Do you have a bookworm in your house? Maybe one of the kids, or all of them, loves to read. Or maybe you love to lose yourself in a good book when you have the time. Well, when you are jetting off to different destinations for a family vacation, you may have time to read. And that means you can visit some of the best bookstores! There are bookstores everywhere. However, a select few have been deemed the best bookstores to visit while traveling the world.  

Check Out the Best Bookstores to Visit During Your Family Vacation 

Honesty Bookshop in Hay-on-Wye, Wales 

The area of Hay-on-Wye has plenty of bookstores to choose from. It is basically every reader’s dream destination! You can wander through them all. Or you can simply go into the best bookstore, which is Honesty Bookshop.  

This outdoor bookstore is basically shelves filled with books. After you have found the books you want to purchase, you place the money in a box on the wall. Yes, you are going by the honor system in this area of Wales. Kind of refreshing, isn’t it??  

Cafebreria El Pendulo in Mexico City, Mexico 

The walls in this best bookstore are covered from floor to ceiling. You should easily be able to find a book that interests you among them all. Benches are available if you want to sit and look at your findings. And after you make your purchase, you can head to the on-site cafeteria for a bite to eat.  

Libreria Acqua Alta in Venice, Italy 

The streets of Venice flood constantly. Anyone who owns a bookstore in Venice needs to think outside the box if they don’t want their inventory to be ruined by water. At Libreria Acqua Alta, the owners have placed all their books inside barrels, boats, and gondolas. You may even find a few piles inside fish tanks.  

When you are climbing the stairs at this bookstore, pay close attention. The stairs have been constructed from old encyclopedias.  

Shakespeare and Company in Paris, France 

The most famous bookstore in the world is Shakespeare and Company. If you have a family vacation in Paris planned, this bookstore should be at the top of your list of things to do. You will find this store on the banks of the river Seine.  

Generations of authors have visited this bookstore over the years. So, you never know who you may run into during your visit.  

Need a book before you can get to this best bookstore? Check out the best audiobook apps.

El Ateneo Grand Splendid in Buenos Aires, Argentina 

A visit to this bookstore in Buenos Aires is simply breathtaking. The building served as a theater before being turned into this amazing bookstore. Ornate curtains on the stage and frescoes on the ceiling make this a place everyone should see at least once. Add in the theater boxes filled with books and stage, and you may feel as if your favorite book may come to life.  

Atlantis Books in Santorini, Greece 

Atlantis Books is a very small bookstore that has earned the nickname Hobbit Hole. It is inside a house that someone actually lives in. So, your time here will be spent looking at stacks of books piled on the floor. Take the time to visit with the cat and dog, who also call this house their home.  

Selexyz Dominicanen in Maastricht, The Netherlands 

This bookstore can be found in an old cathedral that was constructed more than seven hundred years ago. At one time, Napoleon Bonaparte used this same cathedral as his own personal storage unit. There isn’t anything from those early years left other than history.  

Selexyz Dominicanen opened in 2005. People have been arriving ever since to see a space that is now completely filled with books.  

Powell’s City of Books in Portland, Oregon 

This is one of the largest bookstores in the world. It takes up an entire city block. A map is practically needed to explore all ten rooms at Powell’s City of Books. This is one of the best bookstores to visit when you don’t want to take a family vacation outside the US. You can find anything at this bookstore. Including books that people insist are no longer available.  

Lyrical Ballad Bookstore in Saratoga Springs, New York 

Lyrical Ballad Bookstore has been open for more than fifty years, and it is still going strong. This bookstore looks small from the outside. However, once you start moving, one step after the other takes you deeper into a labyrinth filled with books. You will find approximately two hundred thousand books at this store. Some of them will pique your family’s interest, I’m sure!  

These are the best bookstores to visit during your family vacation. Yes, you will need to venture outside the US to see many of them. However, there are a couple that is right here for you to enjoy.  

So, are you ready to book a family vacation and visit one of these best bookstores?  

If you said yes, I would like to invite you to schedule a planning session with me by clicking here. When you click on this link, you will be taken to my digital calendar to schedule a time that is convenient for you.  

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