San Diego hotels etc?

[fivi2]

*Update - have purchased plane tix and booked anaheim hotel... So we are going Still need a San Diego hotel!

Okay - we have 95% decided on a split between San Diego and Disneyland for the August vacation we keep changing. We will most likely fly in and out of LAX (I know there are issues with that, but WAY cheaper than other options). First half of the week in San Diego, second half at DL. The girls are 5, none of us have been to either place.

Hotels in San Diego? For this portion we'd prefer a suite type. The homewood suites liberty station is saying online it doesn't have rooms available. Is the Del Mar location okay? Any other suggestions?

Thinking of doing beach, zoo, maybe that uss midway. Not doing SeaWorld (we go to the one in San Ant frequently). On the fence about LegoLand (could do it on the day we drive up to anaheim).

Which museums in Balboa park are most interesting to 5 yos? Any beach recommendations? Other suggestions?

Any other thoughts?

TIA!

[SnuggleBuggles]

You should double check rates to Ontario vs LAX. I just did a check and it looks the same or equal. It was such an easy airport to deal with!

Consider the Wild Animal Park instead/ in addition to the zoo. It's just a different spin on a zoo and fun. LegoLand is a pretty mellow, fun park with a nice water area to just play around in. Might be nice.

We stayed with family in San Diego so no help there. In Anaheim we stayed at the Embassy Suites but lots of other good choices. The ES were great with huge rooms and free b'fast but it wasn't in easy walking distance.

We enjoyed the Torrey Pines State Beach a lot. It was really popular so I'm guessing other people liked it too. http://www.fodors.com/world/north-am...ew-161525.html

Beth

[fivi2]

Originally Posted by SnuggleBuggles

You should double check rates to Ontario vs LAX. I just did a check and it looks the same or equal. It was such an easy airport to deal with!

Consider the Wild Animal Park instead/ in addition to the zoo. It's just a different spin on a zoo and fun. LegoLand is a pretty mellow, fun park with a nice water area to just play around in. Might be nice.

We stayed with family in San Diego so no help there. In Anaheim we stayed at the Embassy Suites but lots of other good choices. The ES were great with huge rooms and free b'fast but it wasn't in easy walking distance.

We enjoyed the Torrey Pines State Beach a lot. It was really popular so I'm guessing other people liked it too. http://www.fodors.com/world/north-am...ew-161525.html

Beth

right now, ontario and orange county are showing up as about double for us v. LAX... (on Southwest). I haven't checked a ton of airlines

Thanks for the suggestions! I am torn on both WAP and Legoland.

I will probably post on the disney section for anaheim hotels - I am torn there also...

Thanks for the beach rec!

[csnoop]

We are heading to SD in July and just book this place: http://www.sommersetsuites.com/

It has really good reviews on Tripadvisor and is really affordable considering that you are getting a suite. We needed a suite as well because we have two kids. DD who is 10 months old likes to sleep at 7:30pm on the dot. It's close to the zoo and other attractions that we are planning on visiting. Our friends and family are also nearby... My general sense about SD is that everything is fairly nearby, as in within 20 mins to get to most attractions.

However, WAP and Legoland are not in SD. Many of our friends with older kids (elementary school age) are visitng Legoland. We are not planning to go since DD, who is 3.5 is not going to able to enjoy it that much. Maybe in a few years. Our friends from SD have told us that it gets pretty hot at WAP (since it's much more inland). The animals to be sleeping/hibernating when it's hot so you are less likely to see them.

Hope that help some!

CC

[pinay]

Originally Posted by fivi2

Hotels in San Diego? For this portion we'd prefer a suite type. The homewood suites liberty station is saying online it doesn't have rooms available. Is the Del Mar location okay? Any other suggestions?

Thinking of doing beach, zoo, maybe that uss midway. Not doing SeaWorld (we go to the one in San Ant frequently). On the fence about LegoLand (could do it on the day we drive up to anaheim).

Which museums in Balboa park are most interesting to 5 yos? Any beach recommendations? Other suggestions?

