Nice malls not far from Anaheim or LAX

[mushu4ever]

I've been avidly reading everything here in the Disneyland forum in preparation for my three day trip to DCA and Disneyland early August. On my last day in LA I have the Disney Princess Breakfast Adventure booked for 9am and then have free time until about 8pm before I head to LAX for my flight home.

As I'm visiting from Australia I'd love to make the most of this last day and do some shopping. However, I'm looking for recommendations about decent malls either near Anaheim or LAX, preferably with a place that I can safely store my bag. I plan to just take a ride share to the mall and then to LAX.

I know the Citadel Outlets offer a bag storage option and quite a lot of outlet options, but I'd be super grateful for any other recommendations.

 

[BadPinkTink]

I've been avidly reading everything here in the Disneyland forum in preparation for my three day trip to DCA and Disneyland early August. On my last day in LA I have the Disney Princess Breakfast Adventure booked for 9am and then have free time until about 8pm before I head to LAX for my flight home.

As I'm visiting from Australia I'd love to make the most of this last day and do some shopping. However, I'm looking for recommendations about decent malls either near Anaheim or LAX, preferably with a place that I can safely store my bag. I plan to just take a ride share to the mall and then to LAX.

I know the Citadel Outlets offer a bag storage option and quite a lot of outlet options, but I'd be super grateful for any other recommendations.

I'm from Ireland and your travel day is almost exactly like mine was. I flew on Saturday 2 July. You might not have as much time on your travel day as you think.

My flight was also 8pm from LAX.

I stayed at Desert Inn and Suites and used their bag storage after check out. Your hotel should have a bag storage area, most hotel and motels do.

The nearest mall to Disneyland is The Outlets at Orange
ART Route 16 services The Outlets at Orange. Pick up/drop off is located near Nike Factory Store and Lucky Strike Lanes.

I got a pick up from Anaheim to go to LAX at 3pm and got there about 4pm.

Tom Bradley Terminal is at the bottom of the U. From coming off the free to pulling up at the drop place it took 20 minutes.

The check in bag drop area was very crowded. Even though I was early, it still took another 40 minutes to get rid of my checked bag.

Then it was up to TSA security, again another 30 minutes.

The main concourse in Tom Bradley after TSA is huge. But there were long lines at many of the food places.

After the main food and shop concourse it took about 15 minutes to get to my gate area.

It was almost 7pm by the time I got to my gate area.

 

[mushu4ever]

Thanks for your thoughts! My flight isn't until 11pm (also on a Saturday!) so I'm hoping to actually get to LAX around 7-8pm. I think that will still probably leave me with about six or so hours to fill after my brunch.

If I shop somewhere near Anaheim I will leave my bags at my hotel, but just don't want to double back if I can help it.

 

[BadPinkTink]

Thanks for your thoughts! My flight isn't until 11pm (also on a Saturday!) so I'm hoping to actually get to LAX around 7-8pm. I think that will still probably leave me with about six or so hours to fill after my brunch.

If I shop somewhere near Anaheim I will leave my bags at my hotel, but just don't want to double back if I can help it.

Theres not that much around LAX. Other than the airport property and the nearby streets with hotels, its not really a nice area.

Really your best option is to store your bags at the hotel and go somewhere local in Anaheim.

 

[DLgal]

Do you want high end fancy stores or an outdoor mall?

High end: South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa. Bag storage probably not an option, but its not far from Anaheim.

Outdoor: Irvine Spectrum Center or Fashion Island. My preference between these two is Irvine Spectrum. Its a straight shot south of Anaheim, about a 15 minute drive.

Don't go to the Block at Orange. It's fallen by the wayside in recent years and isn't very safe. Ditto Main Place Mall in Santa Ana (avoid that one).

The Citadel is an outlet mall, but it's sort of out of the way from LAX.

I'd recommend South Coast Plaza or Irvine Specrum Center.

 

[China Expat]

I second South Coast Plaza...gorgeous with two halves. Safe and nice, upscale.

