's biggest department store. At Sixth Avenue and 33rd Street is the Manhattan Mall (tel. 212/465-0500; www.manhattanmallny.com), home to mall standards like LensCrafters and Radio Shack.

A long block over on Seventh Avenue, not much goes on in the grimy, heavily industrial Garment District. This is, however, where you'll find that quintessential New York experience called the sample sale.

Times Square & The Theater District: You won't find much to entice the serious shopper here, since you can find most of the goods that are sold here back home. The best of the Times Square stores is Richard Branson's rollicking Virgin Megastore, and the fabulous Toys "R" Us flagship on Broadway and 44th Street, which even has its own full-scale Ferris wheel.

West 47th Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues is the city's famous Diamond District.

You'll also notice a wealth of electronics stores throughout the neighborhood, many suspiciously trumpeting GOING OUT OF BUSINESS sales. These guys have been going out of business since the Stone Age. That's the bait and switch; pretty soon you've spent too much money for not enough stereo. If you want to check out what they have to offer, go in knowing the going price on that PDA or digital camera you're interested in. You can make a good deal if you know exactly what the market is, but these guys will be happy to suck you dry given half a chance.

Fifth Avenue & 57th Street: The heart of Manhattan retail ranges up Fifth Avenue to 57th Street and across. Time was, only the very rich could shop these sacred crossroads. Such is not the case anymore, now that Tiffany & Co., which has long reigned supreme here, sits a stone's throw from Niketown and the NBA Store and the huge Louis Vuitton flagship store at the corner of 57th Street and Fifth Avenue. In addition, a good number of mainstream retailers, like Banana Republic, have flagships along Fifth, further democratizing the avenue. Still, you will find a number of big-name, big-ticket designers radiating from the crossroads, including Versace, Chanel, Dior, and Cartier. You'll also find big-name jewelers along here, as well as chi-chi department stores like Bergdorf Goodman, Henri Bendel, and Saks Fifth Avenue, all of which help the avenue maintain its classy cachet.

Mall with a View: The Shops at Columbus Circle mall, located in the Time Warner Center, features not only some of the biggest (and most expensive) names in retail, it also offers shopping with a view of Central Park. Located just off the southwest corner of Central Park, the mall is 2 city blocks long and four stories high. But does the picturesque view really matter to the shoppers who set their sights on the goods at retailers like Williams Sonoma, A/X Armani Exchange, Coach, Hugo Boss, Joseph Abboud, Eileen Fisher, Thomas Pink, Border's Books, and the massive 59,000-square-foot Whole Foods Supermarket? For more information, and a complete list of stores, check the mall's website at www.shopsatcolumbus.com or call tel. 212/823-6300.

UPTOWN

Madison Avenue: Madison Avenue from 57th to 79th streets has usurped Fifth Avenue as the tony shopping street in the city; in fact, it boasts the most expensive retail real estate in the world. Bring lots of plastic. This ultradeluxe strip -- particularly in the high 60s -- is home to the most luxurious designer boutiques, with Barneys New York as the anchor.

For those of us without unlimited budgets, the good news is that stores like Crate & Barrel and the Ann Taylor flagship make the untouchable Madison Avenue seem approachable and affordable.

Upper West Side: The Upper West Side's best shopping street is Columbus Avenue. Small shops catering to the neighborhood's white-collar mix of young hipsters and families line both sides of the pleasant avenue from 66th Street (where you'll find an excellent branch of Barnes & Noble) to about 86th Street. Highlights include Maxilla & Mandible for museum-quality natural science-based gifts, and Harry's Shoes, but you won't lack for good browsing along here. The Shops at Columbus Circle also offers a world of upscale choices for shopping.

Boutiques also dot Amsterdam Avenue, but main-drag Broadway is most notable for its terrific gourmet edibles at Zabar's and Fairway markets.

Shopping One Two Five Street: Maybe it was the arrival of Bill Clinton on the block. Or maybe it's just part of a Harlem renaissance. Whatever the reason, 125th Street is more vibrant than ever; a true shopping thoroughfare, especially on the blocks between St. Nicholas Avenue and Fifth Avenue. Big chains like Old Navy, The Children's Store, H&M, The Body Shop, Starbucks, and Modell's have recently set up franchises on 125th. Not everyone is happy with this retail gentrification, believing that Harlem might be losing its identity. But sprinkled among the big names are still plenty of stores that represent that unique Harlem character. Hip-hop boutiques like Jimmy Jazz, 239 West 125th St., near Frederick Douglass Boulevard (tel. 212/664-2877), and Dr. Jay's at 256 W. 125th St., between Lenox and Seventh avenues (tel. 212/665-7795), and Jersey Man Cap, USA 112 W. 125th St., between Lenox and Fifth avenues (tel. 212/222-7942), where you can get anything from a Kangol cap to Girbaud Femme are mainstays on The Street. Since 1979, the 125th St. Record Shack at 274 W. 125th St., between Lenox Avenue and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard, has been selling jazz, gospel, R&B, doo-wop, and hip-hop, the music usually carrying well out into the already loud street.

At the West African importer African Paradise, 27 W. 125th St., at Lenox Avenue (tel. 212/410-5294), you'll find all the supplies you'll ever need for ancestral worship.

On your shopping tour, you might get hungry -- and there is no shortage of places to eat. Skip the usual fast-food options and try the local grub at places like the M&G Diner, 383 W. 125th St., at St. Nicholas Avenue (tel. 212/864-7325), where you'll get some of the best fried chicken in the city. For coffee, some fine pie, and even a martini, don't miss Wimp's Southern-Style Bakery, Skye Café and Martini Bar, 29 W. 125th St., between Fifth and Lenox avenues (tel. 212/410-2296). For a cultural diversion, stop in at the Studio Museum in Harlem, 144 W. 125 St., between Lenox Avenue and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard (tel. 212/864-4500), which also features an interesting gift shop.

THE OUTER BOROUGHS

Brooklyn is becoming a shopping destination in its own right, and the best can be found in Williamsburg. To get to the prime shopping in Williamsburg, take the L train, which runs across 14th Street, and get off at the first stop in Brooklyn, Bedford Avenue. Walk out of the subway towards Bedford (not Driggs). Most of the shops in Williamsburg are on Bedford, including the vintage music and clothing store Beacon's Closet, 88 N. 11th St. (tel. 718/486-0816); Metaphors, 195 Bedford Ave. (tel. 718/782-0917), a New-Age gift shop that also carries women's clothing and lingerie; and Crypto, 154 Bedford Ave. (tel. 718/486-6779), for ultrahip clothing and accessories. The Bedford Avenue Mini Mall, 218 Bedford Ave. (tel. 718/302-9337; www.miniminimarket.com), has a conglomerate of stores, including Spoonbill & Sugartown Booksellers (tel. 718/387-7332), purveyors of art and architecture books, and Otte (tel. 718/302-3007), where you can find Juicy Couture and Cosa Bella underwear.

The other burgeoning area in Brooklyn is DUMBO (that's Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass), and high-end stores are beginning to move in, including Jacques Torres Chocolates, and a warehouse outlet of ABC Carpet, 20 Jay St. (tel. 718/643-7400; www.abchome.com).

There is not much fine shopping in any of the other boroughs, with the very notable exception of the Arthur Avenue Retail Market located in the Little Italy of the Bronx.

For a complete listing of Frommer's-reviewed stores, visit our online shopping index.

Frommer’s is America’s bestselling travel guide series. Visit Frommers.com to find great deals, get information on over 3,500 destinations, and book your trip. © 2006 Wiley Publishing, Inc. Republication or redistribution of Frommer's content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Wiley.

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