70 Best Shopping in San Diego, California
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San Diego’s retail landscape has changed radically in recent years with the opening of several new shopping centers—some in historic buildings—that are focused more on locally owned boutiques than national retailers. Where once the Gaslamp was the place to go for urban apparel and unique home decor, many independently owned boutiques have decided to set up shop in the charming neighborhoods east of Balboa Park known as North Park and South Park. Although Downtown is still thriving, any shopping trip to San Diego should include venturing out to the city’s diverse and vibrant neighborhoods. Not far from Downtown, Little Italy is the place to find contemporary art, modern furniture, and home accessories.
Old Town is a must for pottery, ceramics, jewelry, and handcrafted baskets. Uptown is known for its mélange of funky bookstores, offbeat gift shops, and nostalgic collectibles and vintage stores. The beach towns offer the best swimwear and sandals. La Jolla’s chic boutiques offer a more intimate shopping experience, along with some of the classiest clothes, jewelry, and shoes in the county. The new La Plaza La Jolla is an open-air shopping center with boutiques and galleries in a Spanish-style building overlooking the cove. Point Loma’s Liberty Station shopping area in the former Naval Training Center has art galleries, restaurants, and home stores. Trendsetters will have no trouble finding must-have handbags and designer apparel at the world-class Fashion Valley mall in Mission Valley, a haven for luxury brands such as Hermès, Gucci, and Jimmy Choo.
Enjoy near-perfect weather year-round as you explore shops along the scenic waterfront. The Headquarters at Seaport is a new open-air shopping and dining center in the city’s former Police Headquarters building. Here there are some big names, but mostly locally owned boutiques selling everything from gourmet cheese to coastal-inspired home accessories. Just next door, Seaport Village is still the place to go for trinkets and souvenirs. If you don’t discover what you’re looking for in the boutiques, head to Westfield Horton Plaza, the Downtown mall with more than 120 stores. The sprawling mall completed a major restoration project in 2016 to include a new public plaza, amphitheater, and fountains.
Most malls have free parking in a lot or garage, and parking is not usually a problem. Westfield Horton Plaza and some of the shops in the Gaslamp Quarter offer validated parking or valet parking.
Fashion Valley
San Diego's most upscale mall has a contemporary Mission theme, lush landscaping, and nearly 200 shops and restaurants. Acclaimed retailers like Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale's, and Tiffany & Co. are here, along with boutiques from fashion darlings like Michael Kors, Tory Burch, and Ted Baker. H&M is a favorite of fashionistas in search of edgy and affordable styles. Free wireless Internet service is available throughout the mall. Select "Simon WiFi" from any Wi-Fi–enabled device to log onto the network.
If you're visiting from out of state, are a member of the military, or have a AAA membership, you can pick up a complimentary Style Pass at Simon Guest Services (located on the lower level beneath AMC Theaters near Banana Republic), which can get you savings at more than 70 of Fashion Valley's stores and restaurants.
Gold Leaf
This home-decor shop is run by a husband-and-wife duo. There's furniture, kitchenware, jewelry, greeting cards, and a kids' section.
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Hotel del Coronado
At the gift shops within the peninsula's main historic attraction, you can purchase sportswear, designer handbags, jewelry, and antiques. Spreckels Sweets & Treats offers old-time candies, freshly made fudge, and decadent truffles. Monroe has designer fashions and accessories, inspired by its Hollywood namesake, while Brady's for Men, with its shirts and sport coats, caters to well-dressed men. S.R.F. is the spot to hit up for outdoor and action sports accessories. En Route is a haven for travelers, offering a selection of top-quality luggage and leather goods.
Pangaea Outpost
Pigment
This beautifully styled shop carries a wide variety of design-conscious goods for the home, including geometric print pillows, outdoor bistro chairs, and home bar accessories. In Pigment's plant lab, you can build your own terrariums, which make great souvenirs.
Seaside Papery
Customize your correspondence with products from Seaside Papery, including high-end wedding invitations, greeting cards, luxury personal stationery, and wrapping papers.
The Book Catapult
The Headquarters at Seaport
This new upscale shopping and dining center is in the city's former police headquarters, a beautiful and historic Mission-style building featuring an open courtyard with fountains. Restaurants and shops, many locally owned, occupy former jail facilities and offices. Pop into Urban Beach House for coastal-inspired fashion from popular surf brands for men and women, including accessories and home decor. Perfume Gallery offers more than 1,000 different scents in its extensive collection. Madison San Diego offers a great selection of leather goods and accessories, from apparel and handbags to belts and travel accessories.
Verbatim Books
Visible from blocks away, thanks to its large mural paying homage to Stephen King, Verbatim Books boasts an inventory of more than 35,000 books in its wide-open wonderland of the printed word. Visually stunning inside and out—decked with chandeliers and the store's name spelled out in books on its back wall (which also has a mysterious, colorful door)—the shop carries everything from classics to cookbooks to supernatural and metaphysical volumes, in addition to maintaining a zine library for those interested in DIY publishers.
Vignettes
Architectural Salvage of San Diego
If you have any interest in home design and renovation, this shop that specializes in reusing old materials should be top of your list. The warehouse space is filled with unusual building and decorative materials, as well as items that come from various time periods throughout the 1900s. Products range from stained-glass windows and light fixtures to cabinets and doors in styles ranging from Victorian to Craftsman.
Ascot Shop
The classic Ivy League look is king in this traditional haberdashery that sells menswear by Saxx, Hagen, and Peter Miller. In-house same-day tailoring is available.
