When I went abroad, I collected a lot of items…my favorite being outfits! Shopping abroad is always an exciting experience because you discover unique pieces and local styles.
When you are studying in a different country, you learn a lot about yourself. I was able to take shopping abroad to a level that goes beyond just tourist traps and whatever you can get to in a couple of days or a week of travel. Instead, after living in Florence, I developed my own personal style, consisting of vintage, thrift, and budget-friendly items I found across Europe!
My friends who studied in different countries across Europe and beyond also had a lot of fun developing their fashion style and shopping abroad.
So, after interviewing my most fashionable friends who also studied across Europe and beyond, I have created the best vintage, trendy, sustainable, and budget-friendly guide to vamping up your style and shopping abroad!
The best vintage in Florence
One of my proudest discoveries while studying abroad in Florence was the vast amount of vintage and thrift stores!
My favorite vintage store in Florence was Melrose, Vintage (Via de’ Ginori, 18r, 50123 Firenze FI, Italy). Their Instagram is @melrosevintagestorefirenze.
This store’s vibe is off the charts! Whether it be the funky jean purses, the amazing Italian leather jackets, or the unique collection of cowboy boots, this store caught my eye from across the street!
What really excited me about this store was the cowboy boots, because it was the first time I saw Western American trends abroad. I left all of my cowgirl boots in America when I went abroad because I didn’t think that the Western cowgirl chic trend had hit Europe, but for all the girls who haven’t gone abroad yet, leave some room in your suitcase for more cowgirl boots!
One of my favorite parts about this store was how kind and friendly the staff were! The woman working there when I went was so sweet. I practiced speaking some Italian with her, but she also spoke perfect English.
The shop worker there convinced me to buy this beautiful pink cashmere sweater for only 30 euros, which is pretty cheap for cashmere! She was not one of those salespeople who would just sell you something to sell it; she really gave me great ways to style it, and when I tried on clothes, she told me what was cute and what wasn’t while keeping in mind my coloring, vibe, and fashion style. She really made my shopping experience so much better, and it made me want to keep shopping there, which I did!
More vintage in Florence
Another one of my favorite vintage stores in Florence was Humana Vintage, which has locations throughout Italy and all of Europe. The Instagram for Italy’s Humana Vintage is @humanavintageitalia.
This is the perfect place to shop if you want nice Italian leather but have a college student’s salary. Humana had some of the best-quality vintage leather jackets I had ever seen, all budget-friendly and in great condition!
Although I never bought a leather jacket from Humana, many of my friends did, as well as regular great staple jackets for the colder months in Europe. For instance, my friend Riley Tsung, another Cal Poly student studying in Florence, bought her favorite extremely comfy oversized jacket from Humana in the image above!
Sydney Guy, another Cal Poly junior studying abroad in Barcelona, who is an avid thrifter in both the U.S. and abroad, swears by Humana, where she collected this beautiful patterned orange skirt seen in the image below!
Humana’s location in Florence had the most distinctive design, which made me want to shop there even more!
The whole store had a ’60s vibe with a vintage television set broadcasting old videos of people in the ’60s at dances and other events, reminding me of the movie Grease!
Florence’s flea markets
My favorite place to find vintage items in Florence was the city’s vintage markets. Florence had many vintage markets, usually open on weekends, with extremely unique and thrifted items, as well as some new and trendy ones.
In the winter time, Florence has Christmas markets located at the Piazza Santa Croce market! These markets had many vendors selling different items- my favorite being clothing!
I was able to buy some of my warmest and cutest winter items at the Christmas markets, such as my balaclava, multiple gloves, and ear muffs!
For my Italian class, we even got to visit the markets and interview vendors about their experience living in Florence!
Florence’s trendy side
Florence not only had some of the best vintage options abroad but some of the best trendy staples as well!
Terra Myers, a Cal Poly student studying in Alicante, Spain, swears by the fashion in Florence.
The Florence fashion was so sophisticated and classy. Everyone looked put together, even the dogs looked put together.
Terra Myers
My favorite trendy store in Florence and maybe even in all of Europe would have to be Zara, and many other students agree!
My favorite store abroad was Zara because they had a lot of basics that fit really well, but also really unique pieces for going out that I don’t really see in the U.S.
Sydney Guy
Below is a picture of one of the many unique Zara tops that Sydney wore when visiting Morocco.
My favorite part about the Zara in Florence was the halter going-out tops. They paired perfectly with black mini skirts and black Steve Madden boots. I always felt like a classy Zara top elevated my style and made me fit in with the classy, elegant style seen throughout Florence!
Some other chain stores my friends and I loved shopping at in Florence were H&M and Brandy Melville.