I'm not familiar with the Homewood Suites in either location, but the Del Mar one is just north of the 5-805 merge- you won't be in walking distance to much, but Torrey Pines State Beach is not far from there and is a great spot for families. You'll encounter some traffic heading south to go to the zoo or the Midway, but if you wait till rush hour is over it shouldn't be too big of a deal.

August is REALLY hot for the Wild Animal Park (now the Safari Park) in Escondido. Our weather has been so strange this year, so who knows if it'll be as hot as it normally is, but expect 100+ temps there on average.

Legoland has the waterpark that you can add on, it's definitely fun for 5 year olds.

Balboa Park- the Reuben H Fleet Science Center is great for kids, lots of interactive exhibits and there's an entire "kids town" setup as well. There's usually music daily at the organ pavilion in the afternoons, so you can put a picnic together and enjoy some entertainment and the weather. There's also a train and a carousel over by the zoo entrance, they aren't particularly special but my 4 yo DD enjoys them.

Have a great time!

[Tondi G]

not a suite hotel, although I do believe they may have suites not sure how much they are though. We have stayed in a few different places in San Diego and really love the Hyatt Mission Bay. Their pool area is fantastic... they have water slides (and a perfect little small slide for 5 year olds... mom and dad can catch them at the bottom). They have fire pits and you can do smores by the pool in the evenings. We just really like the hotel... we've been back every year since we stayed there after the renovations... our boys don't want to stay anywhere else. If you have a car Sports Arena drive is very close and there are a bunch of restaurants along there ... In n Out, Chiptole, Olive Garden, Phil's BBQ.

Personally I would skip the Midway unless your kids are really into seeing the planes and helicopters up on the flight deck... otherwise its a lot of walking around in narrow places... seeing the triple bunks the sailors slept in... it really wasn't all that exciting for my boys... they were 4 and 8 at the time. we should have saved our money!

Our boys really love Legoland too.

I found this website very helpful when we were going to San Diego. http://www.localwally.com/

there is a Homewood suites up in Carlsbad by Legoland

http://homewoodsuites1.hilton.com/en...ornia/index.do

I've heard wonderful things about the West Inn and Suites up in Carlsbad too

http://www.westinnandsuites.com/

[HannaAddict]

My kids LOVED Legoland, they ask to go back to Legoland more than they ask to go back to Disneyland. I mean they loved it. I think because it was more mellow, less frantic, short or no lines, etc. They loved the water park/splash fountains in Legoland, not the pay extra water park. We did the pay extra water park too, but it wasn't that great, they weren't big enough for many things and they enjoyed the free stuff in the main Legoland more. They were six and almost four years old when we were there at the end of last summer. We stayed in the condo hotel directly across the street and it was fantastic too. Great condo, two bedrooms, kitchen, kids pool, water play area, regular playground, and room service from the restaurant including MARGARITAS. Wish we'd spent more time there! Have fun and I would go to Legoland for a day at least. They liked the zoo too, it was a great zoo.

[egoldber]

At age 6 my older DD *loved* Legoland. They did not have the additional water park then, but that would make it a great attraction.

I personally prefer the WAP to the SDZoo. The zoo, while great, is still a zoo and there is really nothing else like the WAP that I know of. We have been in August a couple times. Get there first thing when it opens and you'll do great. And you're from Texas. Escondido will seem cool and pleasant by comparison.

We stayed at the Residence Inn Mission Valley on Hotel Circle and found that to be a very convenient location. Not scenic by any means, but convenient to downtown, the 5, the 8, the 805 and not far to the 15 (to get to Escondido).

[fivi2]

Wow - thanks for the suggestions! This is going to be fun.


I guess in my head WAP was either like the safari portion of AK or Busch Gardens - I guess not?

It wouldn't make more sense to actually stay in Carlsbad to do the San Diego portion of the trip, would it? I guess I thought the traffic into town would be bad.

[egoldber]

No, the WAP is nothing like the safari ride at AK. Well, the ride at AK may be an attempt to immitate the WAP.

Carlsbad is about a 30 minute drive from the Mission Valley area. Escondido is about 40 minutes. I don't recall any real traffic.

I think that SD to Carlsbad/Escondido in the morning is a reverse commute. The traffic going from C/E to SD would be much worse.