 

[DonnerB]

Westfield Culver City is only 3-4 miles from LAX just across the 405. It’s more basic than its sister to the north in Century City, but still has plenty of shops. I can’t find any info about bag storage, so I wouldn’t count on that. I think the suggestions to try a mall closer to Anaheim so you can leave your luggage at the hotel seems much more relaxing

 

[Lumpy1106]

Too bad you are not flying out of SNA. You could just check your bags in then take a short Uber ride to South Coast - it's right there. You might want to consider the Del Amo Fashion Center in Torrance considering you are headed to LAX. https://www.google.com/maps/search/....3502036,1590m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en&authuser=0
The Grove is another high-end mall that will put you closer to LAX;
https://www.google.com/maps/place/T...!3d34.0719407!4d-118.3575164?hl=en&authuser=0

 

[pigletliz]

South Coast Plaza

 

[sjmac42]

My last visit to Outlets at Orange (used to be The Block) was Christmas 2019 and I thought it was great. South Coast Plaza is my favourite mall in the area but neither seem to have luggage storage so you’d need to leave your bags at the hotel and head back to get them. My last couple of visits to Citadel have been disappointing and it’s in an industrial area so not much else around it.
Have you considered a day use room at one of the LAX hotels and doing some shopping and sightseeing in LA on your last day? You could rideshare to and from the LAX hotel to the Beverly Centre, The Grove and Farmers Market which are all close to each other, maybe visit the nearby La Brea Tarpits or Petersen Automotive Museum. Then when you return to the LAX hotel, use their shuttle for the short ride to the terminal.

 

[BecBennett]

Also coming from Australia, and I think the only shopping I'm planning on doing in the Anaheim area will be hitting up walmart and target

 

[mushu4ever]

Thanks for all the recommendations everyone! I think South Coast Plaza might be a good option, then I can leave my bags at the hotel and just swing by there later. I had a look at the website and it looks like it has some stores that would be up my alley.

sjamc42 - It's a good idea to spend the day doing some LA sightseeing, but I have seen some of the key spots on previous trips. Therefore, I think I'll be planning a low-key shopping and snacking day before just passing out from exhaustion on the plane that night haha!

BecBennett - I also want to do some shopping there haha! I love baking so I often leave space for fun shelf-stable ingredients and snacks from Walmart and Target.

 

[evilmommie]

A million times over, South Coast Plaza. Every other mall in So Cal has been decimated by the online boom and the economy. SCP stays alive because of tourism and it’s the rodeo drive of The OC. The Segerstrom family keeps it maintained at a high level and it’s beautiful.

 

[DLgal]

A million times over, South Coast Plaza. Every other mall in So Cal has been decimated by the online boom and the economy. SCP stays alive because of tourism and it’s the rodeo drive of The OC. The Segerstrom family keeps it maintained at a high level and it’s beautiful.

Agree. It's the only indoor mall I will go to in this area anymore.

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

Isnt there the shopping center near DLR the garden somehting (forgive me I am scrolling before I have to go do something)

It has bowling and restaurants and some shops

 

[DLgal]

Isnt there the shopping center near DLR the garden somehting (forgive me I am scrolling before I have to go do something)

It has bowling and restaurants and some shops

The Garden Walk. That's more of a dining/entertainment complex. There are a few stores and a House of Blues, but its nowhere close to being a mall.

 

[sjmac42]

You’ll enjoy South Coast Plaza, should have seen the Christmas tree they had there in 2019. Put Disney’s to shame!
The 3 story train set was pretty cool as well.
if you want lunch there and like Italian, Quattro Cafe was absolutely awesome. Fresh home made pasta and great staff. Hopefully it’s still the same.

 

[BroadwayHermione5]

The Garden Walk. That's more of a dining/entertainment complex. There are a few stores and a House of Blues, but its nowhere close to being a mall.

That's it! Thank you!

 

[AussieNSW]

Another one to consider is brea mall. Not to big not to small. Just the correct size. For our family it has a good mix of shops. South Coast plaza is very nice. But it is so spread out. Brea mall also allows us to have a meal at the Cheesecake Factory before the wait at LAX. If we fill up before we get to the airport it’s not so bad waiting for the flight. We can something smaller as the flights to Sydney always depart after dinner. So you are often waiting right at dinner time with a starving family. I am keeping my fingers crossed that the choices and costs have improved since the last time we went before covid.

 

[TinkAgainU]

In Orange County - but allow time to drive to LAX - I second South Coast Plaza (there is even a very pretty/cool bridge to Crystal Court (with a lot of really nice home decorating places in it). I also agree Irvine Spectrum is a great "outdoor" mall beautiful to stroll. Newport Center is another nice, but a bit smaller, outdoor mall nearer the ocean. Obviously, if you or the family have any true-love items to shop for - let us know what, and we can likely steer you better to specialty stores since not all are inside malls.