The best chocolate shops in the world include names such as Paul A Young in London, Jacques Torres in New York City, Läderach in Zürich, Nobile Cioccolateria in Bern, Alain Ducasse in Paris, Pierre Marcolini in Brussels, Chocolat Bel Amer in Tokyo, Al Nassma in Dubai, K Chocolatier in Los Angeles, and Kakawa in Sydney.
For affluent travellers who plan trips around exceptional food, these boutiques offer more than a box of truffles: they deliver a sense of place, craftsmanship, and access to some of the finest artisanal chocolate you can buy.
Chocolate has long inspired dedicated food lovers, and while Switzerland and Belgium have traditionally been regarded as the world's chocolate powerhouses, independent artisan chocolatiers across the globe are now excelling in their craft.
Chocolatiers of today are true to the native origins of the cocoa bean and fashion inventive and delectable chocolate creations by hand, keeping the ingredients as pure as possible. For travellers who appreciate luxury products as much as premium hotels and flights, that makes the world’s best chocolate shops a compelling part of the journey, combining gourmet indulgence with local culture and insider discovery.
In the early 16th century, Christopher Columbus encountered cacao beans during his fourth voyage to the Americas, but Hernán Cortés is generally credited with introducing cacao and chocolate more widely to Spain in the early 16th century, where it was initially consumed as a fashionable drink sweetened with ingredients such as honey, vanilla and sugar.
Derived from the fruit of the cacao tree – native to Central and South America – each pod contains around 40 cacao beans, which are fermented, dried and roasted before being processed into cocoa products and chocolate.
The First-Class.com guide to the 10 best chocolate shops and chocolatiers in the world:
1) London: Paul A Young
Address: Camden Passage, Islington, London N1 8EA
Ranked among the world's best chocolatiers, Paul Young is at the leading edge of the British chocolate scene. He has produced exquisite chocolates at his Camden Passage shop since 2006 with his business partner James Cronin.
With a background as the head pastry chef for Marco Pierre White, Paul is renowned for his flavour alchemy and original, experimental creations. Paul is widely regarded as one of London's leading artisan chocolatiers, known for his innovative approach and handcrafted chocolates. His creative flair has earned numerous accolades, including recognition at the International Chocolate Awards
Paul's creations are handmade in small batches, with some pieces coated in chocolate for a particularly smooth finish and refined texture, using only the finest and freshest ingredients, free from preservatives and artificial ingredients. Sample delights from his collection include marmite-filled chocolate bars, 100% Solomon Islands dark chocolate bars, real Champagne Truffles, sea-salted caramel chocolates, dark chocolate mint truffles, candied orange peel pieces, and Aztec hot chocolate drinking powder.
As one of the world’s major cities, London has much to offer. Fly there on British Airways Business Class and stay in a superb city centre hotel – The Connaught.
2) New York City: Jacques Torres
66 Walter Street, Brooklyn
17 Grand Central Terminal
Chef Jacques Torres is also known as Mr Chocolate. He grew up in the South of France and began an apprenticeship in a pastry shop at age 15 before working with two-Michelin-starred chef Jacques Maximin at the Hotel Negresco in Nice. There, he became the Executive Pastry Chef for eight years and won the prestigious Meilleur Ouvrier de France medal in pastry.
The United States beckoned in 1988, and Jacques began working as the Corporate Pastry Chef for Ritz Carlton Hotels before taking a job at the world-famous Le Cirque as Executive Pastry Chef, serving his creations to royalty, presidents, and celebrities alike.
He opened his first chocolate shop in 2000 – Jacques Torres Chocolate – in Brooklyn, New York and was a pioneer in the bean-to-bar movement, becoming became one of the first artisan chocolatiers in New York to produce chocolate directly from cocoa beans using a bean-to-bar approach. A second venue followed before Jacques moved his production plant to a single state-of-the-art facility at Brooklyn Army Terminal in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.
