Florida, the shopping capital of the entire world, that is in my eyes. I just can’t resist the bargains no matter how hard I try.
You have so much choice, from the really expensive designer shops, to the cheaper affordable bargains, even the Dollar shop, where there are still some good value items available. It just depends what you are looking for at the time.
The furniture shops for those of us who are lucky enough to own our own villas are especially good and we only wish that some of the things we have purchased there were easier to get home !!
Clothes are definitely a good buy there, especially Jeans, trainers, sports gear etc you probably pay nearly half for them in the US to back home at present this is particularly so as the dollar is worth so much more than 25 years ago, or even 4 or 5 years ago.
Most of the stores are so large and carry a tremendous range of stock, for us Brits this can make our decisions even harder as we are not used to so many choices, that and the fact that there are so many shops in one place , like the various Malls, just popping out to get one thing is virtually impossible. I have been known to go into one shop in the daylight and it has been dark when I eventually emerge !!! Much to the disgust of the men in the family !!
But it has to be done! This is a great day out if the weather is not quite so good and yes it does rain occasionally in the Sunshine state.
There are several Malls, I still enjoy the Florida Mall, one of the original ones when I first when to Florida 25 years ago, although some of the shops are different there is still J C Penney’s a favorite of mine for clothes and Sears… The new M&M shop is certainly worth a visit , I didn’t realize you could buy so many things with M&M on it and ended up spending nearly $100 in a “ sweet shop “ There is just a shop for everything you could possibly want !
The best thing is that you don’t even have to go home or out of the Mall for lunch, the brilliant food hall has something for everyone, ranging from just a drink to a full meal which means everyone can get what they want and then you all meet up in the middle to eat, perfect for the kids as usually they all want something different.
Another great Mall is the Premium outlets, found off the I-4 near the Dixie Stampede, there are some great shops there including some good shoe outlets like the Reebok, and Sketchers, or for Jeans the Lee’s and Levi’s, Adidas for sports wear, plus all the designer shops, Tommy Hillfiger, Polo Ralph Lauren, and many, many others. This Mall also has a food court and occasionally they also have entertainment there too. There are several other shops, perfumeries, kitchen ware card shops, toys, jewelers, the list is endless.
So make sure the plastic is topped up and you have plenty of travelers cheques, oh! And by the way there is also a luggage shop to buy that extra suitcase to take it all home in !!
You have so much choice, from the really expensive designer shops, to the cheaper affordable bargains, even the Dollar shop, where there are still some good value items available. It just depends what you are looking for at the time.
The furniture shops for those of us who are lucky enough to own our own villas are especially good and we only wish that some of the things we have purchased there were easier to get home !!
Clothes are definitely a good buy there, especially Jeans, trainers, sports gear etc you probably pay nearly half for them in the US to back home at present this is particularly so as the dollar is worth so much more than 25 years ago, or even 4 or 5 years ago.
Most of the stores are so large and carry a tremendous range of stock, for us Brits this can make our decisions even harder as we are not used to so many choices, that and the fact that there are so many shops in one place , like the various Malls, just popping out to get one thing is virtually impossible. I have been known to go into one shop in the daylight and it has been dark when I eventually emerge !!! Much to the disgust of the men in the family !!
But it has to be done! This is a great day out if the weather is not quite so good and yes it does rain occasionally in the Sunshine state.
There are several Malls, I still enjoy the Florida Mall, one of the original ones when I first when to Florida 25 years ago, although some of the shops are different there is still J C Penney’s a favorite of mine for clothes and Sears… The new M&M shop is certainly worth a visit , I didn’t realize you could buy so many things with M&M on it and ended up spending nearly $100 in a “ sweet shop “ There is just a shop for everything you could possibly want !
The best thing is that you don’t even have to go home or out of the Mall for lunch, the brilliant food hall has something for everyone, ranging from just a drink to a full meal which means everyone can get what they want and then you all meet up in the middle to eat, perfect for the kids as usually they all want something different.
Another great Mall is the Premium outlets, found off the I-4 near the Dixie Stampede, there are some great shops there including some good shoe outlets like the Reebok, and Sketchers, or for Jeans the Lee’s and Levi’s, Adidas for sports wear, plus all the designer shops, Tommy Hillfiger, Polo Ralph Lauren, and many, many others. This Mall also has a food court and occasionally they also have entertainment there too. There are several other shops, perfumeries, kitchen ware card shops, toys, jewelers, the list is endless.
So make sure the plastic is topped up and you have plenty of travelers cheques, oh! And by the way there is also a luggage shop to buy that extra suitcase to take it all home in !!