Riley Tsung swears by the Florence Brandy and Zara, saying that they are the best ones in all of Europe!
In addition to shopping, Florence also deepened my understanding of fashion as a whole.
For my sociology class, we visited the Gucci Museum, where we learned about the history of Gucci and Florence’s influence on the fashion industry, which made me appreciate the city’s style on a much deeper level.
I also went to this museum several times for fun because of how many of the beautiful pieces it has, like the details on the scarves and the dresses.
Italy, city by city, not just Florence
While Florence was my favorite Italian city for its vintage and thrifted finds, other Italian cities had their own unique shopping strengths.
Bologna, a city just North of Florence, stood out for its amazing H&M. This H&M had noticeably more high-quality and trendy options compared to the U.S. and even more variety than in Florence. This is a great budget-friendly shopping option with some nice quality and chic clothing!
Rome was known for its antique and vintage shopping. Although I unfortunately never made it to Rome myself, Terra Myers noted that “Rome had a lot of cute vintage and antique stores”, which coincides with Rome’s timeless, historic atmosphere and made the experience feel more curated and less trend-driven.
Venice and nearby Murano, which I had the pleasure of visiting twice, had some of the best Zaras I had been to throughout Europe. With great going-out tops and cute mini skirts, Venice surprised me with its great Zara finds, even in a city known more for its beautiful scenery and glass-making than shopping.
Why Munich deserved more time in my suitcase
I would say out of all of the places I’ve traveled, I did the least amount of shopping in Munich, Germany.
As I was only there for Oktoberfest, there was limited shopping time. However, Munich had the best Brandy Melville I had been to abroad, with more varieties and better pieces than anything I had come across in the U.S. or even at the Italian stores.
One of the most memorable shopping experiences of the trip had nothing to do with typical stores.
Buying traditional dirndls for Oktoberfest ended up being one of the most fun and unique parts of the trip! The outfits were adjusted specifically to your body, making them both flattering and authentic. The women who worked there were so nice and shared the exciting traditions that made the experience even more special, like tying your apron bow differently depending on whether you are single or not.
Even better, many shops like the one I went to offered affordable rentals, allowing you to wear the full outfit for the day and return it later, which made the experience both accessible and practical for students who most likely won’t need these outfits again.
Munich really proved how important the experience is when shopping, not just what you buy.
Amalfi finds worth the splurge
The Amalfi Coast was the most scenic and beautiful place I visited, and the shopping definitely matched the aesthetic!
Boutique stores lined the streets with carefully curated pieces, many of which felt more elevated and high-quality than what I had found in larger cities!
My favorite store was the famous “CB store” in Postiano, which had the most beautiful pattern designs on dresses and bags, as seen in the photo above. My friends and I all bought dresses from the CB store (seen in the image above) and were so happy with our purchases, as they are so elegant, classy, and really made us feel like we fit in with the elevated coastal chic style of the Amalfi Coast.
However, the biggest thing to keep in mind is the price. Shopping on the Amalfi Coast is definitely more of a splurge experience. While the pieces are beautiful, they come at a higher cost, making it a place where you want to be intentional with what you buy.
That being said, I truly do believe those beautiful patterned dresses and bags at the CB store were worth every penny.
Spain: the Zara capital of the world
If there’s one country that completely lived up to the hype when it came to shopping abroad, it was Spain.
Between Madrid, Barcelona, and smaller cities like Alicante and Valencia, Spain offered the perfect mix of trendy, affordable, and accessible fashion, especially for students! Whether it was big-name stores like Zara or hidden vintage gems, especially in Madrid, there was always a unique and cute clothing piece to find.
Zara in Spain felt completely different than the U.S., not just in style but in scale, and the selection was even stronger than Florence, especially when it came to jackets and standout pieces.
Above is a picture of me in Paris wearing my most prized clothing item I bought abroad: my coat from Zara in Barcelona.
This coat immediately stood out to me as it looked so chic and also kept me surprisingly warm, even in Winter in Paris. I loved this jacket because I could choose whether or not I could wear it buttoned up or not, which made it so I could make it warmer or more sophisticated depending on the occasion.
I still wear this jacket in the U.S. and love how you can dress it down or up with your other clothes.
Shopping outside of Barcelona
Even smaller cities in Spain surprised students with their vast amount of clothing options.
Terra Myers states, “Honestly, Alicante was on top for me in terms of Zara,” which shows that you don’t even need to be in a major city in Spain to find great options.
Madrid, in particular, stood out for its variety. According to Claire Stetson, a Cal Poly student studying abroad in Madrid, out of all of the places she visited, Madrid was the “most diverse” and with the “most amount of options” depending on your style.
