San
Diego is the
top Southern California vacation and one
of the most popular destinations in the
U.S.
California's second largest city
gets millions of visitors and with good reason.
Ranked as one of the top 6 safest cities
in the US,
San
Diego
offers a beautiful convention center
located along the water, world-class
San
Diego
Zoo, Wild Animal Park, Sea World marine
and entertainment park, art and space
museums in an historic Balboa Park, a
mission, Point Loma Lighthouse, historic
Old Town, the
San
Diego
Padres baseball team, the red trolley
for day trips to Tijuana, Mexico and
scenic Coronado Island. And that's just
for starters! We've researched all of
California and have determined that
hands down,
San
Diego
is the number one beach resort in all of
California. No other city compares with
the number of hotel rooms, unique beach
locations and amenities at a variety of
beach resorts that include boat cruises,
gondola rides, sailing, swimming,
skating and amusement rides outside your
hotel door. Average temperature in San Diego is 70º F. Visitors information available at (619) 236-1212.
San
Diego,
California enjoys a southern warmth all
year long and holds onto some of the
Hispanic cultural influences seen in
architecture, infused food dishes and
events with mariachis, margaritas and
mucho fun.
San
Diegans are passionate about their home
and share enthusiasm for their local
beach neighborhoods such as Ocean Beach
"OB", Mission Beach, Pacific Beach and
Mission Bay. On any given day, you'll
see folks of all ages out walking,
jogging, sailing, swimming, surfing and
even singing.
Another influence you will notice in
San
Diego
is the military presence in huge berths
where Naval ships docks, in military
statues commemorating service to the
USA, and in military facilities both
active and for retired service women and
men. For tours of the San Diego bay area
there are
Boat Tours & Cruises
ranging from a dinner cruise, to tours of military ships. In
case you haven't guessed, San Diego's
deepwater channel and harbor have long
provided many boating options both
military and commercial.
San
Diego
also features some of America's favorite
beaches. With a local feel and friendly
appeal,
San
Diego
beaches stretch for miles from
Borderfield State Beach to beautiful La
Jolla and beyond. Unlike Los Angeles
and Orange County beaches to the north,
San
Diego
beaches generally are opened longer each
day and permit alcohol consumption.
For gambling, you can go to nearby
Alpine and for amusements, check out the
cool Belmont Park. Nightlife is
authentic and enjoyed on foot in the
Gaslamp District. You can't see all of
San
Diego
in a day, but we wouldn't want you to
miss seeing it so when L.A. be sure to
take an Amtrak train ride, automobile
drive or even a flight south to
San
Diego.
It is well worth your time.
Sailing, swimming, surfing and shopping
are some of the favorite activities in
the city by the bay where the sun almost
always shines and the temperature hovers
around a perfect 70º F nearly all year
long.
Getting there: Located in the southwest
corner of California, 120 miles south of
Los Angeles and 20 miles north of
Tijuana, Mexico,
San
Diego
is about a 2 1/2 hour drive from L.A.
via Interstate 5, which stretches from
Canada to the Mexico border. Interstate
15 provides access from Riverside
County, Nevada and other western states.
San
Diego
International Airport is near downtown
and is served by over 15 airlines.
Amtrak passenger trains, Coaster and
San
Diego
Trolley provide service to and around
San
Diego
and the Mexican border at Tijuana.
Greyhound provides bus service, too.
Where to eat:
San Diego dining
includes thousands of restaurants ranging from fast food and chain
restaurants to upscale night clubs with live music and live
entertainment. You won't go hungry in San Diego, and what you'll
discover is that the international influences from South of the
Border and elsewhere make for dining experiences that make the trip
worthwhile.
When you arrive in
San
Diego,
you have decide how you'll spend your
time. Unless you stay for three or four
days, you just can't do and see
everything.
San
Diego
is a casual place filled with color and
fun. From the harbor where you can tour
the Star of India ship, catch a ferry to
Coronado Island for under $5 / one
direction, depart a cruise ship, take a
harbor cruise or hop on a pedicab and
catch an open air tour of the city,
you're only a few blocks walking
distance to colorful Horton Plaza open
air shopping mall. You are also within
walking distance to Seaport Village,
another open air mall with several
restaurants overlooking the bay.
Would you like to get around without
driving?
San
Diego
has an incredible public transportation
system and local senior citizens who
have given up driving tell us it is a
wonderful network of buses and trolleys
that will take you anywhere you want to
go. There's a train station right near
the action, a few blocks from Horton
Plaza and the harbor.
Do you like beaches?
San
Diego
has lots of them. From Border Field
State Park, the southernmost beach that
actually touches the Mexico border and
is divided by a big wall running out
into the ocean, north through Silver
Strand State Beach in Coronado,
San
Diego's
popular Pacific Beach, Mission Beach
with its roller coaster and famous
"Plunge", Ocean Beach with "Dog Beach",
Mission Bay with jet skis and boating,
north to La Jolla Cove, Children's Beach
and a spot where seals like to hang out,
San
Diego
loves its beaches.
No matter what you chose, the things
you'll find in
San
Diego
are an abundance of amusements and
attractions, plenty of ocean and bay
views offered at dozens of hotels, lots
of waterfront dining and some wonderful
foods. Serving tourists for over 100
years makes
San
Diego
a friendly place, accustomed to catering
to tourists. In fact, one local told us
that when you drive in
San
Diego,
drive defensively and be prepared for
the car in front of you to stop in the
road and ask for directions because it
happens so often (drive to a gas station
or pull over to a parking lot or side of
the road for help - it's safer).
Finally, to insure that you have fun,
don't forget to take a jacket. It can
get cool in
San
Diego
so if you dress in layers with tanks and
T-shirts, sweaters and jackets, you can
peel off the layers of clothing as the
day gets warm and put them back on as
night returns.
Where to stay: First off,
you should know that San Diego breaks the mold for beach vacations
and hotels. There's no place like San Diego on the entire West Coast
north or south of the border of the U.S. Some of our long-time
favorites have been places such as the
Hilton hotels on
the bay. In recent years, however, the hotels in Gaslamp and
around the convention center have become simply stunning in the
views, locations, and amenities. I honestly am beginning to think of
the sleeping giant (second largest city in California) as the epi-center
of tourism.
Catamaran Resort
Hotel -
Catamaran Birds
Hilton Torrey Pines
Holiday
Inn-Harbor View
Holiday Inn on
the Bay
Horton Gas
Lamp Quarter
Hotel del
Coronado
Hyatt Regency Islandia
Hyatt Regency La
Jolla
Hyatt Regency San Diego
Lodge at Torrey
Pines
Loew's Coronado Bay Resort
Marriot Hotel & Marina San Diego
Town &
Country Resort Hotel
Wyndham Emerald Plaza
La Jolla < San
Diego >
Coronado Island
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San Diego
beaches, Sea World, Coronado and Belmont Park are a few vacation attractions in
the top Southern California vacation and on Labor Day weekends,
often the top choice for a
California
beach weekend getaway. |
