The ultimate outlet shopping experience...Sawgrass Mills Mall.
Written: Dec 30 '02 (Updated Feb 18 '07)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: large variety of store, pricing
Cons: a lot of walking, some stores not outlet priced
The Bottom Line: Great variety of stores to get your shopping done in one stop.
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| kld718's Full Review: Sawgrass Mills -- Ft. Lauderdale, FL |
It is one of the traditions every year with my mother, for me to visit one weekend, most likely the weekend after Thanksgiving and spend the day doing Christmas shopping at the Sawgrass Mills. This year we almost didn’t have the chance to do it because I was almost not able to get off from work for the holiday, but I was able to at the last minute and surprised my mother by showing up. This year, we actually did the mall twice. Once for Christmas shopping and once this past week for the after Christmas specials.
There are over four hundred name brand discount stores and retail outlets located within the Sawgrass Mills Mall. But that is not all. There are numerous eateries and various forms of entertainment also included here. At the Sawgrass Mills, you can find yourself walking through six different sections of the mall, so be prepared for a long review.
The Oasis... is not your typical mall setting. Here you can find an outdoor promenade. Dining al fresco with entertainment in the streets and shopping in the Florida sunshine is the best features of the Oasis. This past week they had a band playing some songs in the middle of the street for entertainment. This section of the mall features such stores as Tommy Hilfiger Company Store, Polo Ralph Lauren Factory Store, Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse, Reebok Outlet Store, Foot Locker, Rockport Outlet Store, Kipling, Samsonite Travel Expo, Nature’s Touch, The Icing, Manhattan Jewelry Exchange, Optica, Calvin Klein Company Store, and Hilda Worth. And for frolicking in the Florida sunshine, you can check out Ron Jon Surf shop and Ritchie’s Swimwear. Have a sudden craving for food? The Oasis features a few of the most popular restaurants, including The Cheesecake Factory, Wolfgang Puck Café, Hard Rock Café, Los Ranchos Restaurants, Legal Sea Foods, Ghirardelli Soda Fountain, Empire Pizza, Candy Express, and Daiquiri Daze.
Yellow Tucan... here you find yourself browsing the stores down Modern Main Street. The three major stores in this part of the mall include Marshall’s, Spiegal Outlet Store, and the Sports Authority. Kappa, Pro Image, Gift Warehouse, Sanrio, Ritz Camera, Athletic Footwear, Easy Spirit Outlet, FYE, EB Games, Discount Luggage Outlet, Furniture Liquidators, Fragrance Outlet, Rack Room Shoes, Hush Puppies, Sunny Eyes, Sunglass Hut, On Time, CR Jewelers Diamond Outlet, Claire’s Boutique Outlet, Sportswear Unlimited, Pacific Sunwear, Leather Limited, GNC, Glamour Shots, Kay Bee Toys, and Westport, LTD are most of the stores located within the Yellow Tucan Neighborhood. For you eating pleasure the Sports Court Food Court contains such eateries as the Rainforest Café, Auntie Anne’s, Barnie’s Coffee & Tea, Burger King, Taco Bell, Sbarro, Miami Subs, Panda Express, BBQ Palace, and the Cajun Grill. And when your sweet tooth is raging, you can choose from Haagen Dazs, Sweets From Heaven, or Palm Beach Confectioners (who has wonderful candy apples).
White Seahorse... heading through the Cabana Court and down the Mediterranean Main Street, you will find such main stores as the VF Factory Outlet, Gap Outlet, Off 5th Saks Fifth Avenue Outlet, and Books A Million. You can also browse through some of the smaller stores such as the Banana Republic Factory Store, Donna Karan Company Store, Escada Company Store, Baby Gap Outlet, Gap Kids Outlet, Sharper Image Outlet, Cole Haan, Liz Claiborne Shoes, Payless Shoe Source, Timberland, Perfumania, Bentley’s Luggage Outlet (who is now going out of business there), the Silver Mill, Zales The Diamond Store Outlet, Topper Outlet, Liz Claiborne Outlet, bebe, Group USA, Casual Corner Annex Petite, Animations, Geoffrey Beens, and XOXO. There are not any places to eat in this section, so if you are hungry you had better grab something before heading into the White Seahorse Neighborhood.
