Galignani has been on rue de Rivoli since 1856, and it claims — not unreasonably — to be the oldest English-language bookshop on the European continent. The interior is two floors of dark wood shelving, organised by the logic of a serious general bookshop: literature, art, architecture, French titles alongside English ones. The art and photography section on the upper level is among the best in Paris. The shop is lit warmly and operates without background noise. It is the kind of bookshop that expects you to have come with a purpose but will accommodate the browser who arrives without one.
1st arrondissement, Paris, France