Just returned from San Diego/Palm Springs!
 

Hi all,<BR>San Diego is a great town!<BR>Musts are:<BR>Embassy Suites Hotel on Pacific Highway-rooms are clean and the breakfasts and service are excellent.<BR>Seaport Village: Nice to walk through<BR>Old Town: Bazaar del Mundo, Old Town Mexican cafe--Tortillas to die for.<BR>Coldstone Creamery in Old Town: Best Ice Cream<BR>Cabrillo Nat'l Monument: Great views of the ocean.<BR>Coronado Island: Beautiful, quaint town. Wouldn't stay at Hotel Del with kids, it's more of a romantic retreat in my opinion.<BR><BR>San Diego is a clean, tourist friendly town.<BR><BR>Palm Springs, great experience, great nightlife, but the desert and mountain surroundings are what we enjoyed most, a must see part of California.<BR><BR>We flew in and out of LAX, and I apologize in advance to those who live in LA, but we absolutely hated it there, nothing attractive whatsoever about LA.<BR><BR>Happy Travels.<BR><BR>Jen<BR>

Jen,<BR>I've never been to San Diego. (Actually, I've never been to California.) How was the driving? I've driven in NY, Chicago, Toronto. Is driving in San Diego comparable? <BR>Was the Embassy Suites convenient to the Zoo? How far to the Pacific ocean? Did you use the trolley or drive around town?<BR>Where did you stay while in Palm Springs?<BR>Thinking of putting together a similar trip next April for my family.<BR>Thanks for the trip report.

You can't fly in and out of LAX and judge a city by it's airport (which is in not such a great neighborhood).<BR>Trust me when I tell you that there's areas of San Diego that wouldn't have been to your liking had you left the touristy spots.

TRICIA from the embassy suites you can catch the trolley to the zoo. you'd need to drive about 15 minutes to get to a beach. driving in san diego is very easy. one or two sections you need to avoid at rush hour, otherwise it's great. april will be high season in palm springs which can be expensive so check around early for good deals. there's also a women's golf tournament then too (i think) so the town will be busy. great place.

We stayed at the Del with 2 14 year old boys and a 10 year old girl. They loved the idea that there might be a ghost. The pool, the beach and the hot tub were fabulous. We loved the room. We walked down town were there were several reasonably priced restaurants to choose from, the Del is pricey, rented the four person surrey bike, and had a great time. The remaining three days we spent at the San Diego Marina and Resort which was wonderful too. It is hard to beat San Diego!