Wife and I are traveling to Vegas, Grand Canyon, and Los Angeles. We plan on taking 2 days to head down to San Diego.

Where should we stay?
What should we do?

We are leaning towards staying at Solamar in the gaslight district.
Having Mexican food for at least one meal.
Possibly going snorkeling in La Jolla Cove.

6/5/2011 5:18:01 PM

I've always wanted to go to the San Diego Zoo.

6/5/2011 5:23:13 PM

we are weighing that option. with limited time, that is like a whole day right there.

6/5/2011 5:28:26 PM

I've stayed at the Se and the US Grant in the Gaslamp district and would recommend the Grant.

Great food around there. Check out Croce's at some point.

6/5/2011 5:34:58 PM

Can't recommend where to stay.

Go to La Jolla Cove
Go to the Soladad Monument
Go to Border Field State park with a camera, walk up to the Mexican fence
Cruise around in downtown La Jolla
Do the San Diego Zoo, it's outstanding
Eat a lot of Mexican food

6/5/2011 5:35:26 PM

i am currently in la jolla - if the weather is as gorgeous as it's been this weekend, don't leave the beach!

go to old town for mexican (there's great mexican food everywhere but might as well go all out)

i personally wouldn't spend much if any time in the gaslamp but it's not really my scene and it certainly has easily accessible food/bars...

6/5/2011 6:14:56 PM

I loved San Diego but the only must see for me was La Jolla.

I could go and spend most of my time between there and Mission Beach, et cetera.

6/5/2011 8:51:13 PM

I'm not a beach guy.

We went ahead and booked a room at Se. Seamed pretty snazzy.

http://www.sesandiegohotel.com/

6/5/2011 8:55:45 PM

Quote :

"I've always wanted to go to the San Diego Zoo."

I did too... always heard how awesome it was. We went last october. I actually found it less impressive than the Asheboro zoo.

You do get much closer to the animals... mostly because they are kept in very tiny spaces. kinda sad really.

6/5/2011 9:18:28 PM

Its quite a shame i didn't make in here in time to tell you to stay at del coronado hotel.

Rei Do Gado Churrascaria-has gotta be the best brazillian steakhouse i've ever had, by far
Little Italy is also a must see imo the best little italy.

6/5/2011 9:37:38 PM

I don't chime in much except selling golf clubs on classifieds, but on this one I've got to recommend Jakes Del Mar Restaurant. We ate at some really nice restaurants for a week long vacation from Malibu to the bottom of the state, and that was my favorite. You can see famous people in there too. We saw some chick from a USA show that was on the cover of FHM, forgot her name. Anyways, awesome restaurant if anybody ever goes to that area.
Torrey Pines was a must as well.

6/5/2011 10:38:13 PM

I really enjoyed the USS Midway museum, but that's not for everyone.

6/5/2011 10:47:10 PM

been living in san diego about 6 years now. with only 2 days, i'd maybe hit up the zoo, or sea world on 1 day. maybe just do some walking around downtown, or up around Prospect St. in La Jolla, you can head down to the children's pool (its like a little cove, not a swimming pool) where all the seals come in to lay around.

if you're wanting fancy expensive meals there are plenty in the gaslamp, but i'd seek out a good mexican taco/burrito place, such as Roberto's, Cotixan, or Santana's (now renamed to Fresh MXN Food for some reason). get a California Burrito and share some carne asada fries.

6/6/2011 1:10:46 AM

what is up with that mxn thing anyway? santanas is my favorite of the local mexican chains, i prefer their chicken california burrito

hope the june gloom stays away for you (assuming you're going in june) -- was certainly gorgeous all this weekend

6/6/2011 1:49:50 AM

That is it for ideas? Someone please tell me that I am not moving to a city whose only redeeming features are animals, food, and beaches.

6/6/2011 6:24:01 AM

Quote :

"I really enjoyed the USS Midway museum, but that's not for everyone."

+1

6/6/2011 6:28:15 AM

^^

Did you not do any research about the city you're moving to prior to deciding to move 3000 miles away?



[Edited on June 6, 2011 at 9:07 AM. Reason : SD is the only part of california that should be allowed to exist FWIW]

6/6/2011 9:06:39 AM

stop by Quality Social. It's an "upscale dive bar" downtown in the Gaslamp Quarter, a couple blocks north of Petco. I think you'd enjoy it.

I ate at a restaurant a couple blocks over (i think 5th ave?) called Searsucker that was pretty good as well.

6/6/2011 9:25:31 AM

Quote :

"SD is the only part of california that should be allowed to exist FWIW"

It's pretty much the best city on the West Coast.

6/6/2011 9:34:53 AM

No fucking way. I lived there for a while and it is great don't get me wrong. The best thing about it is that it really is just a ton of small towns put together into one big city. San Franciso and Los Angeles are better overall in the same way Raleigh is better than Cary. A lot of yupities will claim Cary is better than Raleigh.

Coronado-Cool Island village. Home to one of the top 10 resorts in the world
Pacific beach- Post college young college party area
La Jolla- Rich town but great coastline. Some of the best views in the country
Little Italy- My personal favorite because it actually seems like Italy and is right next to the marina
Gaslamp- touristy. Modern Cali version of the french quarter

North Park and South Park are the cool areas.

Theres not a whole lot to do in San Diego. The nature stuff in La Jolla is pretty much it after the zoo. Everything inland sucks.

