Quote:
Originally Posted by GreenLantern
Ya I am not sure about the extra driving time or not, I have in my mind it will be a nice coastal drive as it pretty much hugs the coast the entire way there until you turn north to the outlet mall.. but in actuality it will probably be a traffic nightmare no matter which way we go.
I agree it is a far drive just for an outlet mall, it is basically going to eat up an entire day.. might be better to shuffle things around and do that drive when we are actually in the SM area. One thing that worried me about Disneyland that Monday is Columbus Day in the states, which I don't think is a public holiday in California, but I think I googled that all the kids are out of school that day.
So I figured it could be a lot more crowded that day than we want to deal with.
How did you find the prices compared between the two outlet malls for the stores that they do share? Pretty similar? I am a fan of a quieter crowd.. and if that drive is in fact enjoyable then it is a good excuse to do it.
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US outlet malls are a little different than what you see in Canada in that "brand name" products are specifically made for outlet malls (with a cheaper price tag, but sometimes slightly lower quality as well). Therefore, the "deals" you get at one outlet store in one mall are likely the same as you get in the same outlet store in another mall. Some stores will have the more "typical" outlet mall stuff (stuff that has been returned, one-offs, etc), but the stores I go to (Nike, Reebok, Adidas, mens clothing etc) aren't normally like this. Which stores are on your list to go to?
It's funny you mention Columbus day -- normally the outlet malls (at least the chain that owns the one in Camarillo; not sure about the Citadel one) will have the best sales around major holidays (including the Columbus Day weekend -- Friday to Monday). Also, sign up for the online "VIP" club beforehand -- you can usually get extra coupons/discount books for free.
As for driving -- as I mentioned in an earlier post, we drove from SF to LA via Highway 1, which goes through Malibu. To be honest, I don't remember much about the latter part of the drive (i.e. south of the Santa Barbara area) or that it was particularly scenic (nothing like Big Sur anyways); Malibu was kind of cool to see some of the expensive houses up on the hill. Also, I didn't find the traffic to be bad at all. Only once or twice (in the 3-4 times we've been to LA) the freeway got backed up (normally during the early evening as people head home from work). Even with high volumes, it's amazing how 4-6 lanes can keep the traffic moving. Maybe we just got lucky though.