I usually find Christmas shopping a nightmare. But not this year. Those presents that Amazon hasn't delivered straight to my doorstep (thereby avoiding the hell on earth that is Oxford Street) I bought in New York. It's a strategy I dream of continuing: not only have I bought all presents well in advance, but I have not bitten off all my fingernails, nor angrily vowed never again to celebrate Christmas. I even managed to buy myself several presents along the way.
It literally is too easy to shop in New York: little things like the revolving doors which efficiently shunt people in and out of the shops, the wider, smoothly-paved "sidewalks" and compared to London, the unexpectedly less crowded streets. The unbelievable customer service also makes it dangerously easy to spend.
Every shop has someone to welcome you like a long-lost friend. At the merest hint that you may be interested in something, an assistant appears at your elbow, introducing herself and offering to "start a clothes rack for you". You don't queue up at the cash register; you are invited to "join" the assistant. Before you know it everything is purchased; it feels a bit like you've had a trip to the dentist and all your teeth pulled without even knowing it. So it was far from the usual chore to buy presents for loved ones - and I got to fit in all the usual NY tourist attractions as well.
First stop is the famous department stores, mostly situated towards the Upper East Side. Saks Fifth Avenue, the store made infamous by Winona Ryder, is the equivalent of Harvey Nichols. The cavernous perfume and makeup hall is decked with fairy lights and white boughs, everywhere women are having their nails done, it's warm and cosy and it makes you want to spend. Admiring a coat until I discover its US$2,800 price tag, I realise that sadly all the clothes in here are too expensive, so it's back out onto Fifth Avenue.
New York's main shopping artery reads like a Monopoly board. It starts off midtown with chains like H&M, Mexx, Gap, Levi's (and a great US label called Banana Republic) and grows all the more swanky as Gucci, Versace, Bvlgari and Tiffany & Co stretch up to Central Park.
Towards the end of November New York's shops unveil their ambitious Christmas windows. Cartier has wrapped itself up in gigantic red bows, and we spend a considerable amount of time outside Barney's on Madison Avenue admiring the Sex And The City windows - which gives you an idea of the shop's clientele. Inside, it's much like Saks, and Hugo Boss and Diane von Furstenburg are no more affordable.
Bloomingdale's, home of the famous little brown bag, occupies an affordable middle ground between the likes of Barney's and Macy's (which at times feels a bit bargain-basement). Impressively illuminated outside, entering the shop involves dodging lines of well-groomed, smiling assistants armed with long-range perfume spray-guns. "Some Estée Lauder for you madam?" "Would you like to try the latest Calvin Klein?" Reaching the lifts drenched in a nauseating range of smells and it's down to the men's department, which is having a one-day sale, and has plenty of funky men's New York logo T-shirts perfect for little brothers.
The next day is spent poking around the boutiques of Greenwich Village and SoHo, where I manage to purchase practically everybody's presents in one great shop called Details. This sells wonderfully individual things like embroidered silk tablecloths, Japanese tea sets, goldfish shower curtains and Andy Warhol hologram notebooks. Refreshment in between visits to the smaller homeware, vintage clothing, bag and shoe shops is provided by the charming patisseries of the neighbourhood.
A visit to Macy's in the midtown area is the last stop on our final day. It's the world's largest department store and though the shoes and clothes strewn everywhere make it a bit of a jumble-sale experience, there are unbelievable bargains on basics like tights, bags, and underwear. We've been delayed by the Staten Island ferry (it broke down) and then a long queue in the Hershey's chocolate shop in Times Square, so time is limited, and tired legs, greenhouse-heating and a confusing shop layout don't help. I eventually find the shoe department and manage to get two pairs on sale in the 40 minutes we have before the bus leaves for the airport.
New York's clothing is cheaper than the UK, particularly items like jeans and trainers. But there are some drawbacks: for a start, British debit cards don't always work, which means carrying round cash or always using credit cards. Most guidebooks tell you that purchases in New York under US$110 are tax-free: this ruling was actually repealed in June this year and now New York only has certain weeks where you can enjoy tax-free shopping. Unfortunately, none of these fall around Christmas. The rate is around 8% and you can't claim the tax back at the airport either.
But with the pound enjoying a record performance against the dollar right now, British visitors to New York are likely to break even on presents, and no doubt come back with a little something for themselves too.
· American Airlines are offering returns from London to New York from £189 return in December; book by November 30 for the very lowest fares.
The pound currently buys $1.71, the best exchange rate for British travellers for several years.
