This is basically a building for mall walkers. If you're going to mall walking, I would suggest a warm coat and gloves. no rent equals no money to pay for heat. I think there are about 7 stores still open. not sure how they are still making it. It's a very sad situation. read more

This used to be one of my favorite malls...and it still is to a certain extent. I keep crossing my fingers and praying for a revival. With Younkers and Von Maur exiting the only anchor store left is JCPenney. And JCPenney isn't what it used to be... Every now and then Valley West Mall lands a gem like Blaze Pizza and recently European Taste that sticks, but for the most part it seems to be a dying environment. I don't feel the drive-in or carnivals are a good idea. It seems to bring problems to the area that those of us who live in the Clive West Des Moines area don't need. Personally I feel it's more trouble than it's worth. Some businesses may benefit from the people it brings to the West side. Valley West Mall doesn't have the quality of a food court that Merle Hay Mall does... Though foodie traffic would probably go a long way in bringing this mall back. While I now spend more time and money shopping at Jordan Creek and the Outlets in Altoona...I continue to shop at Valley West Mall when I can. I'm rooting for a comeback! read more

Can we all rally around the Valley West Mall? It will be 50 years old in 2025! While it is admittedly going through a major mid-life crisis with the majority of its shops closed, it could still live a long and vibrant life! Easy access to the freeway, comfortable interior, and still offering family friendly events such as Santa and the Easter Bunny. I'd happily join a movement to buy it a convertible, toupee, and gym membership to rejuvenate itself! read more

Valley West Mall - Placard in the VWM. Google says it opened in 1975 so not sure what this commemorating. - Shopping Centers Near Me - West Des Moines, Iowa

See all

I'm a huge fan of going to the mall still. I had to visit this place. It's absolutely gorgeous and I will rate this place a bit higher. This mall is nearly dead with only 20 percent occupancy. Everything around the mall seems to be thriving. This mall is absolutely beautiful and well maintained unlike most dying malls. Great place to walk around, there's no food options either but the heart of the mall with the waterfall and elevator was one of the most beautiful parts of this place. It's a medium sized mall and definitely believe this place deserves better. read more

Valley West Mall - Shopping Centers Near Me - West Des Moines, Iowa

This is such a beautiful mall and very 80's vintage. The common areas and bathrooms are immaculate. The lighting and and space is very warm and inviting. it's a shame that there aren't more stores because I hate the Jordan Creek traffic and crowds. It would be great for the community to see this great old mall revitalized. read more

Not the biggest mall in DSM area, but it has decent stores such as Von Maur, Foot Locker, Victoria Secret, Maurices and etc. There is a small food court area with Panda Express, local deli place, Taco Johns, and Orange Julius. There is also Jimmy Johns, Chipotle and Noodles and Company as well. There is also an Auntie Annes and local food shop next door which serves gyros, walking tacos and ice cream. They recently added a Caribou coffee :) The play area for kids is smaller than Jordan Creek, but provides decent area for kids to run around. The mall isn't too packed and makes it easier to walk around with the family. read more

Valley West Mall - Games store has train tables for kids to play on. - Shopping Centers Near Me - West Des Moines, Iowa

There's hardly anything left in this mall, and what is left is going downhill quickly. There's no reason to go here unless you really need to. Also not so sure I feel safe with the so called "mall security" staff they have to keep us safe in case of emergency! read more

Valley West Mall, is my kinda Mall.. Not to big, Not to Small, packed around Christmas but not in the fall! This is your A-typical mid size mall with classic Dept. Stores on the ends and all those goofy little shops in between! Plenty of food to find, plenty of shoes to buy, hell they even have Spencer Gifts for the poster buying youth of America! I like to go here strictly for Jay's CD and Hobby! Which has some of the best vinyl record shopping in the city! I think I also bought the pants I wore to my wedding here.. But I have no idea where? This mall is always very clean, not to crowded, and easy to navigate! Plenty of parking and pretty much the closest mall to down town! So I salute Valley West and being one of the best! read more

I had a great experience. When I couldn't find a sapphire ring I liked, Aleksandra suggested I order a loose stone and get a custom setting. She was right, now I have the most beautiful sapphire ring, exactly what I wanted. I couldn't be happier. read more