Jacques specialises in fresh, handcrafted chocolates using the best ingredients free of preservatives or artificial flavourings and uses the motto "Real is my promise to you."
Jacques' collection samples include seasonal creations, Taittinger Champagne Truffles, assorted bonbons, Boxed Chocolates in each gift box, and hot chocolate classics with notes such as espresso, alongside a special New York Collection, bars, bark and brittle, with plenty of variety in flavors. Because many of Jacques Torres' chocolates are made without preservatives, they are best enjoyed while fresh, with recommended consumption varying by product and most chocolates should be consumed within 10 days of receiving.
3) Zürich: Läderach
Bahnhofstrasse 106, 8001 Zürich, Switzerland
Zürich is home to some of the greatest names in chocolate, with Teuscher also widely regarded as a top chocolatier in Zurich, Switzerland. Fly to Zürich on SWISS Business Class and head for The Dolder Grand. It has excellent facilities to work off the chocolate you eat from Läderach.
Confiserie Läderach AG was founded in 1962 by Rudolf Läderach Sr. in Glarus, Switzerland and was initially intended to serve as a small confectionery with sweet gifts. However, in 1970, Rudolf patented a revolutionary new process of making truffles (thin-walled truffle balls), and the business continued to expand. Today, Läderach is still a family-run business with chocolate boutiques across Europe, Asia, the Middle East and North America.
Läderach sources the finest cocoa beans from Trinidad, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Brazil, Madagascar and Ghana before undergoing quality checks in Bilten, Glarus, Switzerland. The beans go through a carefully controlled process of preparation before finally becoming couverture – chocolate containing a higher percentage of cocoa butter than baking or eating chocolate. From here, Läderach makes the magic happen by adding fresh and decadent ingredients.
The Läderach boutique on Zürich's famous Bahnhofstrasse and is a chocolate-lovers dream containing many handmade favourites, including extravagant flavours of luxury pralines and truffles, FrischSchoggi (fresh chocolate slabs) and high cocoa percentage chocolate bars. Grand Cru Noir 64% Madagascar is highly rated in Zurich chocolate reviews, scoring 9/10 for flavor, with a rich, complex fruity taste profile.
4) Bern: Nobile Cioccolateria
Rathausgasse 45, 3011 Bern, Switzerland
Willi Schmutz and Martin Shwartz run Nobile and pride themselves on using the highest possible quality and sustainable regional ingredients, blended with passion and instinct to craft the perfect balance of the finest chocolate with no additives, preservatives or palm oil.
Regionality and fairness are essential to the Nobile ethos. Using Swiss products whenever possible – including cow's milk from the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Entlebuch – used exclusively in their couverture. The cocoa beans are sourced directly from farmers and cooperatives within fair and controlled conditions.
Nobile is a multi-award-winner, having been voted the best chocolatier in Switzerland in 2015 and among the top ten praline manufacturers in the world. They were further recognised by the prestigious 'Choco Guide' in 2018 as the best chocolatier in Switzerland and won the best chocolate award.
With a divine collection of pralines, truffles, seasonal offerings, chocolate bars, chocolate drinks and spreads, the Nobile Cioccolateria, Bern is a chocolate lovers' haven.
Bern – the fifth most populous city in Switzerland – is another mecca for chocolate. Again, you can fly here on SWISS Business Class and stay in the city’s finest hotel – Schweizerhof Bern & Spa.
5) Paris: Alain Ducasse
Le Chocolat Alain Ducasse, Manufacture À Paris, 40 rue De La Roquette, 75011 Paris, France
Alain Ducasse is widely regarded as one of the world's greatest chefs and has earned numerous Michelin stars throughout his career for his restaurants worldwide. However, as a trainee commis chef, Ducasse realised his love for working with chocolate, describing it as "a terribly sensual and bewitching substance."
Today, his chocolate workshop, La Manufacture, produces bean-to-bar chocolate for his world-class restaurants and supplies his many boutique chocolate stores.
