Dear Fellow Shoppers,

Like many of you, I'm a serious shopper. I love the thrill of a great buy, a steal-of-a-deal, a designer item purchased for a fraction of its original price. I can plow through the crammed racks of a designer outlet and battle my way through a sample sale with the best of you.

My other great love is travel, and it was during my many trips overseas that I discovered that outlet shopping has finally arrived in Europe. These days, there’s hardly a designer in existence that doesn’t have an outlet somewhere. The problem was finding and getting to those off-the-beaten-path warehouses filled with discounted merchandise. With rare exceptions, they’re located in the middle of nowhere, and unless you’re prepared to hire a private car and driver, you simply can’t get there on your own. But the bargains justified the trouble: merchandise was far less than in the American outlet stores and a fraction of the full U.S. retail prices. The deals were so irresistible, I had to buy another bag just to get my new goodies home! And I knew I had to share my discoveries with other shoppers.

With that in mind, Shop Around Tours was born.

You'll find our tours combine the best of both worlds for the traveler that likes to shop. Our itineraries combine group meals, tours and shopping excursions with plenty of free time to explore at your own pace, so you can shop, sightsee and dine independently (I like to call them group tours for people that don't usually take group tours).

On all Shop Around Tours, our hotels are four-star (superior first class) properties, with many shops and restaurants nearby. More importantly, they're centrally-located in neighborhoods where you'll feel safe and comfortable venturing out on your own.

I hope you will join me for one of Shop Around Tours' unique and memorable adventures.