Question on San Diego
 

We are traveling to San Diego in a few weeks and are having trouble deciding between staying at Four Seasons Aviara and Loews Coronado Bay Resort. We'll have a rental car and don't mind driving a little for dinner or activities. We like upscale resorts and are travelling with our two boys who are 16 and 12. We are from Ohio so we are looking forward to enjoying nicer weather than we have here in late November. Any thoughts on the pros and cons of these two places would be appreciated.

I think the Loews is more convenient and will be very nice, but not as nice as the FS aviara. the only thing that you are close to at the FS aviara is the wild animal park or legoland. I know the Loews is undergoing some construction right now on their spa, so they took away their basketball court. Staying at the FS Aviara will be will driving "more than a little bit." have you looked in to the Lodge at Torrey Pines? Closer to San Diego and in La Jolla, with a host of restaurants, hiking and snorkeling near by.

lodge at torrey pines does get good reviews. you could walk down to one beach (a long walk uphill coming back)but it is quite a ways. so as long as you don't mind driving and the boys don't want some "action" close to the hotel, it is suppose to be great. just wanted to mention that san diego is not known for it's snorkeling. you may see some things down at the cove but you'll need wetsuits.

I was recently in San Diego for the first time & visited the Hotel Del Coronado & the Lodge at Torey Pines. If you're a golfer as your name implies, the Lodge at Torey has it's own golf course. The place is amazingly beautiful (classic arts & crafts) but not on the beach (huge pool though). It feels old world elegant. It won't be warm enough to swim in the ocean anyway but I admit it's nice to have the view. I also LOVED Coronado island (and the Hotel Del is fabulous-have you considered that?) where I assume the Loews is. Coronado is connected to downtown San Diego by a long bridge. Torey Pines is closer to La Jolla with many fine restaurants.

Aviara is a great hotel-but I agree-it's not convenient to ANYTHING. Traffic is BAD on the 5 every morning-so you are talking about 45 min to 1 hour getting into San Diego. I love Corondao-I would try for the Hotel Del if you can, although Lowes is close to the Landing on Coronado. The Hyatt Regency downtown is a very nice place with a nice pool. The Pacific Terrace Inn is pretty nice-small, but upscale, and right on the beach in Pacific
Beach area.

We stayed at the Loews on Coronoado and loved it. Was quiet yet a good place for kids/teens. The Restaurants at the hotel were very good, espcially the market cafe for breakfast. The drive on/off the island was not bad (10 minutes or so). If you don't stay at the Del, I suggest brunch or breakfast one day just to see it.

Just a word on the Loews. Yes, it is in Coronado, but not only is it on the edge from the rest of the town, but it's pretty much on swamp water. It's on the edge of the bay, and the view is nothing like the one you'd get from the Hotel Del Coronado. Rooms are much nicer at the Loews for the most part though.

Loews- hands down! easy access to the city, great walks and bike rides on the island.