The cocoa beans are selected based on their purity and personality from a dozen locations – each country of origin offering a different identity and flavour to the next, be it the smokiness of Indonesian Java or the unique botanical aroma of Vietnam. Each bean is 'worked' according to its characteristics to bring out its unique qualities.
Chocolate lovers can indulge in delectable bars, bonbons, pralines, single-origin ganache, seasonal treats and delightful gift boxes.
At his peak, Alain Ducasse won 21 Michelin stars. His Paris Restaurant Le Meurice Alain Ducasse holds two stars and is situated in one of the most famous hotels in the city – Le Meurice. Fly Air France Business Class, of course!
6) Belgium: Pierre Marcolini
Brussels, La Manfacture, Place du Grand Sablon 39, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium
Aged 14, Pierre Marcolini knew he would one day become a chocolatier. By the age of 19, he was a patisserie chef in charge of a team of pâtissiers, and by the age of 31, he had won the World Patisserie Championship and a host of other awards along the way.
Marcolini champions his cocoa plantations and selects only the highest quality, sustainable ingredients from within the 'Cocoa Belt' regions within the tropical Cocoa Belt surrounding the Equator. Marcolini uses beans from small plantations in eight locations: South China, Cuba, India, Indonesia, Madagascar, Peru, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Venezuela – providing the rarest beans, and he was the He was among the early European luxury chocolatiers to embrace a bean-to-bar philosophy. Leading Belgian chocolate houses are often discussed with the same seriousness as fine wine.
Once the beans arrive at the workshop in Brussels, they undergo a process of storage, roasting, refining and conching to increase the smoothness, fluidity and delicacy of the chocolate paste. This process produces couverture chocolate, which is then crafted into exquisite delicacies, including signature boxes of Marcolini's finest creations – pralines, ganache, chocolate truffles and chocolate tablets. Belgian chocolate culture also includes houses such as Mary Chocolatier, known for luxury Belgian confections and beautifully presented chocolate boxes.
Ah! Brussels – the capital of Belgium – is famous for beer, waffles, fries and of course chocolate! Stay at the Hotel Amigo and fly Brussels Airlines Business Class.
7) Tokyo: Chocolat Bel Amer
Tokyo Garden Terrace Kioicho Kioi Tower 1F, 1-3 Kioicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Bel Amer is French for beautiful bitterness, and the mission of Bel Amer is to deliver happiness and surprises through chocolate, with bitterness and sweetness kept in elegant balance.
The chocolate is handcrafted, expressing the colours of the seasons and events unique to Japan and is sold throughout Japan and online.
Bel Amer's signature products include Palette Chocolate – a plate of 30 different chocolates handcrafted and beautifully presented. The range also includes seasonal Chocolates representing Japanese culture and seasons, 30 types of bonbons including Tarte Tatin, raspberry, and single malt whisky ganache, baked rare cheesecake with white chocolate ganache, baked Madeleines, fondant chocolate, gateau and seasonal treats with lemon zest.
Some seasonal creations also lean tropical, with passionfruit appearing from time to time.
Chocolate and Tokyo does not seem a great mix but Bel Amer is a stunning chocolatier! Fly to Tokyo on ANA First Class and stay at the excellent Peninsula.
8) Dubai: Al Nassma
12 39 St – Deira – Al Ras – Dubai – United Arab Emirates.
Dubai-based Al Nassma is the first chocolatier to use camel milk in its products. Al Nassma uses a low-profile roast of cocoa beans to accentuate the salty creaminess of the camel milk, giving the chocolate a creamy, rich balance in their confectionary.
Cows generally produce around 7 gallons (32 litres) of milk per day, whereas camels produce just 2 gallons (9 litres). The milk produced at Camelicious became one of the first camel dairies approved to export camel milk products to the European Union and, due to the scarcity of the product, is an expensive commodity.