One of the best areas for vintage shopping was Malasaña, where Claire Stetson found stores like Magpie, Disco Cherry, Kinda Kinks, and Neare.
Above is a picture of Claire at one of her favorite vintage stores in Madrid, Disco Cherry, where she met the American actor and musician Dylan Minette.
Spain also offered some of the most budget-friendly options abroad.
“I’ve never bought a jacket for $24 before, having that many affordable options was refreshing”-Terra Myers
However, not everything matched expectations.
“I had heard everything was really cheap, but that wasn’t true; thrift stores and flea markets are cheaper, but most stores are pretty similar to U.S. prices.”-Claire Stetson
Overall, Spain stood out as one of the best places to shop abroad!
This was not just because of the variety, but because it balanced trendy, affordable, and accessible fashion in a way that felt perfect for students when shopping abroad.
Valencia: the hidden shopping gem in Spain
While cities like Madrid and Barcelona tend to get most of the attention, Valencia stood out as one of the most underrated shopping destinations abroad.
“Valencia is top tier! They had everything: Zara, Bershka, and even mini thrift stores”-Terra Myers
Compared to other cities, Valencia felt less overwhelming but still had plenty of variety, making it easy to find both trendy pieces and unique items in one place when shopping abroad.
It struck the perfect balance between big-city shopping and a more relaxed, accessible experience, which showed that some of the best finds abroad aren’t always in the most obvious locations.
Switzerland: where everything is cute and costs more
Switzerland was easily the most expensive place I visited, and that’s something I wish I had known beforehand!
Compared to other countries, shopping in Switzerland didn’t feel practical for students on a budget. While everything looked high-quality and well-made, the prices made it more of a place for window shopping rather than actual purchases.
If anything, Switzerland serves as a reminder that not every destination is worth prioritizing for shopping, and that is ok because there was so much more to Switzerland than the clothes.
Whether it was visiting the bears in Bern, the cuddly cows in Grindelwald, or simply enjoying the mountain view during sunset, Switzerland was a beautiful place, just not a beautiful place for a college student’s bank account.
A weekend in London
Even with only a short time in London, it was clear that the city takes fashion seriously. Between Zara, Brandy Melville, and other popular stores, there were endless options.
However, the shopping experience was so crowded that it could feel a little intense.
We went to London, and the Brandy was pretty good, but there was a line just to get in, which was kind of funny; they didn’t really have many London-specific items, though… so that was kind of an L
Riley Tsung
Our favorite part about going to each Brandy Melville was seeing the items they had specific to each city: for instance, in Florence, we had sweatshirts that said “Firenze”.
However, in London, as Riley was explaining, there weren’t very many cute sweatshirts or tops that said “London”, except for one that I bought, which took me over an hour to find.
Still, the shopping was delivered. London felt fast-paced, trend-driven, and full of variety, making it easy to find pieces that stood out.
Saved the best for last: Paris!
“Paris had the best shopping overall; it was the most chic and classy”
Claire Stetson
From vintage stores to large retail spaces, Paris offered the perfect mix of unique and elevated pieces!
“We did so much shopping when we went to Paris…It was great, did a lot of vintage stores and went to the Urban Outfitters there…It was huge too,”-Riley Tsung
Even familiar stores felt different abroad.
“Paris had the best Brandy Melville! It was huge and not too crowded, had an organized layout, a ton of options for clothes, kind employees, and nice dressing rooms with lots of mirrors!”-Claire Stetson (whom I met up with in Paris!)
Paris wasn’t just about shopping; it was about style.
Everything felt intentional, polished, and effortlessly put together, making it one of the most inspiring places to shop.
What we wish we knew before
One of the biggest takeaways from studying abroad is that shopping isn’t always what you expect.
As explained earlier by Claire Stetson, although everyone is told “everything is cheaper abroad,” that is not always the case, as that tends to only be true for some flea markets and thrift stores, and for Terra Myers, some of the jackets in Spain.
Budgeting also becomes more important than you think.
“I wish I knew how to convert euros to dollars better. When you’re on a budget, even a few dollars make a difference.”-Claire Stetson
It’s also easy to fall into the trap of overbuying.
I went in with the mindset of ‘when else am I going to be here?’ which made me buy a lot of random things”
Riley Tsung
At the same time, some purchases are worth it.
“It’s worth investing in pieces that are actually unique; they remind you of where you were and feel more meaningful than something everyone else has”-Sydney Guy
The biggest lesson when shopping abroad, you may ask? Bring your basics from home and save room in your suitcase for the clothing pieces that tell a story!
Elizabeth Silver
April 21, 2026 at 5:54 am
Amazing article! Makes me
want to go
shopping!