Page 33 - 2018 Travel Guide to California

Anthropologie, Zara and Gap, as well as
celebrity-soaked cafés and eateries.
Artsy shoppers should head to South
Grand Avenue to the museum shops of The
Broad and the Museum of Contemporary
Art, Los Angeles. For bargains, drive north
to Camarillo’s giant 160-store Camarillo
Premium Outlets.
In Orange County, quintessential SoCal
shopping experiences await in huge open-
air malls, complete with valet parking.
Inspired by Spain’s Alhambra, the Irvine
Spectrum Center holds 150 stores, restau-
rants and a 21-screen cinema, anchored by
Nordstrom and Target.
Fashion Island, with its casual resort set-
ting featuring splashing fountains and a koi
pond, overlooks the Pacific. Leading with
Neiman Marcus and Bloomingdale’s, this
coastal center has more than 150 shops and
restaurants and a luxury cinema.
Beyond the malls, Laguna Beach’s stylish
art galleries line streets sloping to a pretty
beach. And, if heading to Palm Springs, stop
at the 182 shops and eateries of the Desert
Hills Premium Outlets in Cabazon.
Southward in San Diego, begin your
shopping trip with a delightful morning at
waterside Seaport Village. Then, hop on the
Coronado Island ferry and cruise to the
Coronado Ferry Landing Shops for more
sunny shopping.
In the city center, the 16½-block Gaslamp
Quarter features mall chains as well as hip
shops and art galleries occupying restored
Victorian buildings. San Diego’s own Rodeo
Drive—Prospect Street in La Jolla—has art
galleries, boutiques and sweeping Pacific
views. In coastal Carlsbad, north of San
Diego, you’ll find an elegant outlet mall, the
Carlsbad Premium Outlets.
Heading north? Check out the Outlets at
Tejon along Interstate 5 between Los Angeles
and Bakersfield, just south of the Highway 99
interchange at the base of the Grapevine. The
sprawling, 350,000-square-foot mall con-
tains the usual, Nike and Polo Ralph Lauren,
and some newcomers to the outlet scene,
H&M and Pottery Barn, among the shady
walkways and Mission Ranch architecture.
Northern California Elegance
San Francisco’s massive malls and quirky
boutiques showcase the city’s European
style. Join the Prada-clad parade encircling
one of the world’s great “urban rooms,”
downtown Union Square. Max out your plat-
inum card in international boutiques,
jewelry stores and high-end department
stores. Today, Neiman Marcus stands where
The City of Paris once stood, retaining the
opulent rotunda and ornate glass skylight.
Stroll down nearby Maiden Lane, once lined
with Barbary Coast brothels, for more luxury.
Nearby, the Westfield San Francisco
Centre is an architectural gem; under a
stunning 1908 dome stand restaurants and
food emporiums, such as Japan’s Beard
Papa Cream Puffs, and 142 stores, including
an Amazon Pop-Up and the iconic British
perfume house Penhaligon’s.
Don’t miss San Francisco’s great shop-
ping neighborhoods. On Chinatown’s
Stockton Street you can pick up Asian
antiques, silk clothing bargains or rare tea.
Herbal pharmacies proffer Chinese medic-
inal remedies, ginseng, deer antlers or
herbs costing $100 per pound.
Near Pacific Heights, Sacramento Street
houses fancy consignment shops, luxury
goods retailers and haute couture children’s
boutiques. Hippie culture thrives in Haight
Street with the northern outpost of Amoeba
Music and shops selling incense, used
records and vintage San Francisco post-
cards, which make great gifts.
North Beach and Jackson Square cafés
still sound with Italian speakers. Here, visit
the legendary City Lights bookstore, home
of the City’s nascent Beat culture, and
quirky antique stores. Japantown offers
authentic Japanese goods, tansu chests,
bonsai and antique kimonos. Finally, Hayes
Valley, a hipster haven, has trendy stores
and nary a chain store in sight.
BROWSING WATERFRONT STORES
in Morro Bay, left; Rodeo Drive
shopping district in Beverley Hills,
opposite left; Carmel Plaza shops,
opposite right.
2018 T R AV E L G U I D E TO C A L I F O R N I A 31