All ingredients are pure, with no substitute ingredients or additives. The base recipe consists of camel milk powder, cocoa butter and mass, real Bourbon vanilla, Acacia honey and sugar. All bars are naturally gluten-free, and the range also fits neatly into regional food traditions of gifting and hospitality.
The company sells to exclusive five-star hotels and premium-brand sellers around the globe, such as Selfridges, and includes outlets at duty-free airport shops and has a solid web-based presence amongst e-commerce platforms.
Products include camel milk chocolate bars featuring; dates, hazelnuts, Arabia spice, dark milk chocolate with almonds, and white milk chocolate with pistachios. Assorted chocolate praline gift boxes and Camel milk chocolate camel figurines.
Camel milk chocolate! Only in Dubai! This UAE city offers sun, sea, sand … amazing luxury hotels – including the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and fly on the superb Emirates First Class!
9) Los Angeles: K Chocolatier
Beverley Hills, 9606 Santa Monica Blvd, 310.248.2626, Los Angeles, United States
In the 1970s, Diane Krön and her late husband, Thomas, took the chocolate world by storm, launching Diane Krön Chocolatier from their basement apartment in New York. They helped popularise luxury chocolate-covered strawberries in the United States and acquired devoted celebrity customers such as Jacqueline Kennedy, Katherine Hepburn, Andy Warhol and Estee Lauder.
Their operations closed in 1983 but re-emerged in 2000 when Diane Krön/K Chocolatier opened new chocolate boutiques in Beverly Hills, Malibu and New York.
This luxury confectionery has been described as the "Rolls Royce of Chocolates", and Diane still uses the original Hungarian Krön family recipe while using as little sugar as possible in her creations. The wider U.S. artisan scene also includes Chuao Chocolatier, voted best chocolate in the U.S. in 2023.
Signature K Chocolatier chocolates include chocolate-covered fruit, K truffles, K bears, vodka, tequila and whisky chocolate shots. Other delights include drinking chocolate, chocolate bars, variety boxes, exquisite handmade chocolate bouquets and wedding favours, while Vosges Haut-Chocolat is another American name known for globally inspired truffles with unexpected pairings and luxury sweets.
Whether you are in LA to sightsee or visit celebrity friends, a trip to Beverly Hills is a must! Stay at The Beverly Wilshire a Four Seasons Hotel and fly there on Delta Business Class.
10) Sydney: Kakawa
5/147 William Street, Darlinghurst NSW 2010, Australia.
Kakawa is one of the first chocolatiers in Sydney to make chocolate using truly fresh and natural, locally sourced seasonal ingredients combined with the finest single-origin couverture chocolate, much like Green Bean to Bar chocolate uses only cacao and sugar from single origins.
Head chocolatier and founder Jinsun Kim – originally from South Korea – began Kakawa, having learned her trade from master chocolate makers in London before returning to Australia in 2008 to bring her own speciality handmade chocolates to the world. The name Kakawa is inspired by ancient Mesoamerican words associated with cacao, and Jinsun has committed herself to produce the purest and finest handmade chocolates in honour of its origins.
After relocating several times, Kakawa now operates from the William Street Chocolate Shop and factory, where customers can watch chocolatiers hand-form chocolates using traditional techniques a delicate outer layer.
Kakawa sells their product directly from the shop and online. Signature chocolates include chocolate CDs – deliciously flavoured chocolate discs wrapped in a CD case, single origin chocolate bags and gift boxes, pralines, truffles and bonbons, gift boxes and seasonal delights. Soma in Toronto offers 26 unique chocolate varieties, including Vietnamese coffee truffles.
As one of the greatest cities in Australia, Sydney is a must visit for any international traveller. Fly there in Qantas Business Class and stay at The Park Hyatt … and buy chocolate at Kakawa! The wider global scene also includes Venchi, known for gianduja and chocolate gelato.
First-Class.com searches hundreds of travel sites at once to help you find the best premium travel offers for both flights to and accommodation to all these chocolate shops around the world!
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