Shopping
Shopping
San Diego has several distinctive shopping areas. Among the oldest is Hillcrest, the geographical centre of San Diego. Visitors can find a wide selection of stores, ranging from local grocery stores to funky gift shops, as well as an impressive selection of restaurants, lounges and trendy coffee bars. Babette Schwartz, 421 University Avenue, specialises in quite ‘Californian’ gifts and personal items. Little Italy, Downtown, offers a tasteful selection of shops that are focused around Mediterranean cooking and culture. Typical Californian gifts range from T-shirts (a Southern Californian favourite) to expensive artwork from one of the area’s many art galleries. A bottle of California wine is always a popular choice.
Built to take advantage of Southern California’s sunny weather, Horton Plaza, at Fourth Avenue and F Street, Downtown, is one of San Diego’s more ‘compact’ shopping malls, with a bright, airy interior that is built in multiple levels and designed for easy accessibility. Fashion Valley, 7007 Friars Road, and Mission Valley, 1640 Camino del Rio North, are two of the city’s larger modern malls, featuring top-line department stores as well as unique speciality shops.
San Diego is a book-lover’s paradise, perhaps owing to the fact that it has been home to several world famous authors, including Dr Seuss. Joseph Taber Books, 1033 Seventh Avenue, specialises in rare and fine books. Bountiful Books, 3834 Fifth Avenue, specialises in hard-to-find titles, multicultural and women’s topics. Paper Antiquities, 1552 Fifth Avenue, carries an impressive collection of newspapers and magazines dating from the 1700s to 1976. San Diego Historical Museum, 413 Market Street, has rare books, photos and memorabilia relating to Western American history.
There are a number of farmers’ markets scattered across San Diego County. The most popular is in Chula Vista, which takes place every Thursday, 1500-1900 (summer) and 1500-1800 (winter), and is known from its large street-fair atmosphere and varied products. A complete listings of farmers markets and schedules is available online (website: www.sdfarmbureau.org/pages/farmersmarket.html).
San Diego, like most Californian cities, has a wide range of supermarkets and speciality food stores. Ralphs and Albertsons are only two of the major markets and are located conveniently in most residential districts. Both are generally open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Other shops are open Monday-Friday 1000-2100, Saturday 1000-1900 and Sunday 1100-1800, although hours will vary.
Sales tax stands at 7.75% in San Diego. There are duty-free stores located in San Ysidro, directly south of San Diego, via I-5, at the US-Mexican border. These stores are tremendously popular and offer a wide selection of products for reduced prices. California sales tax is non-refundable.
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Shopping