San Diego & L.A. Visit
 

My wife and I are going to visit Los Angeles and San Diego in mid-September. Wondering if the Sea Lodge in LaJolla next to the tennis club is a nice place to stay? We're looking to stay on the beach. Also wonder if it's a long walk into town from there? Also would like to hear any comments on the Wild Animal Park? Thanks.

The Sea Lodge is fine. I assume that you are referring to the one at La Jolla Shores beach. Yes, it is a long walk into town ( La Jolla ) but it is doable if you like walking. <BR> <BR>The Wild Animal Park in Escondido is definitely a "must see". The animals are in their natural habitant. Plan on doing some walking and make sure that you take the train around the park. The only downside is that it can be very hot at the Wild Animal Park in September. September is usually the hottest month of the year.

The Wild Animal Park has a ride that takes you close to the animals. We went in the summer and saw few animals. Many, I guess, were sleeping somewhere in the shade outside of view. Go as early as possible for the best view.

SD Sam is right, the Sea Lodge is a nice place to stay, in a good location. However, he must be a heartier walker than me -- to my mind, it is a very long walk indeed into town from the Shores (and uphill). You may find that you need some kind of transport.

We are booked in the LaJolla Embassy Suites (a family of five, so the breakfast enticed us, also the fact we wanted the space). As we do not plan to spend a lot of time in the room, we wonder if this is a good choice for our purposes: travel up to Oceanside beaches, perhaps Disneyland, and SD Zoo. Opinions? Thanks

Vicki & Emily. <BR> <BR>The La Jolla Embassy Suites is NOT really in La Jolla. First, La Jolla is NOT a separate city. It is part of San Diego. I have always considered La Jolla to be between I-5 and the ocean. The Embassy Suites is located east of I-5 up on the mesa in what we call the Golden Triangle. It is a nice enough area but is certainly not to be confused with what most folks think of as La Jolla. You are about a mile east of I-5 up the hill so you will have good access to reach your destinations. You don't need to go to Oceanside to visit the beaches. There are good beaches all along the coast. <BR> <BR>Emily: <BR> <BR>I agree that the walk into town is quite aways and you do have to walk a little up hill. If you noticed I said that it was doable however I would not do it myself.

Wild Animal Park is one of a kind. I would do that before I would do Sea World or the Zoo. But I agree to get there as early as possible to skip the heat and see more active animals. <BR> <BR>Vicki: I agree w/ SDSam that Embassy Suites is not a "touristy" hotel. It's near a huge corporate center so my guess is that a lot of business people stay there. I would be inclined to look for a hotel in "Hotel Circle" in San Diego for reasonable rates, minutes from Sea World, Zoo, and Gaslamp Qtr. (adds ten minutes to your drive to Disney as compared to Embassy Suites).

Betsy: <BR> <BR>I wasn't implying that the Embassy Suites was not a good place to stay. It is very nice and you are right across the street for the University Towne Centre shopping mall. However it is very misleading when they call this area La Jolla because it is not the La Jolla that most people expect. Many developers have cashed in on the fame of La Jolla and Del Mar by calling the areas east of the freeway as La Jolla and Del Mar respectively. <BR> <BR>I would NOT recommend Hotel Circle at all. There is nothing there for tourists. It is in Mission Valley which again is nice enough but there is nothing to see or nowhere to walk. <BR> <BR>Actually my first choice would be the Hotel Del Coronado on Coronado island if your budget can afford it. It is truly a unique experience with a very wide beach at its doorstep. My next choice would be the Embassy Suites in Downtown San Diego. Downtown is a great place to stay. Many sights and attractions that you can walk to. The waterfront is beautiful and very people friendly. You can walk for miles along it with little parks etc. You can also walk to the Gaslamp area which is great with 80+ restaurants and many interesting shops etc. There is also Horton Plaza, Seaport Village, etc. <BR> <BR>There are many other nice areas to stay in with lots of tourist type stuff right at your doorstep. Mission Bay is pretty good, La Jolla. etc. There are a couple of reasonable places right around Old Town that aren't bad. <BR> <BR>In general, I advise to NOT stay east nor South of the downtown area.