Five Reasons To Book a Shopping Trip to California

A shopping trip to California, yes please!

It doesn’t take much persuading to book a trip to California, especially at this time of year! Endless sunshine and warmth, a beautiful landscape and plenty to see, and do (and eat!) as well as some of the best shopping in the world. Whether you’re a designer lover and eager to discover the latest trends on Rodeo Drive, or you’re heading to the outlets to pick up an incredible bargain, there’s no denying that California and especially Los Angeles and the surrounding area is one of the most fabulous destinations in the world for shoppers.

I just returned from a trip to LA and Palm Springs with Simon Shopping Destinations, and during the trip we visited three of their centres, all of which are well worth a visit if you’re heading to the sunshine state for some shopping. If you either live in Los Angeles, or you’ve done some research on where to go shopping during your trip, chances are you’ve already heard of Ontario Mills and The Outlets at Orange, as well as the Desert Hills Premium Outlets over by Palm Springs, but here are some tips to help you get the most out of your shopping trip to California!

  1. Arguably the most exciting part of the shopping trip for me was picking up some incredible bargains. While we have outlet malls in the UK, everything in the US is bigger and better, and the shopping experience is no different. Just 20 minutes from the centre of Palm Springs, the Desert Hills Premium Outlets is the largest collection of luxury outlets in California. With stores that I didn’t even know did outlets; such as Fendi, Bottega Venetta, Mulberry, Chloe, Stuart Weitzman, Agent Provocateur and so many more. Serious shoppers should book out an entire day here because there are so many bargains to be had.
  2. There are so many brands that you just can’t buy here in the UK! While many shopping streets across the world are now almost identical, there are still a few American retailers which you can only visit while in the states, and others which are much cheaper when you shop in their home nation. Whether it’s that irresistible body wash at Bath & Body Works (you think I’m joking but this brand has a cult following!!!) or a Cinnabon pretzel (ditto) – as well as retailers that are born out of the US like Kate Spade, Tory Burch, Abercrombie & Fitch and more – you’ll find them all in the Simon Malls as well as other shopping destinations in California.
  3. A wonderful shopping experience. Oh boy, if it’s something that the Americans do well, it’s create an amazing shopping experience. Case in point would be The Outlets at Orange – photographed above, where the beautiful mall is an outdoor experience; it’s just minutes from Disneyland (yay!) and has over 120 stores including Neiman Marcus Last Call, Bloomingdales and Saks Fifth Avenue OFF5th, Nordstrom Rack, (outlet versions of the premium department stores). Oh how I dreamt of picking up a half price Dior dress, or Dolce and Gabanna blouse; there were some truly spectacular pieces to be found in this fabulous shopping mall!
  4. It’s a great excuse to visit Palm Springs! I’d visited L.A a few times before, but never Palm Springs, but with our trip to the Desert Hills Premium Outlet, it seemed silly not to! Palm Springs was an unusual, but seriously cool place, with a retro vibe and curious architecture. We spent a whole day just driving around and taking in the sights (an Instagram Guide to Palm Springs coming soon!) and you can also take a tour of the Indian Canyons (we used Red Jeep Tours, highly recommend) – it’s just a two hour drive from Los Angeles and has a totally different climate, so if you’re nearby then it’s definitely worth visiting for a night or two!
  5. . Trust me, you will be able to shop until you drop! With California’s largest outlet and value retail shopping destination located just outside of LA at Ontario Mills, another Simon centre, you can spend a whole day discovering some of the 200+ retailers in the giant indoor shopping mall. We walked over 15,.000 steps before lunch time in this humongous retail space, picking up bargains from our favourite retailers from Coach to Tory Burch to Kate Spade and more.

Dress by/ Shoes by // Headband by // Earrings by Monica Vinader // Necklace by //

We visited Los Angeles and Palm Springs as part of a Press Trip with Simon Shopping Destinations. With thanks also to Visit Palm Springs.

Have you thought of visiting California for a shopping trip? xoxo