jenjenvoila423

Need insider secrets! Every year my four sisters-in-law and I go away for a girls only getaway, and next year we are thinking of going to San Diego. We would actually like to go to Europe in a couple of years, so our trips for the next few years have to be very budget oriented. Our preference would be to stay somewhere quaint, possibly historic, and preferably very near the ocean. Vacation homes, cottages, or even hotel suites would be fine. Coronado, La Jolla, or any other surrounding communities are an option too. We would stay about four nights and would like to keep the rates at about $150 per night. Any recommendations would be appreciated. Also we would love to hear about any 'off the beaten path' activities or resteraunts you know of. Thanks for your help!

islandmom

We just went in Nov. My pick would be La Jolla. Lovely, fancy, quaint area. Beautiful beaches, seals, shops, places to eat etc. Still very close to all the sites. We stayed at the Empress. I think next time I would pick one around the corner with an ocean view. I believe I found all the places on www.travelocity.com There's a fun restaurant that serves only fondue foods. There was also a local coffee house with great greek salad! Casa Guatalara (spelling?) in Old Town is very good. And you gals will have to get homemade soap from the square.

travlinjen

We always stay in the beach houses right off South Mission Beach. The company we go through is Beach n Bayside vacations, you can go to their website at beachnbayside.com -I think they have some of the nicest beach houses for the rates. We only paid $550 for seven nights last september and we were a short walk from the beach and right by the bay. I know they have some on other beaches if Mission doesn't thrill you. Mission is still really close to La Jolla so if you don't stay in La Jolla it is just a short drive, I have been to coronado a few times and actually I think it's pretty boring-Maybe it's nicer if you stay at the Hotel Del Coronado. Mission is right below Pacific and Pacific is right below La Jolla so anything in this area is close to everything, and you are only 5 minutes away from Sea World. - If you decide you want a hotel instead there are some nice ones right by Sea World and one on the pier on Pacific I think...We walked all the way from South Mission to Pacific beach and there are lots of little cafe's near the pier. Also, there is a Joe's Crab Shack now and it would be really fun to go have some drinks at if you don't want to party too hard, the staff was incredible and fun. I know there are some clubs too, but we never go to them.

jenjenvoila423

Thanks Islandmom and travlinjen, for your great responses! I will definitely check out all the tips you offered. As far as clubs, even though we range in age from 18-28 we are definitely not the 'clubbing' type, so that's okay. We figure we have much more rewarding and enjoyable things to do with our time. The cafe's along the beach sound great, as does the fondue resteraunt, right up our alley! I am definitely going to check out the vacation homes and hotel references. We prefer vacation homes so we can all stay together, but I keep my options open. Thanks again!

nataliemm

Coronado is amazing. Traffic to/from La Jolla can be a terror, that may be a consideration if you are going to do a lot of sightseeing. As mentioned above Old Town is a lot of fun, don't forget to see one of the most haunted homes in America, The Whaley House.

misslacey

La Jolla is certainly the 'jewel' of San Diego but you can have the beachfront without the inflated prices you will find in La Jolla. The Mission Bay Hyatt for example is centrally located, affordable, has easy access to the freeways (unlike La Jolla) and is right on the beach.

jenjenvoila423

Thank you for your help! I am really leaning toward finding something in Coronado or La Jolla, although I did check out the Mission Bay Hyatt website. That IS right on the ocean! Beautiful! We try to avoid hotels however because we would have to get two rooms and that can get quite costly for our little budget. I have found some rental cottages that might be a possibility. One is Redwood Hollow Guest Cottages in La Jolla. The others are Ocean Beach Cottages in Ocean Beach. Does anybody know anything about these?

diann

I don't know anything about these cottages, I would however avoid Ocean Beach unless it has changed since I lived in S.D. which was many years ago.

jenjenvoila423

Just Bumping!!!

ltt

i was going to suggest the beach house rentals around mission beach or on the bay side. the bay side is quieter and just a short walk to the ocean. la jolla is alright but a little too upscale for my liking. i prefer a little more action then "class" so i prefer the pacific/mission beach area. i would not recommend ocean beach. fun place to go and waunder for an hour or two on an afternoon but i wouldn't stay there.
a fun restaurant to go to in la jolla is casa de bandini. great margarettas.

Barbara

jen, try the Beach Cottages in Pacific Beach. Better area than Ocean Beach. Here's a link to their web site.

http://www.beachcottages.com/

jenjenvoila423

Thanks again for all the help!! I'll check it out!

gemini31

I lived in SD for a few years and just returned from a vacation there. I would definitely stay out of Ocean Beach. PB and MB are better locations -easy to get around and plenty to do. Plus you are only 5 minutes from LaJolla. LJ of course blows them all away in my opinion, but it's quite expensive to stay there. Coronado is beautiful, but I would suggest just taking the ferry over for an afternoon vs. lodging there.