There is something magical about wandering through rows of books in an unfamiliar best cities for bookstore. The scent of paper, the murmur of fellow raiders, and the promise of discovering local authors can make any journey more meaningful. For those who pack their suitcases with extra space for literary souvenirs, specific destinations shine brighter than others.
Here is a list of 20 cities around the world where book lovers can indulge their passion while travelling. Each offers a unique literary travel experience that goes beyond the ordinary tourist path.
1. Portland, Oregon, USA
Portland flaunts more independent bookstores per capita than any other American city. Powell’s City of Books stands as the crown jewel, occupying an entire city block with over one million new and used books. The city embraces a reading culture, with dozens of neighbourhood bookshops, the capital of the world, each with its own character and specialised collections. Local cafés often have characteristic book exchange shelves. Thus, allowing you to trade your finished read for something new without spending time.
2. Paris, France
The Left Bank of Paris has been a literary haven for centuries, with Shakespeare and Company serving as the city’s historic heart of anglophone literature. Beyond this famous landmark, hundreds of independent bookstores and travel destinations line the narrow streets, many specialising in rare editions or specific genres. Parisians still embrace physical books, and you will spot locals reading in parks, cafés and along the Seine, where the bouquinistes have operated their iconic green stalls since the 16th century.
3. Buenos Aires, Argentina
With more bookstores per person than any other city in the world, Buenos Aires earned its nickname as the city for book lovers. El Ateneo Grand Splendid transforms a 100-year-old theatre into a magnificent bookstore, where the stage now serves as a café. The city hosts the annual International Book Fair, attracting over one million visitors. Libraries throughout San Telmo and Palermo neighbourhoods once hosted famous writers like Jorge Luis Borges and now welcome travellers seeking intellectual conversation.
4. Tokyo, Japan
Tokyo’s Jimbocho district is home to over 150 bookstores and travel destinations, packed into a few city blocks, creating a paradise for bibliophiles. Massive multi-story bookstores like Tsutaya’s flagship locations offer coffee shops, reading lounges and expertly curated collections. The city’s unique book culture includes pristine used bookstores where volumes are treated with reverence, as well as specialised shops focusing on manga, art books, or vintage materials. Tokyo’s train commuters are famously devoted to reading, making cities for book lovers a visible part of daily life.
5. Edinburgh, Scotland
Edinburgh takes its book culture seriously as the world’s first UNESCO City of Literature. The city for book lovers inspired countless authors, from Robert Louis Stevenson to J.K. Rowling, who wrote early drafts of Harry Potter in local cafés. The annual Edinburgh International Book Festival transforms Charlotte Square into a reader’s utopia each August. Independent shops, such as Armchair Books and Lighthouse Bookshop, maintain the bookselling tradition that dates back centuries in this historic city.
6. Mexico City, Mexico
The sprawling metropolis houses hundreds of bookstores and travel destinations, from tiny neighbourhood shops to massive cultural centres. Biblioteca Vasconcelos, nicknamed the Megabiblioteca, has hanging bookshelves that seem to float in space. Cafebreria El Pendulo combines a bookstore with cafe culture in several locations. The annual Feria Internacional del Libro welcomes millions of visitors, while Sunday book markets in the parks allow hunters to discover rare Spanish-language finds at affordable prices.
7. Melbourne, Australia
Melbourne’s vivacious literary scene in the literary travel cities centres around independent bookstores that double as community hubs. Reading the city’s beloved local chain hosts regular events featuring both international and Australian authors. The Nocholas Building houses several speciality art, design and poetry bookshops. Melbourne earned its UNESCO City of Literature designation through its support of writers, readers, and the dozens of bookstores, as well as walking tours that range from massive emporiums to tiny, specialised shops tucked away in laneways.
8. Hay on Wye, Wales
Through sheer determination, this tiny market town transformed into a global destination for book lovers. With approximately two dozen bookstores serving a population of 1,500, Hay-on-Wye has the highest concentration of bookstores per capita in the best cities for bookstores. The annual Hay Festival draws literary celebrities and thousands of readers each spring. Shops specialise in everything from rare first editions to paperwork mysteries, making this small Welsh town a required pilgrimage for serious bibliophiles.
9. Seattle, Washington, USA
Despite being home to Amazon, Seattle maintains a thriving independent bookstore culture. Elliott Bay Book Company serves as the flagship, with its warm wooden shelves and packed event calendar. From the technical focus of Ada's Technical Books to the progressive politics of Left Bank Books, all of the city's iconic bookshop neighbourhoods support their own unique shops. Seattle’s rainy climate creates the perfect excuse ot spend hours browsing shelves, and many stores include comfortable reading nooks with views of the surrounding mountains and water.
