Shopping in Aylesbury

There are 5 main shopping areas in Aylesbury town centre, Friars Square, Hayle Leys, The Cloisters, the High Street and the Market Square. All the areas are centred around the market square.

Friars Square

The newest of the shopping centres in Aylesbury this is located next to the market square and above The Cloisters. The centre is accessible from the market via The Cloisters by lift and escalator, via a road which leads to the market and directly from the bus station via lift and stairs. The centre is wheel chair accessible with a lift to the first floor. The are toilets, baby change and feeding and a cash machine.
The centre has two display areas which are used by visiting exhibits, charities and companies, at the moment they house the Christmas display and Santa's grotto. As well as these the centre offers activities during school holidays some free such as make and take or magic shows and some for which there is a charge such as face painting or bouncy castles. There are also small stalls around the centre selling crafts from independent retailers.
The selection of shops is similar to those in all shopping centres with the usual mix of high street chains stores. The centre is the main fashion shopping area in Aylesbury and home to among others River Island, New Look and Burtons. Other stores include Thorntons, H Samuals, Superdrug, la Senza, Monsoon, Game and two department stores, BHS and House of Fraiser. For refreshments there are two restaurants and a coffee shop.

The Cloisters

Formally the underground market The Cloisters is home to small independent shops. Here you will find among others an old fashioned sweet shop, toy shop, pet store, art gallery and jewellers. There is also a cafe which serves the best jacket potatoes in town!

The Market

The centre of Aylesbury town centre holds markets on Monday, Tuesday (secondhand market), Friday and Saturday. As well as a monthly farmers market and visiting French market. The market has clothes stalls, two fruit and veg stalls, a burger van (which does late nights Friday and Saturday for those end of night kebabs), two flower stalls, a card stall and a bag stall. The stalls n the market are long established and you can count on them being in their regular spot every time. The goods on the market are of good quality especially Holly's Petals which makes bespoke bouquets to order. Finally a special mention must be made for the dinky donut man who is a favourite with all.

Hayle Leys

Oldest Shopping centre in Aylesbury it is home mostly to house hold names such as Next, Boots, Accessories, Evans and Clarks but also has an independent clothes store. The centre is smallish but the stores are of a good size and there is always a good buzz in the centre helped by a coffee stall in the middle of the centre. Hayle Leys can be accessed via the High Street and market square.

High Street

Here you will find the usual mix of household names, Marks & Spencer, W H Smith, Clintons, The Abbey, Iceland, The Body Shop and of course Mac Donalds. The street is not pedestrianised but the top of the street has vehicle access restricted by a pass scheme open only to those with disabled car stickers. The High Street is part of the 'old' Aylesbury and some of the buildings are quite beautiful, the stores have adapted to the building s to keep the old architecture.

My Aylesbury

There are of course other smaller ares I have left out but these are the main areas for shopping. I enjoy shopping in Aylesbury, it has all the stores you need but is not as big as some of the larger shopping towns or centres. The separate areas all have their own atmospheres which are great to soak up by sitting in a coffee shop. The mix of modern shopping centres and old High Street add to the charm and experience of shopping in this unique mix of old and new.