Document And Entity Information (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2011	Dec. 05, 2011	Mar. 31, 2011
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2011
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2011
Entity Registrant Name	Destination Maternity Corp
Entity Central Index Key	0000896985
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--09-30
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		13,275,477
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Public Float			$ 290,000,000
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No