London's Shopping Mecca (Oxford Street, London)

Member Name: Zmugzy

Product:	Oxford Street, London
Date:	26/11/08 (138 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: You can shop like mad

Disadvantages: It's long

Oxford Street is one of London's major thoroughfares. The street follows along the same route of an old Roman road called the via Trinobantina. This originally formed a connecting route between Colchester and Hampshire. Over the centuries it gradually transformed into one of London's major gateways and it is now claimed to be one of the busiest shopping streets in Europe.

Oxford Street presents an ideal shopping experience, one of the best in London. It is probably best known for its Selfridges department store, but there are many other renowned department stores, which are all found in the section from Marble Arch to Oxford Circus, along with most of the big-name multinationals. There are also a multitude of smaller shops and stores that include jewellers, hairdressers, electrical goods, travel shops, speciality stores and fashion shops. At present most shops stay open until about 9pm. Some open Sunday 12 to 6pm with late nights on Thursday. Each Christmas is a good period to go shopping because each festive season the street is decorated with lights. In mid-to-late November a celebrity gets to switch on the lights and they remain lit until the 6th of January.

Its easy to get there by any means of transport and from anywhere across London, but probably the best way is by tube. There are a number of lines and stations that will get you there. Bond Street via the Central Line / Jubilee Line, Marble Arch via the Central Line and Oxford Circus via the Bakerloo Line / Central Line / Victoria Line are probably the best options.

Oxford Street is a long street measuring one and a half miles from one end to the other. Therefore it can be a tiring experience trudging down this shopping Mecca. It is easy however, to hop on one of the many red London buses that run along the street. Luckily if you want to take refuge from a busy shopping routine you'll find plenty of places to stop off for a bite to eat or a cup of coffee. My favourite place to go for a cappuccino is Café Nero at 48 Oxford Street. If you're living outside London and would like to take a closer look now you can visit a webcam page on http://www.streamdays.com/camera/view/oxford-stree t-london.

Summary: The busiest shopping street in Europe.