Drop her off and go golfing or something!

how funny! we just had a huge discussion about this at work today. this post could have been written by our CFO! It all boils down to differences between men and women. We gals like to shop. We gals like to find good bargains. Could I buy it online instead of traveling there and lugging it home? Probably, except I like to touch the item I'm buying. The tactile experience is huge! Let her have a day there. If you're a good guy, you'll go along and carry her bags. And the 2 of you can go fishing or golfing the next day.

Well said Melissa. Selsel should just give her the half a day and carry her bags.
FYI, I'm a woman, but I tire of those places after 4 hours myself.

Geeeez---not all "we gals" like to shop. I'd rather hike, climb mountains, ski, anything but shop!

Orcas LOL

Selsel.... love your sense of humor. DH _hates_ to shop, but knows that it is something I like to do when traveling and so he goes along with me. Someone has to hold my purse while I rummage through the racks ;-)

If she is any kind of shopper, she will see that the outlet stores, aren't the always the best quality and aren't that cheap. DH has figured out that by mentioning the poor quality of merchandise, I am easily disuaded from buying them. He saves a bundle that way!

The stores/items will seem new to her as it will be different from what she sees/buys in the UK.

Go with her, have a coffee or a snack, it's all part of marriage and traveling.

You sound like a good sport who knows when he is outvoted!

As I tell DH when I buy something expensive and use our frequent flyer credit card, "don't thing of them as dollars, think of them as miles."

Enjoy your trip.

Nina

Ooooops, lots of typos. Should have been "don't think of them as dollars, think of them as miles".

Nina

Hi Guys
Thanks for all your input which we’ve both found comical and fascinating.
Just for the record, you won’t find a happier married couple (so long as she keeps doing what I tell her to do). Seriously, I’m the luckiest guy alive. Early 50’s, married for 28 years, absolutely adore her (and she knows it) and oh yes, we will be visiting that outlet. As it closes at 9.00 PM we’ll fit it in one evening.

I just got back from a trip to this outlet mall. I persuaded my 69 year-old dad (one whose favourite phrase is "Do you need it? Can you really afford it?"), my husband and my sister (who buys only a few clothes a year, mostly from charity shops) to come along for the ride. (Dad was driving us from White Rock, where he lives, about an hour south of Vancouver, to Seattle, where we were flying home on BA.)

I originally planned to spend 60-90 minutes there. Well, each time we met up at the Starbucks (at 60 minute intervals), at least one member of the group was wearing something new. Dad loved it - and plans to go back in the near future. There is a Sony store and a large bookstore to keep those who don't like clothes-shopping entertained - but you might like it more than you expect. I've also heard that the food at the nearby Casino is actually quite decent (although we didn't stop there). The mall is quite upscale, well-laid out, with covered walkways (it rains a lot in the Pacific Northwest), and there are good value buys on upscale high street and designer brands. My favourite shop there is the Ann Taylor Factory Store. Go shopping, let your wife get it out of her system early, and then enjoy the rest of the holiday.

Find a good strip club to go to while she shops. Both of you should enjoy your vacation, with some give and take on both sides.

The answer is let her go by herself so she can enjoy the experience without you being a drag. You could book an appointment with a therapist at the same time.

Glad to see that you will not be getting divorced

While these outlets are not near anything very exciting, IMO, they are a fun place to shop. We will be making a pit stop there to shop in a couple weeks. My husband hates to shop, but he humors me and we always end up having fun.

As a Brit who lives in the States, I'd suggest you avoid the Outlet stores, yawn, and shop in Seattle.

You'll find bargains for less $$ than you pay in pounds in the UK... no need to visit the outlets unless your wife really likes that type of shopping...

On a recent one week stay in Palm Desert, CA I asked my husband to take me to the Desert Hills Premium Outlets about a 15 to 20 min. drive from Palm Desert (in a town named Cabazon).

He gladly drove us there ('cause he just a swell guy) on a beautifully sunny day at approx. 2:00 in the afternoon.

This place is HUGE. It has all the requisite outlet mall stores plus the "supposed" high-end shops (Coach, DKNY, Dooney & Bourke, Cole Hahn, etc., etc.).

What a waste of time. The Coach store had purses in all hues of pastel candy colours (pink, lime green, etc.) at not particularly reduced prices. The other stores were equally unimpressive in their wares and prices.

After one hour of wandering in and out of the stores in only one-half of this huge mall, I said "let's go back Palm Desert and enjoy the sun".

Each to their own, but ... IMHO outlet malls are a big waste of time. You're better to shop at the actual department stores (Macy's, Lord & Taylor, or whichever good quality department store is in the area you are visiting) and snag something on their sales.

There was recently an article exploring outlet shopping in the Consumers Report magazine and they said pretty much what some of the posters here said , that some of the clothes and other items, too, were made specifically for the outlets and then discussed further the "seconds" in the stores and how sometimes they can be a bargain and sometimes not. It would be hard for your wife (or me!)to be that close to many 'bargains' and miss out shopping for them. If your wife is lucky, she'll be able to come home with some good deals. Good luck.

I think I have a compromise that will make everyone happy. I live in Seattle and have gone to those malls, but have often found better bargains at Nordstrom's Rack--one of which is in downtown Seattle right by Pike Place Market. You don't say where you're staying, but there are lots of Racks around, and she can shop while you watch the ferryboats come in (or whatever). And yes, I'm a woman, and would much rather hike, go to museums, concerts, ballets, the opera, than shop anyday, anyplace!

there is only one thing that you can count on...she will shop. whether at home in england or in the US where things easily half the price. you take your pick.

you just need to have an understanding that this shopping spree is to save money from what she would have normally purchased in england. this way you both win. compromise is what it is all about.

trust me, i have experience with this.

while your wife goes shopping you can play golf, visit museum, take a guided tour, go hiking. Whatever!

So where's the nearest hotel to Ancortes ferry (3*ish)? We aim to take the ferry to Sidney first thing in the morning after the shopping spree (assuming the boat will take the weight.)

selsel

People who go to shopping malls are banned from the ferries.

However, some ferries will let you on if you pay by the pound instead of per person.