I've posted previously that I got my husband tickets to Breeders Cup at Santa Anita on Nov. 6. We will have about 8=9 days so wanted to see San Diego. After very helpful info from this site decided to stay in LaJolla area as we love the beach Debating between La Valencia and Grande But my bigger question is this: looks like flights are cheaper leaving on Tuesdays (coming from new york area) Do you think we would be crazy to fly into San Diego stay there (La Jolla area) then try to drive up on Sat for the Breeders Cup for the day and try to return to La Jolla area.. Looks like its about 2 hours away. Or do you think we should just stay in the area of Breeders Cup for a few days then return to San Diego.

I've driven up for the day for the Breeder's Cup at Santa Anita and its about 2 hour drive each way. I would stay in LJ..both the Grande Colonial or La V are lovely old stately hotels..both have great restaurants with nine-ten at the Grande and the Whaling Bar and the outside patio overlooking the gorgeous pacific ocean for brunch at La V.
We are members of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club..this is one of the best tracks besides Santa Anita..besides the stunning design of both, you are really going to love it!

I agree with ksucat, both hotels are classic great places. The drive is not that bad either.
I've lived in SD most of my life and believe it or not I'd never been to the Del Mar Races. I went a few years ago and it was spectacular.
Another option would be to stay in Carlsbad (they have a wonderful beach and some great hotels on the beach like the Carlsbad Inn) that way you are half way between LA and La Jolla and other fun stuff in San Diego.

It's much more fun to stay in La Jolla than in the Santa Anita area, so your commuting idea has merit. The Santa Anita area is a nice area but it is pretty boring compared to La Jolla. If 4 hours of round trip driving is too much for you in one day, you could spend just one nite in the racetrack area then drive back to La Jolla the next morning. (Also, if you hit traffic the drive could take longer than 2 hours).
Have fun!

Thanks so much for the great info. Still more questions though''i just booked our flight to fly into San Diego We will arrive the Tues before Breeders Cup and leave the following Tues. After talking it over with hubby, we decided we would stay Sat. night closer to Santa Anita area so we wouldn't get disgusted with the traffic leaving Breeders Cup. Any suggestions where to stay. nanabee talked about Carlsbad. We plan to return to San Diego and finish our trip there. Decided to probably try Grande Hotel for first 1/2 and La Valencia for second 1/2 Any other ideas of hotels.

Santa Anita is in Arcadia/Pasadena area..
Try Embassy Suites Arcadia..

Why would you stay in Carlsbad in SD which is about 20-30 minutes from LJ to stay coming in from Santa Anita?
And why are you moving hotels in LJ and you want to add a couple more hotels to stay in your one week stay?
Are you crazy?

No I'm not crazy just trying to see the most in one week. I heard good things about both hotels so thought it would be good to see both as we will be breaking up the week by going to Breeders Cup I only mentioned Carlsbad because I wasn't even sure where it was I only thought it might be closer to Santa Anita Do you have any other suggestions for hotels in San Diego. It's a little overwhelming when you don't know the area well and California is bigger than I realized thanks again for your help

Yes, Carlsbad is nowhere near Santa Anita. My personal favorite hotel in SD is The Pacific Terrace Hotel. It has very nice rooms, some with nice ocean views, and is just a stairway down to the beach. It is not in La Jolla. It is south of there in an area called Pacific Beach which is not as upscale an area as La Jolla. You can check it out at pacificterrace.com.

Stick with La Jolla -- San Diego is fine (and I've been to both a number of times), but nothing in SD proper beats La Jolla in my opinion.

I agree with MRand. La Jolla is the finest area in the San Diego area.

Where you stay in the SD area should be based, in part, on what you intend to do. There is a lot to see along the SD harbor (The "Big Bay"), in the Gaslamp, Balboa Park, and various neighborhoods. If you are going to divide your hotels by being away for one night, why not stay in La Jolla for one part and central SD for the other?

Many people who post messages here are very impressed with La Jolla, but I consider it a novelty as a place to visit (very nice to live in, however). It does not have the best beaches (unless you want kayaking), and one day walking around LJ Village would just about cover every street and shop (don't miss the controversial Childrens/Seals Beach or the Museum of Contemporary Art's Sculpture Garden, probably the most interesting sights in LJ). Most of LJ near the water is upper-end residential, and the inland parts are not at all interesting to a visitor.

I have lived in SD (Uptown/Hillcrest) for 4.5 years, and my wife and I spend innumerable hours walking around and seeing the sights/attractions in Balboa Park, Little Italy, Gaslamp/East Village, Hillcrest/North Park vs. visiting LJ Village once every 2-3 months.

To us, being in downtown/uptown central SD is visiting a city, while LJ is like a somewhat isolated resort with a tourist strip (Prospect Avenue and adjacent streets). I think ksucat described LJ well: "both the Grande Colonial or La V are lovely old stately hotels..both have great restaurants with . . . outside patio overlooking the gorgeous pacific ocean for brunch at La V."

It depends on what kind of vacation you want!!! Slow and stately, or diverse and action-packed.

FWIW, our two favorite LJ fine-dining restaurants are creative Asian-fusion Roppongi and French-inspired The Marine Room (which is not open for lunch):

http://www.roppongiusa.com/

http://www.marineroom.com/

Almost all of us recommend getting a rental car because as a tourist you have limited time in our city and you want to see as much as possible.

There's nothing wrong with our public transportation, MTS, other than it takes a LOT longer to get from here to there than by car. The busses are very clean, the drivers very helpful, and the busses are mostly on time. In fact, our MTS just won a huge award for being the Outstanding Public Transit System in the US.

http://www.sdmts.com/APTAaward.asp

I think you've confused everyone by suggesting Carlsbad as a place for the overnight near Santa Anita.

There are a lot of major chain hotels on Huntington Drive in Arcadia, near the race track. Use maps.google.com and enter something like "hotels arcadia santa anita" you'll see them on the map.

BTW the Los Angeles County Arboretum on the west side of the track is very much worth a visit. You're also very close to Pasadena with all that it has to offer.

www.arboretum.org

So the comments about La Jolla being more interesting...pfffft.

With everyones great advise and information We have decided on staying at the Hotel del Coronado. We will just drive up for the day to the Breeders Cup race in Santa Anita. I know the traffic will probably be brutal after the race lets out but think we will enjoy seeing the area between there and San Diego. We chose del Coronado because the beach there sounds like what we would both enjoy. We are renting a car and have a list of things we would like to do. Just to mention a few of course the zoo definetly. Just got the info from San Deigo Tourist so after I look at that and finalize our itinerary I'll be posting again