Santee Alley (Fashion District): Los Angeles Lively Bargain Shopping Street

Santee Alley or Los Callejones is an open-air bargain shopping mall in the centre of the Los Angeles Fashion District at the 100-block area of Downtown LA. The alley was a typical service passage, but later in the 1970s, local wholesale merchants started selling their surplus stock to the masses out of their back door on weekends, and it became a regular, 7-day-a-week, retail outlet. It is structurally a busy, narrow street that runs between Santee Street and Maple Avenue, Olympic Boulevard and 12th Street, with more than 150 independent shops and colourful booths. It’s shaded by giant umbrellas, which resemble a marketplace in Mexico. The main activities in Santee Alley are bargain-hunting, selling a wide variety of items such as fashionable clothes, counterfeited designer goods, shoes, accessories, cosmetics, and toys. The visitors can also enjoy the well-known bacon-wrapped Alley Dog. 

What Can You See and Do at Santee Alley?

Here are the five  best things to see and do at Santee Alley, Los Angeles:

1. Fashion & Apparel Shopping: Santee Alley is the place of bargain shoppers in Los Angeles and boasts more than 150 stores offering a large variety of clothes and shoes. This busy market has it all, including basic clothing and a large variety of shoes. 
2. Accessories & Beauty Finds: The street is also full of stores that offer numerous accessories and beauty products. It has almost all types of branded cosmetics in the average range.
3. Party & Formal Wear Boutiques: During special occasions, there are several boutiques in the alley selling an assortment of party and formal attire. You can go around the speciality shops to find a particular dress or an entire outfit. 
4. Street Food & Refreshments: The other activities in Santee Alley besides shopping include street food and refreshing foods. You can take a short bite in the local restaurants and have fun in the lively setting. 
5. Seasonal & Speciality Shops: The alley is located with a combination of vendors who come and go with unique items and speciality products depending on the season. It is a good place to find seasonal products or even find speciality products that cannot be found in a regular store.

How to Get to Santee Alley (Fashion District)?

Here are the three best ways to go to the  Santee Alley, Los Angeles:

1. By Metro: Use a Metro subway line like B (Red), D (purple), E (Expo) Line to the 7th Street Metro Centre. Santee Alley is a short walk out of the station. Go north on 7th Street and then south on Santee Street where the entrance to the alley is seen. It costs $1.75 per ride.
2. By Limo and  Car Services: The riding services, such as Uber or Lyft, or a limousine service Los Angeles, drop you off in Santee Alley or the Fashion District. It’s the most luxurious way to travel towards Santee Alley.
3. By Bus: The 28, 33, 66, 76, and 92 are the bus lines that are near the Santee Alley. The nearest bus stops are Los Angeles Street and 11th St or Main / 11th, located within a 3-minute distance of the alley.

What Are the Entry Fees and Timings of Santee Alley?

Santee Alley in Los Angeles does not charge an entry fee to buy in the public shopping area. It is an open-air, free-to-access market found in the Fashion Industry. The overall operating hours of Santee Alley are seven days a week from 9:30 AM to 6:00 PM. The various stalls and shops are individually owned and run; the hours of the vendors are different, with some having an earlier opening time of about 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM.

Where to Eat Near Santee Alley?

Here are the four best eating places near Santee Alley, Los Angeles:

1. El Huero: El Huero (formerly called Chano’s) is a famous restaurant that serves popular Mexican-style late-night food, such as fries made of carne asada, and a section where customers create their own burrito. It is within a few miles of the Alley at 3000 S Figueroa St.
2. Sonoratown (Nearby): Sonoratown is a local favourite, known to have good, authentic Northern Mexican-style tacos and fresh, hand-made flour tortillas. It is within a convenient walking distance, 0.2 miles to Santee Alley, 208 E 8th St.
3. Boba Time: Boba Time is a chain store famous for bubble teas, smoothies, and açaí bowls. It is located next door at 508 W 7th St, and it is only a short walk away down the alley.
4. Street Vendors: The neighbourhood of Santee Alley is known to be a bustling street food area, which has numerous vendors that sell different foods such as Tacos San Juditas, pupusas and hot dogs. All are just a few minutes walk away from the Santee Street or Olympic Blvd.

Is Santee Alley Worth Visiting?

Santee Alley is the best purchasing place for bargain hunters, like an authentic flea market with a lively, real-world setting, and is ready to have a non-luxury experience with a large crowd. It is an authentic slice of life in the Fashion District of Downtown LA, a place with a diverse array of inexpensive clothes, accessories, unique products, and tasty street food, especially bacon-wrapped hot dogs and fruit cups. The visitors encounter numerous knock-off or poorly-made products, they bargain, and are conscious about their money in large numbers. It is a fun place, a unique experience for the visitors that just need to be prepared for the bustling, hectic atmosphere of an international-style open-air market.