Bay Books
This independent bookstore is the spot to sit, read, and sip coffee on an overcast day by the sea. Great for international travelers, there's a large selection of foreign-language magazines and newspapers, and for youngsters, there's a section in the back devoted to children's books and games. Because of its close proximity to the Navy bases on Coronado, the shop has a large stock of books dedicated to military history. Bay Books also has regular book-signing events; it has hosted a wide array of authors, from Newt Gingrich to Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger. While you're there, grab an espresso or a pastry from the sidewalk-facing Buona Forchetta café within the bookstore.
Bazaar del Mundo Shops
With a Mexican villa theme, the Bazaar hosts riotously colorful gift shops such as Ariana, for ethnic and artsy women's fashions; Artes de Mexico, which sells handmade Latin American crafts and Guatemalan weavings; and The Gallery, which carries handmade jewelry, Native American crafts, collectible glass, and original silk-screen prints. The Laurel Burch Gallerita carries the complete collection of its namesake artist's signature jewelry, accessories, and totes.
Blends
Minimalist decor provides a perfect backdrop for the wild colors and patterns featured on original sneakers from Adidas, Nike, Vans, and other in-demand brands. Prices are steep, but many of the urban styles are unique.
Blick Art Materials
Besides supplying local artists with their tools, Blick also carries art books, fine stationery and pens, ornate gift wrap, and beautiful leather-bound journals.
Bottlecraft Beer Shop
This boutique beer shop and tasting room stocks the best craft beer from San Diego and around the world, from double IPAs and pale ales to saisons and wheat beers. Owner Brian Jensen offers a wealth of knowledge on the local craft beer scene. Bottlecraft now has additional locations in North Park and Liberty Station.
Carlsbad Premium Outlets
A 40-minute drive north of Downtown San Diego, this outdoor shopping center contains more than 90 outlet stores, including designer brands like Coach, Cole Haan, Kate Spade New York, and Michael Kors.
Casa Artelexia
This colorful shop specializing in Mexican gifts and art started as a booth at a farmers' market by a father-daughter team, but has since evolved into a large retail space with its own art gallery and event space. Products—handpicked and imported from different parts of Mexico—include hand-blown glassware, Sacred Heart wall hangings, books and paintings depicting Frida Kahlo, and Dia de Los Muertos-themed items. Casa Artelexia also offers weekly art classes, and has a second store located in North Park.
Central Library Library Shop
One of the highlights of San Diego's new nine-story Central Library in the East Village neighborhood is the well-curated gift shop, which carries gourmet cookbooks, jewelry, home accessories, and children's items. Mementos like shirts, totes, magnets, and note cards make great souvenirs. The shop, which is open daily, supports San Diego- or California-based vendors whenever possible.
CJ Charles
An exquisitely appointed shop selling designer and estate jewelry, CJ Charles specializes in Bulgari watches, Cartier, and Patek Philippe, along with stunning fine jewelry, Baccarat crystal, and gift items.
Coronado Ferry Landing
A staggering view of San Diego's Downtown skyline across the bay and a dozen boutiques make this a delightful place to shop while waiting for a ferry. La Camisa ( 619/319--5826) is a fun place to pick up kitschy souvenirs, T-shirts, fleece jackets, and postcards. Lisa's Boutique ( 619/550--7366) specializes in comfy women's shoes and affordable casual wear. Vom Fass ( 619/534--5034) is a shop and tasting room full of olive oils, vinegars, spices, and other foodie essentials. There's a farmers' market every Tuesday 2:30–6, and some restaurants offer a daily late-afternoon happy hour.
Coronado Taste of Oils
The walls are lined, front to back, with countless flavors of olive oils and balsamic vinegars, from more standard fare to creative infusions. Some of the varied choices include lemon and lime, chilies, currants, garlic, harissa (hot chili pepper paste), chipotle, and herbes de Provence, all of which are available to sample with bread inside the shop.
Cousin's Candy Shop
Sample homemade fudge and taffy that's been cooked, stretched, and wrapped on-site at this old-fashioned confectionery shop. The old-time candies in nostalgic tins make thoughtful gifts.
D Forsythe Jewelry
Stepping into D Forsythe is like taking a quick spin around the world. The one-of-a-kind jewelry sold here features sapphires, emeralds, moonstones, and baroque pearls from such faraway places as Denmark, Cambodia, Turkey, Bali, India, England, and Thailand.
Dolcetti Boutique
With everything from flirty dresses to casual daytime outfits and a full-service hair salon on-site, this Gaslamp Quarter boutique is a one-stop shop for getting ready for a night on the town. The lofty space with exposed brick walls is owned by style-savvy sisters, and also carries accessories, jewelry, menswear, and children's clothing.
Emerald City Surf Shop
For more than 30 years, Emerald City has provided Orange Avenue shoppers with a broad selection of swimwear, clothing, sunglasses, and hats from beachy brands like Billabong, Roxy, Vans, and O'Neill. The shop also offers surfboard, bodyboard, and swim fin rentals.
FeeLit Records
Française
A sleek new boutique on Orange Avenue, Française offers a selection of housewares in a modern industrial motif with a touch of class imported from France itself. The shop is stocked with attractive items for every room in the house, including cookware and serving utensils, posters and stationery, and even a variety of kids' toys. Before departing, make sure to peruse the backroom, which is stocked with edible treats like honey, hot sauce, chocolate bars, and floral salts.