Does anyone have any recommendations on hotels in San Diego. Have never been to California and am looking for a clean place in a safe area.
I was born and raised in San Diego plus we have stayed in many hotels there when we visit, so I have a little insight.
It really depends on several things: how much you want to spend, if you want to be by port, if you're spending 1 night just for the cruise or you're staying for a few days, and the types of activities you want (if any). For us though, we always stay near Seaport Village, the Gaslamp, and the convention center (they are all in the same area). The Gaslamp has fabulous food and, if you're into it, nightlife. Seaport Village is a wonderful place to walk around, look in the little shops, and grab some lunch. What we do is use Priceline; however, I caution that my recommendation is only for a specific star rating and area. With that said, my recommendation is to Priceline 4-star Gaslamp/Convention Center and 4-star Gaslamp/Convention Center ONLY! There are other decent hotels around downtown/Shelter Island, but the possibilities of getting a not-so-great one is too high, so we stick with this area. We usually get the Manchester Grand Hyatt, the Marriott, Hotel Solamar, or the Omni. Our favorites are Solamar and the Omni, but they are all decent. We usually get it for $75/night (a bit higher on a peak date), but $75 has been our average. Don't forget though - average parking at these hotels is $30 per night, which can be rough. I have also seen people priceline mission valley and get the Sheraton for as little as $48. Anyway - here's a link to a list of hotels that priceline has by area and star level. This info can change so please be aware of that, but so far it has worked pretty well for us! Hmm...it's not letting me post the link. The website is "Biddingfortravel". Go to the site, click onto the California - San Diego link, and then the first link on that page is a hotel list. It lists them by area and star rating according to priceline.
So you are going to tell us some good places to eat as well, right?
Just thought I'd chime in on this, too. Depends what you like and what you're looking for (i.e. something good for kids, adults only, etc). My most favorite restaurant in all of San Diego is Strip Club Steakhouse in the Gaslamp. It's adult only, very neat atmosphere, and you stand around grills and chat and cook your own meat! I know, why go out to cook your own food, right? But it's a great experience! They also have fabulous side dishes. It is pricy though and it's 21 and over only.
http://www.cohnrestaurants.com/menu-restaurants/gaslamp-strip-club/ Now, kids always love corvette diner. It's a 50's style diner and the waitresses play the part. They are sarcastic, grouchy, and they do things like throw straws at you. It's not negative though, it's really fun. It's also pretty close to the port as it is just beyond the San Diego airport downtown.
http://www.cohnrestaurants.com/menu-restaurants/corvette-diner/ My husband's favorite is Hash House:
http://www.hashhouseagogo.com/ Anyway, those are my top recommendations. Let me know if you need more!
On a side note, if you stay in the Gaslamp area there is a ghirardelli ice cream shop you can walk to with the kids!
P.S. If
Thanks for the suggestions.
