Pier Park, located in Panama City Beach, Florida, is a one million square foot shopping and entertainment district that attracts thousands of visitors each day. Beautifully landscaped with lush, tropical landscaping, the center is popular with both locals and visitors and provides myriad stores, restaurants, and other entertainment opportunities.
Festooned with Caribbean architectural touches and featuring colorful buildings and lots of palm trees, Pier Park sits between Front Beach Road and Panama City Beach Parkway (Highway 98) and is easily reached from the beach and other Panama City attractions. The park also includes 800 feet of Gulf-front views. Its opening in 2008 greatly stimulated the economy of the town, with the open-air center targeted to attract approximately 7 million visitors each year.
Three department stores anchor the Pier Park complex - J.C. Penney, Dillard's, and Target. A 16-screen movie theater also occupies a sizeable portion of the shopping center.
Other retail establishments range from well-known mall fare such as Aeropostale, American Eagle, Old Navy, PacSun, Payless Shoes, Ulta Cosmetics, Bath and Body Works, Borders, Victoria's Secret, and other such stores, to lesser known franchises including Ron Jon's Surf Shop to specialty stores that visitors are unlikely to find elsewhere. All categories are featured, including men's and women's apparel, children's clothing, accessories, shoes, sporting goods, jewelry, specialty food stores, gift shops, health and beauty supplies, home d,cor and accessories, and a vast variety of specialty shops, totally more than 70 shops in all.
For hungry shoppers, there are a plethora of eateries from which to choose. Visitors will find popular restaurants like Red Robin, Quiznos, Panera Bread, Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville, Olive Garden and others, as well as locally-owned food offerings ranging from pizza and Philly cheesesteaks to Japanese delicacies and a seafood and oyster bar. There are also a number of snack bar-type locations and specialty food operations including an ice cream parlor, a candy store, a gourmet popcorn stand, a cookie shop, and a Starbuck's. A number of restaurants offer live music, some all day and some during the later nighttime hours. Others are sports-bar type facilities that include multiple television screens and the opportunity to watch a game while enjoying lunch or dinner.
A few service-oriented businesses are also located at Pier Park include a few banks, cell phone stores, a day spa, a hair salon, a massage parlor, and a nail salon, making Pier Park a convenient place to take care of shopping and other needs.
Ample off street parking is available at Pier Park, which is generally open from about 10 am until 9 pm on weekdays and Saturday, with shorter hours on Sundays. Some restaurants remain open later. The Pier Park Express Trolley carries shoppers to and from the mall and other attractions in Panama City Beach.