10. St Petersburg, Russia
The intellectual heart of Russia flaunts bookstores that reflect its grand architectural heritage. The Singer House, home to the magnificent Dom Kingi, combines Art Nouveau style with extensive collections of Russian and international literature. The city’s literary travel cities tradition runs deep; Dostoevsky, Pushkin, and Nabokov walked these streets, and today’s bookstores often feature small museums or historical displays. Small independent shops specialising in art books, rare editions and foreign languages can be found throughout the historic centre.
11. Kolkata, India
College Street, known locally as Boi Para, stretches for nearly a kilometre, with hundreds of book stalls and shops ranging from hawkers to multi-storey businesses. This paradise for budget-conscious cities for book lovers offers a wide selection of books, from textbooks to Bengali classics, at affordable prices. The nearby historic coffeehouse has hosted intellectual debates among writers and academics for generations. Kolkata's annual international book fair is one of the largest in the world, attracting millions of visitors and hundreds of publishers.
12. Lisbon, Portugal
The world's oldest operating bookstore, Bertrand, anchors Lisbon's book culture. The city's literary travel tradition combines with cafe society in places like Ler Devagar, housed in a former printing factory with books stacked ot the ceiling. The charming Livraria Simão operates in what might be the world's smallest bookstore, measuring just 43 square feet. Throughout Lisbon, tiny bookstores specialising in poetry, history, and Portuguese literature nestle between pastel-coloured buildings, offering quiet refuges from bustling streets.
13. Prague, Czech Republic
Prague is one of the best cities for bookstore culture, reflecting its literary heritage with shops located in stunning historical buildings. The Municipal Library's book tower — a vertical tunnel formed from stacked books with mirrors that create the illusion — has become an Instagram favourite. Shakespeare and Sons combines English language books with bagels, creating a cosy expat hub. Czech bookstores often feature comfortable armchairs and in-house cafes, encouraging visitors to linger over the country's literary treasures that have inspired writers for centuries, particularly in iconic bookshop neighbourhoods.
14. Amsterdam, Netherlands
Amsterdam's canal-side bookstores create some of the most picturesque browsing experiences anywhere. The American Book Centre occupies a prime spot with multiple floors of English-language titles. Speciality stores abound, including architecture-focused Architecture and Nature and photography-centred. The Spui square hosts a Friday book market where dealers display rare and antiquarian finds. Dutch bookstores and travel destinations typically offer excellent English sections, making this an ideal destination for travellers seeking readable souvenirs.
15. Lagos, Nigeria
As Africa's publishing powerhouse, Lagos supports a vibrant book culture centred in areas like Yaba and Festac. Terra Kulture combines the best cities for a bookstore, an art gallery, and a cultural centre, focusing on Nigerian and pan-African literature. The Jazzhole mixes books with music in a beloved cultural institution. While glossy modern bookshops exist in upscale malls, the real treasure lies in the sprawling outdoor book markets where vendors sell everything from textbooks to romance novels, often at negotiable prices that make building a collection affordable.
16. Boston, Massachusetts, USA
America's intellectual cradle maintains its literary travel cities reputation through independent bookstores scattered throughout its historic neighbourhoods. Harvard Book Store has served the academic community for over 80 years, hosting thoughtful, lively, and regular author events. The Brattle Book Shop has been operating since 1825 and features three floors of used and antiquarian books, as well as an outdoor sale lot. Boston's academic density means specialised bookstores thrive here, focusing on topics from politics to poetry.
17. Berlin, Germany
Berlin's turbulent history has created a unique bookstore travel destination landscape, where shops often occupy unexpected spaces, such as former factories and repurposed squats. Historic Berlin invites people to its carefully organised collection, spanning eight connected rooms. The city embraces English language literature at shops Shakespeare and Sons and St George's. Berlin's counterculture influences its book scene, with many stores focusing on progressive politics, underground arts, and avant-garde literature that is unavailable elsewhere.
18. Barcelona, Spain
Barcelona best city for book lovers, combining Mediterranean charm with serious literary Credentials. La Central houses over 80,000 titles in a stunning modernist building, while Libreria Laie Pairs Spanish and International books with a popular cafe. The city celebrates La Diada de Sant Jordi each April, when streets are filled with book vendors and rose sellers for a festival that combines Valentine's Day with a literary celebration. Barcelona bookstores travel destinations reflect its architectural creativity, often incorporating stunning design elements that make browsing an aesthetic experience.
