Tanger Outlet: Park City’s factory outlet mall is a shopper’s paradise

By Patricia Q. Dark
For Now Utah

PARK CITY — Visitors to downtown Salt Lake City struggle to find much variety when it comes to shopping. But for the dedicated shopper, a 20-minute drive up the canyon to Park City brings you to a shopper’s paradise.

Nestled just below the Utah Olympic Park ski jump, the Tanger Outlet Center is an outdoor mall with over 60 top brand shops. Tanger offers shoppers on a tight budget great name-brand products at discount prices. While many think of Park City for superlative skiing and quaint Main Street shops, the bargains at Tanger are just as enticing.

Designer clothing doesn’t come cheap unless you visit this factory outlet nestled in the mountains. More than 60 outlet stores carry brand name items at affordable prices. On a recent visit, I found a Ralph Lauren men’s dress shirt that normally retails for $119 on sale for $31. At the popular tweeny store, Justice, a cute little bikini was on sale for $10. Down in Salt Lake City the price for the same swimsuit was $29.50.

Stores such as Ralph Lauren, Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, Gap, Carters, Nike and the Lucky Brand jeans offer plenty of choice for the whole family. Whether you’re looking for school clothes, Christmas presents or simply want to just browse, Tanger offers an extensive range of clothing and shoe stores.

For shoppers skeptical they are getting true bargains, Tanger provides a best-price guarantee. If you purchase merchandise from a Tanger outlet store and find it advertised for less elsewhere within 30 days, you can bring in the advertisement and your receipt and the outlet manager will refund you the difference in cash. To save more money check their web page for center-wide coupons (www.tangeroutlet.com/parkcity).

Perhaps Tanger’s greatest gift for the shopper, though, is its location. At Christmas the outlets become almost magical with the snow-covered mountains and shoppers balancing packages scuttling from store to store as snowflakes descend. In the summer the cool mountain breezes make Tanger a wonderful retreat from the hot, steaming tarmac of Salt Lake City.

If you need a break from the shopping, there is a Mrs. Fields cookie outlet where you can get a quick snack. Children can burn off energy in one of two children’s play areas. Even when it is covered in snow, the kids have great fun on the slides and jungle gym.

If you’re hungry, neighboring Park City has over 100 restaurants featuring Asian, European Continental, American, French, Mexican/Southwestern, Italian and many other types of cuisine that offer a wonderful reprieve from shopping see perennial favorites below.

Shopping is a favorite pastime of many but sometimes you might just end up taking home more than you bargained for. One friend recently visited the outlets looking for a new pair of shoes. She dropped in on the animal adoption center at Tanger, Furbubia, and went home with a Great Dane puppy. Furburbia, run by volunteers, has a no-kill facility. It takes pets from other shelters in the area. The animals are neutered, given shots, and groomed before being adopted.

So after you’ve finished shopping, stop by Furburbia and visit with the dogs and cats they have on offer. You just might go home with more than you bargained for.