Hi everyone,
My husband and I are looking into a trip to San Diego with our one year old daughter in mid September (probably the weekend of the 13th-15th). I would appreciate any suggestions of the best activities to do with a baby, as well as advice on good, clean budget hotels (anyone know anything about La Pensione?).

Thanks in advace,
Jeanette

The San Diego Zoo is always a good activity with small children. You might also enjoy taking her for a walk in the stroller through Balboa Park. The beach on Coronado Island is flat and wide and a good place for playing in the water with little ones.

Topping for Jeanette. Only need to post once and then scroll down or do a search to pull up your thread.

Pulling it all together for Jeannette:

Author: Katie ([email protected])
Date: 08/24/2002, 10:42 pm
Message: Hi, I live in SD and have a 2 1/2 yr old. SeaWorld is really great for a 1 yr old. The animals are always moving in the water & it's easy for the baby to watch them. Manatees, sharks, penguins & walrus. You can see the Shamu show too. Under 3 is free. La Jolla is a great place to walk with him & see the sea lions, but he may not be interested. There are a lot of squirrels there too. And of course great restaurants, just eat early if you are concerned about offending other diners with your baby, and you won't have to wait for a table either. The beach in Del Mar has a playground with swings & a grassy area & you can walk along the beach & dip his toes in the ocean. There are several shops & places to eat here also.
But, I would mostly do whatever you & husband want to do. The older your child gets, the more you will cater to him on vacations. I took my son to SF last year, and he liked the sea lions & trolley. But he also went to Alcatraz & on a bus tour. This year we went to Disneyworld in Florida for 5 days! Have a wonderful vacation!

Thanks for the tips, I will look more into those suggestions.

Sorry for the duplicate post, I posted once, came back several hours later and it had not shown up. Now it is here but for some reason shows it was posted AFTER my second post. Strange.

Thanks again,
Jeanette

Jeanette: This post shows that it was posted at 2:38 pm and your second one didn't get created until after 9 pm. If you don't find your post on the first page, then you need to keep hitting the "next 50 messages" and continue to scroll through the postings until yours shows up.

i think sea world is the best choice for a one year old over the zoo.
check out the regency plaza hotel (the name may have changed) in hotel circle. they have a double room which was nice so the kid can go to sleep and you can still stay up. it included a microwave & fridge.
paradise point is good too for children.

take her to the "children's pool" in la jolla where all the sea lions hang out. mission beach has an area with some rides next to it. legoland north of san diego (although she might be too young).

When traveling with children, our family learned very quickly that a kitchen is a must. Several years ago on our first visit to San Diego with a child, life-long friends from San Diego recommended Sommerset Suites Hotel. It was perfect for our needs with two rooms, full kitchen, full bath, king-size bed or double beds in the bedroom and a pull-out couch in the adjoining room. Cribs are available upon request.
We are making plans now for a visit in December. We talked with our friends last night and they confirmed that it was still a great place to stay. I booked 7 nights after Christmas for $99/night plus l0.7% tax. This is the AARP discounted rate. $l09 plus tax for AAA rate and $129 plus tax for their regular rate at that time of year. You may want to check it out. Their web site is: sommersetsuites.com. I believe that a continental breakfast and beverage at the end of the day are also included. Good luck!

I have to comment on the Sommerset Suites hotel. I booked to stay there with my husband and 13-month-old daughter for a long weekend. Our first night there we were very disappointed...the place seemed dirty and run-down and although it seemed to be in a safe enough area, it wasn't a nice area either. I could hear the ambulances from the hospital next door as soon as we checked in. We slept horrible - it took forever to get the heat to work - and first thing the next a.m. we checked out. It did have a continental breakfast but it wasn't that great and we didn't feel comfortable eating there! I suppose if you have a big family and are on a strict budget, this might work for you or if you're not concerned with cleanliness much...We ended up at the Catamaran and were very happy there. Much more like what a vacation should be! And nice to be so close to the beach. Just my personal opinion...