Famous Bookshops
Wanna buy a book in a local shop while traveling ? Or just wanna ba amazed by original and sweet places ? Check out these famous bookstores and make sure to pass by when you're in the specific city.
Livraria Lello, Porto, Portugal.
Opened in 1906 by two brothers, José and António Lello, and designed by architect Xavier Esteves, this is maybe the most beautiful bookstore of the world. It became famous and very touristic thanks to J.K. Rowling describing it in her adventures of Harry Potter.
They charge 5€ for an entry that can be recouped if you buy a book.
Atlantis Books, Oía, Santorini, Greece.
This bookstore got the best view than any other one, facing to the Aegean Sea.
City Lights Books, San Francisco, USA.
Founded in 1953 by poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, City Lights has became an important tourist spot since S.F named it an official historic landmark in 2001.
Selexyz Dominicanen, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
In 2005, architecture firm Merkx + Girod turned this 13th-century church into this unique Bookstore.
Shakespeare and Company, Paris, France.
Often described as the most famous bookstore of the world, Shakespeare and Company was founded in 1919 but changed 3 times its location in Paris. A classic. THE classic.
El Ateneo Grand Splendid, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
El Ateneo opened in 2000 in a theater that was built in 1919, famous at this time for its Tango performances, then converted in a cinema.
Libreria Acqua Alta, Venice, Italy.
Founded in 2004 by Luigi Frizzo, this bookshop is famous for being "floating". Actually, BOOKS, kept in bathtubs, plastic bins, and a gondola, are floating when comes Acqua Alta, (Venice’s famous periodic high water).
Honesty Bookshop, Hay-on-Wye, Wales, UK.
Here, all the little town of Hay-on-Wye is a bookstores with almost 40 shops for 1400 residents. A huge outdoor store with books sold for 1€.
The Strand, New York City, NY, USA.
The Strand was originally 48 bookstores reunited in 5 blocks of NY in 1927 by Lithuanian immigrant Benjamin Bass. It is now a unique store, famous for its huge collection of books, both old and new.
Les Bouquinistes, Paris, France.
Les bouquinistes de Paris are booksellers present in both sides of the Seine river in the French capital. You will find here over 300 000 books but only old ones and second hand.