This was not a great experience at all. The Dairy Queen was so outdated they had pumpkin pie blizzards in late JANUARY and the staff wasn't wearing gloves or anything. The food was weird, and they didn't have any of the typical food of any other Dairy Queen I've ever been to. The stores are all odd and not traditionally found in malls, and it smells AWFUL. 3/4 of the mall smells like sulphur (rotting eggs) and the other quarter smells like actual human waste. If I could give this less than a star for a review I would. read more

Valley West mall is very nice! There are plenty of stores in a wide range of categories, from an awesome kitchen store to a specialty shoe stores to your normal department stores such as Yonkers. They have a great variety and it's laid out well. It's not too big but not super small! There is plenty of parking! And also plenty of options for food! Overall it's a good mall with a great variety of options to meet your shopping needs! read more

Ah, Valley West Mall, where the man who makes $45k a year is KING! Yes, for the solidly middle-class, Valley West Mall offers up her many mediocre wares like a second-string cheerleader on prom night. Wrap yourself in the rich luxury of cotton-poly blends, clad your loins with classy, stretchy stirrup pants. Maybe buy something acid washed. It's all here. Women will find top-of-the-line cosmetics, like Revlon, at the mall's many forgettable department stores. Children can window shop for ninja weapons at the standard-issue cutlery store that this and every mall in the Midwest has. Armed with nothing more than a Wachovia gold card, a large SUV and an abundance of time, the discerning shopper can equip himself with all the necessities of modern Des Moines living, like: * a genuine Aiwa stereo system * a 32-inch picture tube TV * 22 pairs of sweat pants, including a grey pair for formal occasions * 18 5XL polo shirts in pastel colors * a pair of mudflaps with Yosemite Sam on them * a George Foreman-brand grill (tm) * little corn holders * a ceramic dalmatian * 8 caret gold jewelry for the wife Yes, all of this is yours for the taking at Valley West Mall. Conveniently located next to Target. But you'll still get in your car and drive across the road to go shopping at Target. read more

The mall itself is fine. Your standard mall. I enjoy walking the mall when the weather is bad and shopping when I need something. Word of warning. Avoid the sunglasses / belt kiosk on the first floor near the food court. One pair of purchased glasses only lasted a week. When I brought them back I was somehow supposed to know the name of the person that sold me the glasses in order to swap for a replacement. I instead threw them in the nearest trash can. read more

We visited Valley West Mall the Saturday following Thanksgiving. We were looking for maternity clothes, an overcoat, and commercial consumption cheer. We found all three. Valley West is a bit small, but offers standard suburban mall fare. There's your Gap, Limited Brands (Express, B&B Works, etc.), and three anchors: JCPenney, Younker's and Von Maur. There are also several local stores, including ones selling Iowa goodies (wine, crafts, etc.). The game store is the best in Des Moines. The mall has several noteworthy qualities. One, it is carpeted. Strange, but it keeps the mall from being deafeningly loud with foot traffic. Second, it has one of the nicer mall restrooms, including a homey lounge (with comfy chairs), family restrooms, and a breast feeding room. It also has a stand-alone tailoring shop. Parking was full - it was the busiest shopping weekend of the year, after all - but it was a short walk to the front door. Food options are somewhat limited, but there is both a Chipotle and a Jimmy Johns. (You can decide for yourself if this is a plus or a minus.) read more

Great mall, second only to Jordan Creek Mall in size and quality. If you are looking for less foot traffic and less store selection, then there is no issue with coming to this mall. There are a number of stores here that will satisfy your shopping needs . I have never had an issue while shopping here, I've been coming here for years. read more

Spied a nursing room located upstairs in the same area as the elevator. Haven't checked it out though. It's a decent mall, smaller than Jordan Creek. It does have Von Maur and Stam's though! I go more so for Baby Gap, which seems to have more stuff on sale than the location at Jordan Creek. read more