Red Snapper... by far my most favorite section of the mall with such stores as J.Crew, Ann Taylor Loft, Last Call Neiman Marcus, Burlington Coat Factory, Mikasa Factory Store, Etienne Aigner, Brooks Brothers, Nautica Factory Store, Kenneth Cole Outlet, Disney’s Character Premiere, Perry Ellis, Golf America, Theory, Hugo Boss Factory Store, Limited Too, Aerosoles, Battaglia, Paradise Jewelers, Lacoste, Cache Outlet, Casual Corner Outlet, Erdos Cashmere, and Endless Summer. The Red Snapper neighborhood also does not offer any kind of eatery and you must head on before finding something for lunch. This neighborhood does boast Gloria Jean’s Gourmet Coffee that always has a line going out the door, but I do not mind waiting in it because their Iced Cappuccino tastes great.
Blue Dolphin... perhaps one of the larger sections of the mall, this neighborhood boasts stores like Bed Bath & Beyond, TJ Maxx, Guess Outlet, Athlete’s Foot, CR Jewelers, Jockey, Levi’s Outlet, Dockers Outlet, Nine West Outlet, Van Heusen Factory Outlet, Field of Dreams, Spencer Gifts, Things Remembered, Guess Kids, Bose, Game Stop, Dexter Shoe Factory Outlet, Radio Shack, The Body Shop, Rack Room Shoes, Art Treasures, Kirkland’s, Benetton Factory Outlet, Fossil Company Store, Calvin Klein Outlet Store, Dress Barn, Wacky Bear Factory, Wet Seal, Motherhood Maternity Outlet, Deco Beach Outlet, and Urban Planet. For your sweet tooth, check out Dippin’ Dots and Dairy Queen. Ruby Tuesday’s is also included in this section for your sit down lunch and dinner needs.
Pink Flamingo... probably the largest section of the mall because it includes another food court. The Hurricane Food Court boasts much of the same eateries as the Sports Court Food Court, with the exception of the Great American Cookie Co., Las Delicias, My Favorite Muffin, Nathan’s, Popeye’s, Subway, Tropical Café, and Wolfgang Puck Express. This neighborhood is almost always the most busiest with having three major stores located within it: JcPenney Outlet, Target Greatland, and Brandsmart USA. You can also check out other smaller stores such as Beall’s Outlet, Specs, Foot Action USA, Carter’s, Laughing Lizards, Oshkosh B’Gosh Outlet, Nextel, Digital World, Rave Girl, Puma, Parade of Shoes, Traffic Shoes, Vans Outlet, World of Shoes, Farberware Outlet, Luggage Express, LensCrafters, Watch Me, Brief Encounters, Cellini, IZOD, Quiksilver Company Store, Vitamin World, Wilson’s Leather Outlet, Toy Works, 5-7-9 Outlet, Sirens, and Jalan Jalan. At the farthest end from the overloaded food court, you can find both Auntie Anne’s and Kohr Bros. Frozen Custard (the best).
The list of stores above is by no means every store in the Sawgrass Mills Mall...believe me when I say that there are many more! :)
If you are like my mother and I and enjoy shopping, you may find yourself making a day out of this mall. With so many good stores and wonderful food and snacks, you will not want to leave until you finish the whole mall. Make sure that you have your comfortable walking shoes on though, or you will find yourself wanting to leave instead of finishing the mall and your shopping.
The outside decor is like your typical mall settings, with utilitarian storefronts. The various labeled entrances are the only thing that brightens the outside up. The themed neighborhoods inside add the attractiveness of the mall. Each section is decorated according to what street you are strolling down or what neighborhood you are in. And you will find yourself walking through the whole mall on attractive wooden flooring.
