I was given an invite from the sales associate at Saint Laurent that there's a lounge available down the block that can provide me with a advance refund via cash/credit card and can streamline the process of getting to the airport to handle that dreaded TaxFree stamp line process. The location was on this street which is probably like the Rodeo Drive of Munich. The lounge can be accessed via an elevator up the 4th floor. There was complimentary Wi-Fi and a multi-lingual staff to help with the refund process. I am docking a store because there was no champagne, water or snacks provided during my visit there (Oktoberfest opening weekend). Basically, instead of waiting a month or two for the refund to appear on your credit card, you can get it upfront as long as you get the customs stamp and drop it in the TaxFree envelope drop off bin. The representative at the lounge was able to answer my question of where and when I would drop my envelope off. Since I was flying out from Munich to Israel and then come back to Nice to Barcelona, I had the option of either dropping the envelope at the Munich or Barcelona airport. The process was simple. Even thought I flew El Al from Terminal 1F, there was still a custom's agent to stamp and the bin (which was full to the max was easy to locate after passing security. There are other lounges in the following cities: Paris, London, Madrid, Florence, Rome, Milan and Venice read more

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Our SAs from Prada and Hermes directed me to Global Blue, which is a place you can get your purchases sorted and get a VAT refund on your credit card immediately. It's down the street from all the luxury stores and not too hard to find. Take the lift up to the 4th floor and there will be staff to greet you, take your receipts and passport and you wait in the comfy chairs. It was quite busy so there were several people also waiting to get their VAT refund there. I was not offered any refreshments whilst I was waiting. They were busy and there were empty champagne and teacups there. They gave us back our receipts in a timely manner. They told us that if you're travelling around Europe, get the customs stamp at the last airport before you go home to the States. I got a text from Global Blue with my refund information which is helpful. You also have to remember to bring all your purchases to the customs area in the airport. We checked in our luggage and I hand carried all my purchases and paperwork. The customs agent looked at almost every single one of my purchases to match the receipt so that took a little bit of time. The mailbox to drop off the stamps and paperwork is close by the customs stamp area. I liked Global Blue, it was straightforward and I didn't have to queue up at the Tax Free line at the airport which helped at lot when you're trying to catch your flight. read more