Sometimes I forget that after living in Beijing for almost a decade, the places I frequent might not always be known to others. Recently I found myself surprised when one of my newer-to-the-capital friends asked “Where is there an outlet mall in Beijing?”

For those who have yet to explore Beijing’s two outlet malls that are located closer to the city, Surprise and Scitech are both great for families.

If you’ve ever been to an outlet mall in the US, these two in Beijing are designed very similarly to the American ones. Meaning, there’s plenty of open space and the stores are always having some kind of sale.

Scitech Outlets is home to stores like MaxMara, Michael Kors, Coach, Armani, Mont Blanc, Bally, Burberry, Moschino, etc. The entire place is intended to be pet-friendly with little doggy posts located outside stores so your pups can wait safely while you shop inside.

For those with little kids, the outdoor space is safe for them to run around since there are no vehicles allowed inside Scitech and occasionally, they’ll have popup installations where kids can climb and play.

But Scitech is a bit far for me. Luckily, there’s an outlet mall even closer one to the city center and that is Surprise Outlets! My family loves to go there and spend the whole day racking up our step counts. The outlet is huge with both indoor and outdoor sections.

Surprise is home to brands like Ted Baker, Kenzo, Theory, Vans, Converse DSquared, Miss Sixty, Michael Kors, Bebe, and many more.

Like at Scitech, Surprise also has multiple play areas set up outside to entertain kids and there’s even an indoor/outdoor play area + petting zoo that opened up on the 2nd floor that’s worth a visit all on its own. Tickets to the petting zoo is RMB 238 for one adult + 1 child to play all day long. Surprise is also home to editor Vivienne’s 7-year-old’s favorite trampoline park, Bom Bom Space!

Both of these outlets are designed with families in mind and there are crazy deals on clothes and shoes all year long. Just this past weekend we snagged up some gorgeous pieces at Ted Baker for 90% off. Putting that into actual RMB, that’s about RMB 100 for a men’s Ted Baker shirt!

Happy shopping!

Find it:
Beijing Scitech Outlet Mall 北京赛特奥菜
Pinnacle Plaza, 28 Xiangjiang North Road, Chaoyang District
朝阳区香江北路28号

Find it:
Surprise Outlets 斯普瑞斯奥特莱斯
2 Airport Express
机场第二次高速
*If you’re taking Didi, it’s much easier to just input the name into the destination rather than the address

KEEP READING: 5 Reasons Bom Bom Space Trampoline & Video Game Park Is “Da Bomb”

Images: Dianping, Mina Yan

When it comes to purchasing items for their kids, foreign parents in Beijing rarely take advantage of low-priced local brands – safety comes first when junior’s concerned, and many parents prefer to spend a little more on imported brands they know they can trust. Of course, Beijing’s expats hail from all over the globe, and different folks are loyal to different labels on the international market. We conducted an informal survey of the city’s families to find out which brands experienced parents seek out, and where they do their shopping. Here’s what we found.

North American Parents
Good quality clothing is getting easier to find in Beijing reports American mom Eliot Bikales. For standard kids’ clothing, Bikales regularly shops at Decathlon. “Their clothes hold up well, and with four active kids, that’s important,” she says. Bikales occasionally finds GAP seconds at local markets or at the stores in Pinnacle Plaza – she likes this brand because there’s no guesswork involved in the sizes. To cater to the more alternative tastes of her 11-year-old daughter Maral, Bikales turns to the Internet, buying goth gear from fashion website Hot Topic.

For sporting gear and clothing, Angela Mueller, also from the States, is another Decathlon fan. “The equipment we bought there a year ago is still in great shape, and the clothes are washing and wearing very well,” she states happily.

For kids’ parties, Mueller shops at Exquisite, and she particularly recommends their Wilton baking supplies. “Exquisite has all kinds of party supplies, children’s custom cakes and decorations. The Wilton baking supplies allow you to create your own cake, which is great fun for kids. They also have classes, which are a great activity for the children as well.”

African Parents
Foreign parents who speak Chinese are often more comfortable buying Chinese brands, observes Cecil Pollydore, a father of three from Guyana. “Those foreigners who travel back and forth will bring things back from home, but those of us who settle in Beijing learn to make do with what is here.”

For the widest range of international kid’s items, he tends to rely on the stores at Scitech Plaza and the Yansha Shopping Mall, although he warns that items bought here are on the expensive side.

“When I first moved to Beijing several years ago, reliable children’s products were hard to find – now, there are more products to choose from every passing day,” says Pollydore. “I find that if you’re willing to go walking and searching through the local markets, you can find good prices and quality.”

Pollydore’s preferred hunting grounds include the Alien Street Market and lesser-known Dongjiao Market (southeast of Soho New Town on Dawang Lu). Some local brands Pollydore has come to trust are Goodbaby (for strollers and other gear) and Anta (for kids‘ shoes). “Anta is cheap, good quality, and not fake,” he reports.

European Parents
Dutch daddy Michael Sahlsberg laments that the “practically indestructible” handmade items like cotton diapers and woolen baby underwear he buys in his wife’s native Sweden aren’t available in Beijing. He manages to import some, however, from Ullrike. But there’s a hazard involved with purchasing this website’s quality clothing: “Your baby won’t need so many layers of clothing and a father on his own will soon find himself cornered by local pensioners screaming ta leng (she’s too cold)!”

Middle Eastern Parents

Peter Marvian from the United Arab Emirates hasn’t yet needed to import any products for young Sam, finding most of his needs answered at supermarkets like Hualian, Carrefour, and Ito Yakado. In terms of specific brands, Marvian goes for the reliable Japanese baby products label Pigeon and for internationally recognized Johnson and Johnson. For strollers and children’s furniture, Marvian is happy with the cheaper stuff on offer at Five Star Market on the North Third Ring Road.

East Asian Parents
Korean products enjoy a good reputation for quality, and Korean import stores in the Wangjing area serve the local Korean community well. Little Soo Hong’s mother, Kandy Choi, shops at Ice Cream for kid’s clothing from Korea. The quality is good, Choi reports, but she warns that the stuff is “not that cheap.”

Like many foreigners in Beijing, local father Li Xianming recommends Johnson and Johnson, saying that it’s the international brand that Chinese parents respect the most. “It’s known to be non-allergenic, and safe for kids with sensitive skin,” he explains. As for local products, he has great respect for San Lu baby milk brand, but now often shops for imported Nestlé. It’s getting easier and easier to buy good imported products in China,” he says, “as smaller supermarkets are now stocking wider varieties and better brands.”