6/6/2011 12:05:06 PM

Yeah SD is great when you're 21 and party 24/7 but after a few years it gets a bit dull- I know firsthand

The Bay Area and Seattle are much better places to live and work, although SD is always a great weekend getaway and it would be a nice place to retire

6/6/2011 1:26:17 PM

beach guy or not you have to spend some daylight wandering about in la jolla -- either have some breakfast (the cottage or coffee cup are great places) and then cruise along the coast and see the seals at childrens pool and just enjoy the gorgeous scenery

you could also work it around happy hour cocktails at georges or crab catcher (get the crab nachos!) and watch the sunset in the cove

if you decide to go snorkeling, beware that the water is much colder than you're probably used to -- you could also go kayaking in and around the cove as well

Quote :

"San Franciso and Los Angeles are better overall in the same way Raleigh is better than Cary"

this comparison is ridiculous, unless cary has grown into a major city since i've left the triangle -- san diego is very different than both san francisco and LA but your analogy is horrible; there is plenty to do in san diego (most of it outdoors to enjoy the best weather on the planet)

[Edited on June 6, 2011 at 1:56 PM. Reason : quote]

6/6/2011 1:49:22 PM

Quote :

"Theres not a whole lot to do in San Diego. The nature stuff in La Jolla is pretty much it after the zoo. Everything inland sucks."

Are you kidding me. this is a shit ton of stuff to do, I still haven't done everything.


no one mentioned this but fishing off the pier is always fun. and old town for mex. go to El Coyote, yes its touristy but get the carne asada tacos. best tacos.

6/6/2011 3:20:41 PM

Go to bars and talk loudly about how much you hate marines.

6/6/2011 4:05:44 PM

The marines are more up north.

6/6/2011 4:52:00 PM

yeah in SD proper you mostly want to talk about how much you hate SEAMEN. har har.

6/6/2011 4:55:59 PM

Marine bashing is played out. Wear a Leaf jersey and shit on Rivers.

6/6/2011 5:11:53 PM

Quote :

"Are you kidding me. this is a shit ton of stuff to do, I still haven't done everything. "

Name some stuff. I LOVE san diego but theres not a lot to do outside of relax and take in natural beauty. I also left off ocean beach because its full of dirty fucking california bumstyle dirty dread hippies.

6/6/2011 5:30:06 PM

Quote :

" Did you not do any research about the city you're moving to prior to deciding to move 3000 miles away?"

Prior to deciding? No. Since deciding? Yes. I am moving out there with Chembob...not much of a decision really.

Also, my searches have focused on places to live and work. I figure that once I am out there I can start to explore. Still, only having the most basic knowledge (zoo and beaches) is why I came into this thread--I thought I would get some ideas before I moved 2300 miles.

6/6/2011 5:56:50 PM

Quote :

"I also left off ocean beach because its full of dirty fucking california bumstyle dirty dread hippies. "

That's your fault and OB is the slums beachwise of SD.

Lets see, Balboa Park, Charger Games, Padre Games, Embacadero, the Zoo,San Diego Zoo Safari Park, Sea World, Biking the boardwalk b/w PB and mission beach, Fishing of the piers, taking cruises, hiking eastward, Shopping and LOTS of it, Kayaking, Snorkeling, eating at the bazillion restaurants, Little Italy, wandering Old Town, Downtown + Gaslamp, Comic Con, Del Mar Horse Races, SD Fair, plus lots and lots of festivals. Plus SD is an amazing town known for its microbreweries.

All that and more, plus you got Mexico to the south, LA to the north and Mountains to ski to the east.

[Edited on June 6, 2011 at 6:19 PM. Reason : I'm sorry but compared to Raleigh, this city is amazing b/c there is so much more stuff to do!]

6/6/2011 6:18:25 PM

When I went to SD with some friends last year, the weather was like 75 and overcast with occassional bursts of rain and people were apologizing.

That really told me all I needed to know.

6/6/2011 8:56:24 PM

^^We're not comparing it to fucking raleigh. We're comparing it to LA and San fran. Obviously its one of the best cities in the US but theres not much to do relative to these other big time cities. SD has very much a small town feel. The things you listed were just exploring the outdoors(which is pretty much all there is to do), eating or annual festivals.

6/7/2011 12:24:42 AM

i'm curious what it is that you think is so much better about LA, i certainly mostly enjoy the outdoors stuff here as well myself

and the 'small town feel' that you describe about san diego (i refer to it as more laid back) is pretty much what makes it better than LA, in my opinion (LA really just has so much working against it, but it's grown on me... still far inferior to san diego though [to me])

6/7/2011 2:30:50 AM

LA- despite its horrendous traffic and awful air quality- is a world class city. It sets international trends in art, music, and entertainment. It may not be to everyone's liking, but it is an incredibly important place.

SF- despite its foggy weather and horrible cost of living- is also a world class city. It is, by far, the most cosmopolitan city on the West Coast and its population density is closer to NYC's than any other large city in the country. Its close proximity to Silicon Valley, wine country, Monterrey, Lake Tahoe, and Yosemite make it that much more appealing.

San Diego is a great place to visit or retire, but it's nowhere close to LA or SF in terms of excitement or having a variety of things to do. I lived there for two years and I got bored of it. I still make my way down a few times a year to relax and hang out with old friends, but I'm always ready to go back to the Bay Area after a few days. It's too slow paced for me at this point in my life.

[Edited on June 7, 2011 at 2:55 AM. Reason : asdf]

6/7/2011 2:53:36 AM