No holiday, short break or visit to Perthshire is complete without at least some time allocated for that number one activity...shopping!

And in Perthshire not only is the bargain hunter spoiled for choice, but there are plentiful examples of sensational shopping of international class. You can really 'shop 'til you drop here. The House of Bruar, north of Pitlocrhy is now world renowned and is affectionately known as 'Scotlands Harrods'. World class highland shopping. And in Pitlochry itself MacNaugtons has an enviable reputation far and wide too.

Perthshire's towns and villages have their fair share of familiar names on the high street but a key feature of the area is the number of family owned stores that exist and the extensive range of speciality shopping outlets. Perth's compact city centre has arguably the best range of speciality shops in Scotland but thanks to a long trading heritage and market tradition Perthshire's principal centres all have excellent opportunities for retail therapy whatever the time of year. The sense of community is also evident in the many locally organised events through the year (and especially at Christmas) where retailers and businesses collaborate to showcase the best that their community has to offer.

In Perthshire local crafts people abound and the regular programme of fairs and festivals is where to hunt out some truly stunning handcrafted ceramics, jewellery, woollens, leather goods and local arts. Antiques outlets and art galleries are liberally sprinkled throughout Perthshire.

And wherever you travel in Perthshire it is worth keeping eyes peeled for a little sign to direct visitors to a craft workshop or gallery.