A Perfect Guide To Delhi’s Duty-Free Shops
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The Indira Gandhi International Airport of Delhi is one of the busiest airports in India. It has been rated as the number one airport in the 40 million passengers per annum category by the Airport”s Council International in the Airport Service Quality Awards.
One of the major components of any travel is shopping. We love to shop at the local flea markets, the souvenir shops and the high street malls of the place where we are travelling. It is part of the experience of travelling. Even in business travel, we would love to shop whenever the time is available (and of course the availability of great deals makes shopping more fun). Duty-free shops all around the world are a great source of shopping as they offer attractive rates which you won’t find in the local markets.
This is the fact that duty-free shops don’t charge you the customs and import duty making the goods cheaper. While liquor and chocolates are the most popular items people buy in duty-free shops, it is recommended to buy other items like clothes and perfumes.
The duty-free shops in Delhi nowadays have many varieties to showcase such as liquor, chocolates, designer clothes, makeup kits and accessories. The duty-free shops are some of the most helpful and eager shops in the world that will do anything to sell the things to you. They will provide free cabin baggage with two bottles of liquor or free makeup pouch will be given to you with latest Versace makeup kit or they will give you a flat discount on any other item, the shops are filled with as many offers and discounts as the merchandise. The trick to getting the best items is to arrive early at the airport whenever you have time and have a look at the duty-free shops.
One major cheat code if you are in a hurry
Imagine you are on a Chennai-Delhi flight and need to meet the client who is the Italian embassy, complete your presentation and have a return flight in the evening. And, you wish you had just one more hour to go to the duty-free temple like an ardent follower would have loved to. Duty-free is now hassle-free shop online at ww.delhidutyfree.co.in. You can pre-book your orders up to 5 days in advance and just shop and collect your goodies once you reach there. The site offers 43000 products in around 1000 brands.
Offers are a regular affair here
If you happen to visit the IGI during Diwali or any other festival time, then make it a point to pay a visit to these duty-free shops you never know what treasure is waiting for you to be discovered.
Around 4 years back in 2015, they launched the campaign why shop anywhere else wherein they were giving the best rates for many products in the entire region. A JW Black Label 100CL would have cost you around 30$ in Delhi duty-free shops, while you would have had to shell out 40$ in Singapore or in Dubai. Hence you are bound to find great offers at the Delhi duty-free shops all year round.
Allowances
- Earlier, the per person travel allowance was a mere 5000 now it has been increased five folds to 25000. So, stack up Indian rupees while travelling from abroad to get the best of Delhi duty-free shops.
- Credit cards will be charged in USD.
- Allowance for liquor is 2 litres per passenger, cigarettes at 100 pieces, cigars at 25 pieces and tobacco is 125 grams. So, keep that in mind while gathering your worldly vices.
- Currently, you can buy from Delhi duty-free shops only if you are holding an international boarding pass and a passport.
Shop and collect – more convenience for you
A unique service, the Delhi duty-free shops offer, is the Shop and Collect service. Suppose you want that latest piece of designer clothing, but for some reason you can’t buy it now or take it with you on your trip to New York. You can use the shop and collect service where you pay and bill the item, they will pack it for you and store it conveniently in their shop. Your designer clothing will patiently wait for you to come and collect it when you return to Delhi. Some shops will even give you a 5% off voucher while you avail of this service.
Liquor in Delhi duty-free shops
The Delhi Duty-free Services Pvt. Ltd. is the company which manages the duty-free shops at the IGI Airport’s terminal 3. The DDFS is the largest duty-free store in India managing around 50,000 sq. feet of space.
The DDFS is planning to increase retail space by offering new walk-through stores in London Heathrow Airport, Singapore”s Changi Airport and the Dubai Airport. The Delhi duty-free earns a majority of its revenue through arrivals but the revenue through departures is growing they have collaborated with brands such as Armani, Victoria Secret and Pandora which are all high-end fashion brands. Liquor, chocolates and perfumes are still the highest selling items in the DDFS. So look out for good offers in these three categories. Visa on arrival facility has benefitted the company immensely.
So, next time you are on an international flight to or from Delhi, make sure to visit this center of shopping where you are sure to find offers to drool for.