Well, this place has a Von Maur which some folks will shop. I took one look at the tags and left. Even the clearance rack was over my budget. Inside there are the same stores as the Southridge and Jordan Creek malls. Parking is a zoo and traffic is just a pain in the butt. You are better off just going to Yonkers parking garage and walking in from the back. Different restaurants to choose from here. Personally, I would stick to Jordan Creek and Southridge. read more

It was so nice to walk in a mall where I am welcomed at each and every store, and everyone was glad I was looking in their stores. This is the best mall ive been in in quite some time. Its an empty mall, but has a lot of open stores with employees and customers thar dont look at you like you're a freak! :) read more

Another delicious treat put on by Caribou! I ordered a large caramel blended something or other. Whip for days! It was fast to order, I passed on an extra shot, but it was nice to be offered because sometimes I want (need) an extra shot and forget to say so. I'd say I waited maybe a total of 90 seconds for my drink. Friendly barista's, clean dining room, even the chalk board made me laugh. Definitely check this place out. BETTER THAN STARBUTT'S! read more

This is one of the best shopping centers I've been to. Makes my local mall look bad, lol. I love visiting Chocolaterie Stam every time I'm in DSM. It's the best ever! I also like looking at Von Maur and Younkers because we don't have them in Missouri. I also make sure to stop at JC Penny's or the college store to stock up on Hawkeye gear! read more

This is sort of my "everyday" mall. It doesn't have ALL of the stores I love to shop at, but it does have a giant and gorgeous Von Maur (+) . It is carpeted (so quiet! Love that). And they have Panda Express in the food court... Orange Chicken addiciton satisfied. Seriously this isn't a bad mall at all; it's just not huge and isn't as new as Jordan Creek. read more

Definitely a good mall to go to if you need to be in and out in a timely manner. Only place in town to get MAC makeup so that's a BIG plus for me! They have a mini Sephora and they don't carry many hair products so that's a bummer. Food court is mediocre but they do have a Chipotle, Noodles and Co, and Jimmy Johns upstairs! Also only place with a Von Maur. Wish they were busier, they have a lot of open store fronts that could be filled with a lot of good stores. But it'll do for now! read more

Nice mall that is not too big but has everything you need. Has express, stams chocolate, chipoltle, and many other food and store options. Jordan Creek is a bigger mall but something about this place feels more cozy and a nice change of pace. read more

This mall is decent. Definitely not as good as Jordan Creek Mall, in my opinion (in terms of stores, layout, and food court). It was pretty quiet and empty when I came here, so if you like going to malls that aren't busy, this is probably the place for you. read more

Des bus service dart was FORCED to pickup and move there bus stop so to support DART I give the CEO and the asshole who made that call one star read more

I really like this mall! There are a lot of your typical "mall" stores and then there are some neat not so typical stores like Candy Clubhouse and Jays CD and Hobby and I even went into a neat little boutique that had some really cute hand made décor, jewelry and clothes. There are also several food options that aren't in the food court, like Jimmy Johns, Chipotle, Blaze (Great Pizza!) and Noodles and Co. They have a fun play area for the kids that my daughter loves right next to a pretzel place so you have to get one because of the delicious smell! They have a small train ride for the kids in the center too. They usually have a nice set up at Christmas time with Santa, the past two years I have been told I could only take one picture and when they were done taking their pictures, Santa was done with my daughter, she didn't even say what she wanted. The Santa they had 3 years ago was great! He had a long talk with my daughter and we took tons of pictures. (I always go to see Santa on a weekday right when the mall opens so we are the only ones in line) This mall is a little more laid back and not as busy as Jordan Creek. It always looks clean and they have private family restrooms even with a mini toddler toilet. read more

I went to Stam to get some chocolates for my dad for his bday. The store was closed due to remodeling. One of the employees happened to be outside the store conversing with some regular customers. When I found out the store was closed I was so sad! The employee asked if there was something specific I was wanting so I told her exactly what dad's favorite chocolates are (which are in the shape of a mouse...ew) and she was able to get these for me! She was so kind and helpful! It really made my day AND my dad's day too :) Thanks Stam and Valley West Mall for being awesome!!!! read more

Small changes have been made to this mall. Everything is moving to Jordan Creek. It was also a bust when McDonalds left.