There are two information booths for your convenience located at the Blue Dolphin and White Seahorse entrances. Here you can grab yourself a map of the whole mall to plot out you destinations. This may become important if you have no desire to tire out your legs by walking the whole mall in search of only a few stores.
Looking for a gift, but cannot find the perfect one? No problem, because you can pick up a gift certificate to the mall at either one of these booths. They also offer free wheelchairs so that you can bring someone with you that cannot walk the whole mall.
And if you are anything like my mother and feel the need to try out every bathroom that you see, there are numerous located throughout the mall for your convenience. Along with that, there are a few ATM machines if you find yourself strapped for cash. The information booths also offer Foreign Currency Exchanges if you are not from this country.
Because the Sawgrass Mills Mall has been labeled as a tourist attraction, there are two reserved locations where tourist buses arrive and depart, located at each end of the mall. There is also a shuttle service that runs to the mall from Miami Beach or Ft. Lauderdale. You can pick up the schedule at one of the information booths, or call 1-800-FL-Mills.
MY THOUGHTS
The Sawgrass Mills Mall is definitely what I would have to say is Florida’s ultimate outlet shopping experience. Although sometimes you do have to wonder with the pricing, if you are really shopping at an outlet mall. But most of the time you can get some great bargains on almost everything imaginable. You just have to remember that all of the stores are not labeled as “outlets”.
Not all of the stores offer the low prices and you may find yourself looking for its outlet counterpart. This happens with the Calvin Klein Company Store. Shopping in this store is no different than shopping for the Calvin Klein brand in the major department stores. If you are looking for the outlet priced Calvin Klein clothes, then you will find yourself heading over the Calvin Klein Outlet Store in another section of the mall. This is the same with some of the major anchor stores located at the Sawgrass Mills mall. Entering into Marshall’s, Bed Bath & Beyond, Burlington Coat Factory, or Target Greatland, will not find you any outlet priced merchandise.
One thing that is great about this mall is that the parking lots and entrances are labeled. All you have to do is remember what entrance you came into. And with those weird names such as Blue Dolphin or Yellow Tucan, it should be hard to forget. The parking lots themselves’ are also labeled with either an animal, letter, or number to help you easily find your car after a long day of shopping. As you are entering into the mall, there is also an automated voice overhead that welcomes you and tells you exactly what entrance you have used. If you forget where you have parked, even with all of these reminders, then you deserve to loose your car and spend an hour looking for it. :)
The one and only bad thing about this mall is that it is located just 15 minutes from the Ft. Lauderdale International Airport and 30 minutes from the Miami International Airport, which makes it a huge tourist trap. I guess that is a good thing for the economy, but it makes for a crowded shopping experience for the locals.
The Sawgrass Mills Mall is located at 12801 Sunrise Blvd in Sunrise, Florida. This is on the corner of Sunrise Blvd. and Flamingo Road. If you are coming from I-95, you take the I-595 West exit to Flamingo Road North and follow that all the way down until you hit Sunrise Blvd. Shopping hours are Monday through Saturday 10am-9:30pm and Sunday 11am-8pm. During the holidays, they have your typical extended hours for those early morning and late night shoppers.
Overall, I would have to say that I just love this mall. It contains most of my favorite stores and does have a lot of good pricing despite the fact that some of the stores are not really outlets. But my mother and I love this mall and usually end up walking it every time I come to see her because it is only about 10 minutes from her house. Overall, you get a variety of shops to choose from and cannot go wrong with shopping at the Sawgrass Mills Mall if you are not worried about how much money you will probably be spending in the many stores and all the exercise you will be getting walking the huge place!
~ Happy Shopping!
Kim
Another Mills Mall:
Franklin Mills Mall
For Your Other Shopping Needs:
The Florida Mall
The Mall at Millenia
Roosevelt Mall
Recommended:
Yes
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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Epinions.com ID:
kld718
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Location: Central Florida
Reviews written: 606
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Preparing for a return to writing!
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