19. Oaxaca, Mexico
This colonial city punches above its weight class in literary culture. Amate Books serves as the expat hub, offering English titles, while La Jicara combines independent books with a cafe that promotes indigenous authors and cuisine. Oaxaca's bookstores and walking tours often double as cultural centres, hosting language exchanges, author events, and community gatherings. The city's rich artistic tradition is reflected in its beautiful, handmade items.
20. Oxford, England
Home to the oldest university in the English-speaking world. Oxford's bookstore culture is a centuries-spanning travel destination. Blockwell's leading shop features the famous Norrington Room, a cavernous underground space with three miles of shelving. The city floats special stores for everything from rare theological texts to modern science fiction. Oxford's literary pedigree, from Lewis Carroll to JRR Tolkien, Philip Pullman to Colin Dexter, means fiction sections often highlight local connections, and academic bookshops maintain the tradition of intellectual curiosity that has defined the city for over 800 years.
21. Shakespeare and Company, Paris
A true literary landmark, Shakespeare and Company Paris sits gracefully on Paris’s Left Bank, overlooking the Seine and Notre-Dame. Established in the 1950s by George Whitman, this charming bookshop has long been a sanctuary for writers, poets, and travellers. Its labyrinth of narrow shelves, cosy reading corners, and old-world charm is best suited for bookstore walking tours, making it feel like stepping into a story itself. Many aspiring authors have stayed here in exchange for helping around the shop, creating a community rooted in love for literature. It’s more than a bookstore—it’s a living tribute to creativity, inspiration, and timeless storytelling.
22. El Ateneo Grand Splendid, Buenos Aires
Once a majestic theatre, El Ateneo Grand Splendid in Buenos Aires now enchants visitors as one of the world’s most beautiful bookstores. Its grand architecture, ornate ceilings, red velvet curtains, and golden balconies preserve the magic of its theatrical past. Rows of books now fill the stage, stalls, and private boxes, while readers can enjoy coffee under the dome’s painted fresco. It’s not just a bookstore travel destination—it’s an experience that merges art, culture, and literature. Every visit feels like stepping into history, making it a must-see destination for every book lover visiting Argentina.
23. Powell’s City of Books, Portland
Spanning an entire city block, Powell’s City of Books in Portland, Oregon, is the world’s largest independent bookstore. With over a million new and used books, its maze of colour-coded rooms offers endless literary adventures. Whether you’re hunting rare editions or modern bestsellers, Powell’s, an iconic bookshop neighbourhood, welcomes all readers with warmth and curiosity. The shop’s lively atmosphere includes readings, author events, and cosy café corners perfect for getting lost in a good story. It’s more than a bookstore—it’s a cultural institution where the love for books thrives, connecting readers from around the world.
The Enduring Appeal of Literary Travel
From massive emporiums to tiny specialised shops, these cities for book lovers demonstrate how bookstores serve as cultural landmarks that reveal a place's character as clearly as any museum or monument. For travellers who measure their journeys in pages as well as miles, these destinations offer souvenirs and windows into the intellectual life of communities worldwide. The next time you pack your suitcase, leave room for the stories waiting to be discovered on shelves across the globe.
1. Timeless bookstore charm
There is something magical about stepping into a bookstore, travelling to destinations in a new city, the scent of old pages, soft jazz in the background, and the thrill of discovering stories that belong to that place.
2. Books and travel share the same spirit.
Both are journeys of discovery, one through the world, the other through words. Together, they create lasting experiences that extend beyond the trip.
3. Each city tells its own story.
From the vintage shelves of London to the artistic corners of Paris and the screen-reading cafes of Tokyo, every city for book lovers leaves behind a literary footprint.
4. Why does it never go out of style?
In a digital world filled with e-books and screen-reading, holding a paperback bought during travel feels intimate and honest, like carrying a piece of that city home.
5. Bookstores as cultural windows
Each bookstore's travel destinations reflect the personality, passion, and creative pulse of its city, offering insight into the local writers, art and community.
6. Literary travel as a soulful escape
It's not about how many books you buy but how deeply you connect with stories that capture a city's heart.
7. A ritual of rediscovery
Visiting bookshops in the capitals of the world reminds us that while cities change, the love for stories remains constant and universal.
8. The traveller’s takeaway
Every paperback you carry home becomes more than a souvenir — it’s a memory wrapped in words, a journey within a journey.
9. Inspiring conclusion
So next time you travel, follow the scent of paper and ink — your next adventure might just be waiting on a forgotten shelf in a corner bookstore.