?South Coast Plaza The Ultimate Shopping Experience

South Coast Plaza is the Ultimate Shopping Experience - minutes from Southern California’s Gold Coast, part 5th Avenue, part Michigan Avenue, rivaled only by the Right Bank in Paris, and the Via Veneto in Rome.

Its 280 boutiques, from the most popular to the most exclusive, including Valentino, Burberry, Armani, Fendi, Celine, Dior, Tiffany & Co., Gucci, Chloé, Hermès, Van Cleef & Arpels, Cartier, Louis Vuitton, Ralph Lauren, Yves Saint Laurent, Ferragamo, CH Carolina Herrera, and Chanel, to name a few, are unparalleled as a collection of what is the latest in fashion.

As for dining, here your palate can travel the globe - 32 restaurants, many of which occupy a streetscape location, while only steps away are the many temples for pampering - Vidal Sassoon, Aveda, Georgette Klinger Spa & Salon and the Spa Fitness at South Coast Plaza.

South Coast Plaza is truly where travelers from every continent have made South Coast Plaza the place “where the world comes to stay, shop, and dine.”

Through the years not only celebrities, but kings and queens, lords and ladies, prime ministers and sultans have set foot on the terra ferma of South Coast Plaza.

The King and Queen of Sweden, Lady Ann and Lord Ogilvy, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (two visits), the Sultan of Bruni, the King of Uruguay and the Governor of California have all carried with them the memory of a South Coast Plaza visit and the “sense of place” they experienced, an accolade which the Urban Land Institute bestowed upon South Coast Plaza in the same year that Rockefeller Center in New York earned that distinction.

Of all of the sobriquets that have come South Coast Plaza’s way, perhaps one of the most all encompassing is the recognition by Visa International which identified South Coast Plaza as one of the “Most Famous Streets to Stay, Shop, and Dine.” Only eight other U.S. shopping streets were accorded that distinction.

It is truly the Orange County’s urban center, for housed in the Segerstrom Center for the Arts is the home of the 3,000-seat Orange County Performing Arts Center where Broadway, ballet, symphony and opera are performed, the 2000-seat Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, 500-seat Samueli Theatre and the Tony award-winning South Coast Repertory Theatre - all providing a full 12-month calendar of entertainment.

Today, the number of people that annually visit South Coast Plaza exceeds 25 million, boosting annual sales nearest $1.4 billion.

It is no secret that South Coast Plaza, which pioneered tourism marketing when it identified the nascent visitor market as an untapped reservoir that would add to its customer base, stands alone today as a destination that attracts people from all over the world.

Brand names, the universal language at South Coast Plaza, (witness the many international luxury brands and beckoning “sidewalk” restaurants which line South Coast Plaza’s 24-carrat concourse), has much to do with the reason so many travel writers and magazine editors write and speak of South Coast Plaza in such glowing terms.

Variously described as “trendy.a travel destination in its own right.worth a visit as any theme park.adventureland built around attractions with names like Gucci, Ralph Lauren.,” perhaps the most defining comment, however, found its way onto the pages of one of the country’s leading fashion magazine. Vogue editors proclaimed that “(at South Coast Plaza).you are transported to a kind of ideal world where everything is shiny and new and clean and perfect and promising, where reality is replaced by any fantasy you might fancy.”

Even former California Governor, Pete Wilson is effusive in his description of South Coast Plaza. In a letter to Henry T. Segerstrom, a managing partner, he said:

“South Coast Plaza is more than a great shopping, dining and entertainment complex, it is a travel destination, a source of State pride, and a vital contributor to California’s economy, employment and quality of life.

The South Coast Plaza complex is historic in that, through planning and foresight, it has become a major tour destination, attracting visitors from as far away as Japan and beyond. This great facility is an example of the best California has to offer and is one important reason that Japanese travelers have made California their number one destination on the American continent.

At one time the Segerstrom name was renowned as the largest independent producer of large lima beans in the United States. It is testimony to your vision that, from those agricultural roots, you have grown South Coast Plaza into one of California’s largest tourism attractions.”

Today, South Coast Plaza is listed as one of the State’s 20 Fun Spots to visit, and as a full tour season destination, its store windows, creative architecture, and the delicious scents from the many “sidewalk” restaurants effectively compete with the blue sky and golden sunsets which characterize the area and puts the exclamation mark on any stay in Southern California.

For more go to www.southcoastplaza.com