Los Angeles - Something like South Coast Plaza Mall in Los Angeles/Santa Monica?

Hi, Is there a large mall similar to South Coast Plaza not too far from Universal Studios? Even Santa Monica or Los Angeles will be fine. I imagine it will be 20-30 min by car between Universal Studios and Santa Monica/Los Angeles.

Thank you.

Hi, Is there a large mall similar to South Coast Plaza not too far from Universal Studios? Even Santa Monica or Los Angeles will be fine. I imagine it will be 20-30 min by car between Universal Studios and Santa Monica/Los Angeles.

Thank you.

There's a Westfield in Century City. I don't know if that's large enough.

At what time of day are you imagining it will only take 20 minutes to go from Santa Monica to Universal Studios?

At what time of day are you imagining it will only take 20 minutes to go from Santa Monica to Universal Studios?

3am :D

Well, at least you'll get a good mall parking space!
There is the Fashion Square Mall in Sherman Oaks, about 15 minutes from Universal, although not as big as South Coast Plaza. Also, the Grove is a nice outdoor mall.

Well, at least you'll get a good mall parking space!
There is the Fashion Square Mall in Sherman Oaks, about 15 minutes from Universal, although not as big as South Coast Plaza. Also, the Grove is a nice outdoor mall.

Parking can be hard at the Grove though.

There is nothing nearby with the upscale feel and shop selection of South Coast Plaza. You can find many of the same stores on Rodeo Dr, but obviously not in an enclosed mall setting.

Santa Monica Place: http://www.santamonicaplace.com/Map/

Westfield Century City: http://www.westfield.com/centurycity/directory/search/store

Yes there is. It is just not a mall. It is called Beverly Hills. All the high end designer stores are on Rodeo Drive and the secondary streets such as Canon and Beverly have most of the less expensive chain stores. Wilshire Blvd. has the department stores including Neiman Marcus, Barneys, and Sacks Fifth Avenue. Two hour parking is available for free in the triangle (the area bordered by Santa Monica Blvd., Wilshire Blvd., and Crescent)

Like it was mentioned go to Rodeo drive and the surrounding areas. It is not a mall per se but all of the upscale stores will be well represented.

Santa Monica Place: http://www.santamonicaplace.com/Map/

Westfield Century City: http://www.westfield.com/centurycity/directory/search/store
The best restaurants have already gone under at S.M. Place. Westfield, CC isn't bad, but unfortunately, Houstons, which was the best restaurant just closed. The Counter is decent if you want a burger

Your question is broad. What stores are you looking for? Some are guessing you're looking for an "upscale feel." Are you seeking a general feel, or specific stores or what? Universal City is, I'm pretty sure, within the L.A. city limits, but no matter. Virtually all of the San Fernando Valley, besides Burbank and San Fernando, is in L.A. Maybe you mean downtown L.A.? There are lots of shopping malls in the area. Closest to Universal may be the Glendale Galleria (see store listing at http://www.glendalegalleria.com/directory) but there are plenty of others, as well, including the aforementioned Fashion Square, plus the Galleria in Sherman Oaks, and malls in Northridge, etc. And if you're looking for a specific store you may not need a large mall. Your hotel's concierge should be able to give hints.

Hi, Is there a large mall similar to South Coast Plaza not too far from Universal Studios? Even Santa Monica or Los Angeles will be fine. I imagine it will be 20-30 min by car between Universal Studios and Santa Monica/Los Angeles.

Thank you.

Universal Citywalk is right there at Universal Studios & offers a tremendous variety of shops. Outside of that is the original Farmers Market along with nextdoor neighbor The Grove. Sherman Oaks Galleria is also really close to Universal Studios over by the 405 & 101 freeways.

...plus the Galleria in Sherman Oaks, and malls in Northridge, etc.

The Sherman Oaks Galleria is an entertainment mall nowadsays. It has Archlight movie theaters and many restaurants, but hardly any stores left.

Topanga Plaza (http://www.westfield.com/topanga) in Woodland Hills has both Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus and many other upscale stores.

Thanks. Was thinking of upscale. Actually did both Beverly Hills and South Coast (separately of course) as these were safe bets and we had been to many times in the past. Was hoping that there would be others I didn't know about. The only thing disappointing about South Coast is that the large bookstore is gone. Not that books are upscale, but good if children (and myself) can enjoy themselves as well.

Thank you all.

The only thing disappointing about South Coast is that the large bookstore is gone. Not that books are upscale, but good if children (and myself) can enjoy themselves as well.Are you referring to Rizzoli? I haven't been to SCP for several years, but I did enjoy browsing at the art and architecture books there.

One of the problems with a mall like Century City is that it is too close physically to the Golden Triangle shops for upscale/luxury. Also, there was no room for expansion when stores like Nordstrom came to Southern California, resulting in int Seattle company placing its store in the Westside Pavilion and later in The Grove.

Also, there was no room for expansion when stores like Nordstrom came to Southern California, resulting in int Seattle company placing its store in the Westside Pavilion and later in The Grove.

And the Glendale Galleria, and Santa Anita, and Santa Monica, and Redondo Beach, and Cerritos, and Canoga Park, and Brea, and Santa Ana, and Chino, and Montclair, and Costa Mesa, and Newport Beach, and Irvine, and Thousand Oaks, and Ontario, and Riverside, and Mission Viejo.

No, no room for expansion whatsoever.

No, no room for expansion whatsoever.

"No room for expansion" referred to the fact that there was no room to expand Century City Shopping Center, not to Nordstrom's expanding into the Southern California market.

In the 1970's Bullock's opened a store in the only unbuilt major space in the Center (this is now Macy's). Nordstrom was shut out (as was May Co), so they built their stores as part of the Pavilion (Robinson's had the store adjacent to the Beverly Hilton, so they did not need to be in a Westside mall).

Thanks. Was thinking of upscale. Actually did both Beverly Hills and South Coast (separately of course) as these were safe bets and we had been to many times in the past. Was hoping that there would be others I didn't know about. The only thing disappointing about South Coast is that the large bookstore is gone. Not that books are upscale, but good if children (and myself) can enjoy themselves as well.

Thank you all.

Book stores are closing across the country. People just don't buy books.

"No room for expansion" referred to the fact that there was no room to expand Century City Shopping Center, not to Nordstrom's expanding into the Southern California market.

In the 1970's Bullock's opened a store in the only unbuilt major space in the Center (this is now Macy's). Nordstrom was shut out (as was May Co), so they built their stores as part of the Pavilion (Robinson's had the store adjacent to the Beverly Hilton, so they did not need to be in a Westside mall).

There was room for constructing a new store. It could have been built where they built the old food court and Dive, on the Santa Monica Blvd. side of the mall, at about the same time that the Westside Pavilion opened. There was also room where they relocated the movie theaters and built the new food court, near the corner of Constellation Blvd. and Century Park West, a few years ago.

My guess as why Nordstrom opened in the Westside Pavilion, as opposed to the Century city Shopping Center, is that Nordstrom received an offer from the Westside Pavillion developers that was hard to turn down. Another likely factor was that Carter Hawley Hale Stores, the owners of The Broadway (since replaced by a Bloomingdale's), and Federated Department Stores, owners of Bullock's (now replaced by Macy's), most likely had a contractual exclusivity for anchor stores in Century City.

Don't forget that the West Los Angeles Nordstrom store opened before Westfield Group took over the Century City Shopping Center.