San diego for spring break - where to stay?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We’ve done San Diego for spring break 3 times (but kids are younger than yours - most recent trip was last spring and they were 12 and 8). We’ve stayed on Coronado at the Glorietta Bay in. There are a few rooms that are two bedroom suites. Dinner is walkable, which I appreciate and breakfast is included and the beach is right across the street. They’ve had some problems in San Diego with sewage from Tijuana. You can’t necessarily swim in the ocean in Coronado (I think it would be cold anyway. My understanding is you can in La Jolla but part of that is just different tolerance / town rules for contaminant levels.

We like Coronado because it is SO easy to get to the zoo / balboa park (and the airport).

Last trip we had a really fun (but long) day in La Jolla. We went tide pooling, saw the seals and sea lions, and played in a park. I would have loved to have gotten to the aquarium and / or Torrey Pines. The traffic getting back was terrible. If we go again, as much as we like Coronado, I’d consider spending a night in La Jolla to do more things, but I do prefer the vibe and zoo convenience in Coronado.

Thank you. Op here. I’ve now booked an Airbnb in Hillcrest. We get pretty late so I realized that I’d also like a short ride to the airport. This seemed to provide a balance between cost / distance and had nice reviews.

Thanks all for all the suggestions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So many homeless people there. Be careful.

I wouldn’t say there are any more homeless people there than any other city in the U.S.

There is a higher population due to the good weather year round, but there's also been some policy changes in the last few years to try to address it (or just move it outside of view).

[Anonymous]

Belmont Park 🎢 is a carnival 🎡 by the beach so there are a lot of people around, especially on weekends/evenings so it might be a little noisy.

A better location to stay would likely be closer to Mission BAY (not beach), some nicer parts of Pacific beach, or La Jolla.
Or try the Catamaran resort though this may be very pricey.

Coronado is wonderful too but it is the most expensive option and it is on an island so you will have to get there on a bridge over water daily though there are no toll booths and the island itself is very walkable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Google “pacific terrace hotel” in PB

We stayed there last year for part of spring break. The hotel is lovely and its great that they have chairs, umbrellas, and other beach equipment you can borrow. But know that it is COLD. This is not a beachy vacation, not in March/April. It is fun to watch to the surfers though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We’ve done San Diego for spring break 3 times (but kids are younger than yours - most recent trip was last spring and they were 12 and 8). We’ve stayed on Coronado at the Glorietta Bay in. There are a few rooms that are two bedroom suites. Dinner is walkable, which I appreciate and breakfast is included and the beach is right across the street. They’ve had some problems in San Diego with sewage from Tijuana. You can’t necessarily swim in the ocean in Coronado (I think it would be cold anyway. My understanding is you can in La Jolla but part of that is just different tolerance / town rules for contaminant levels.

We like Coronado because it is SO easy to get to the zoo / balboa park (and the airport).

Last trip we had a really fun (but long) day in La Jolla. We went tide pooling, saw the seals and sea lions, and played in a park. I would have loved to have gotten to the aquarium and / or Torrey Pines. The traffic getting back was terrible. If we go again, as much as we like Coronado, I’d consider spending a night in La Jolla to do more things, but I do prefer the vibe and zoo convenience in Coronado.

Thank you. Op here. I’ve now booked an Airbnb in Hillcrest. We get pretty late so I realized that I’d also like a short ride to the airport. This seemed to provide a balance between cost / distance and had nice reviews.

Thanks all for all the suggestions.

Hillcrest is definitely very close (and thus convenient!) to the airport but also the zoo as well.
In fact it is right next to them as well as Balboa Park.

This may not be an issue for you and it is not one for me at all but just wanted to offer full disclosure that Hillcrest is primarily known for being San Diego’s gay community.
There are a ton of gay bars, restaurants, clubs, etc. in the area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We’ve done San Diego for spring break 3 times (but kids are younger than yours - most recent trip was last spring and they were 12 and 8). We’ve stayed on Coronado at the Glorietta Bay in. There are a few rooms that are two bedroom suites. Dinner is walkable, which I appreciate and breakfast is included and the beach is right across the street. They’ve had some problems in San Diego with sewage from Tijuana. You can’t necessarily swim in the ocean in Coronado (I think it would be cold anyway. My understanding is you can in La Jolla but part of that is just different tolerance / town rules for contaminant levels.

We like Coronado because it is SO easy to get to the zoo / balboa park (and the airport).

Last trip we had a really fun (but long) day in La Jolla. We went tide pooling, saw the seals and sea lions, and played in a park. I would have loved to have gotten to the aquarium and / or Torrey Pines. The traffic getting back was terrible. If we go again, as much as we like Coronado, I’d consider spending a night in La Jolla to do more things, but I do prefer the vibe and zoo convenience in Coronado.

Thank you. Op here. I’ve now booked an Airbnb in Hillcrest. We get pretty late so I realized that I’d also like a short ride to the airport. This seemed to provide a balance between cost / distance and had nice reviews.

Thanks all for all the suggestions.

Hillcrest is definitely very close (and thus convenient!) to the airport but also the zoo as well.
In fact it is right next to them as well as Balboa Park.

This may not be an issue for you and it is not one for me at all but just wanted to offer full disclosure that Hillcrest is primarily known for being San Diego’s gay community.
There are a ton of gay bars, restaurants, clubs, etc. in the area.

Didn’t realize this. Thanks for the heads up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We’ve done San Diego for spring break 3 times (but kids are younger than yours - most recent trip was last spring and they were 12 and 8). We’ve stayed on Coronado at the Glorietta Bay in. There are a few rooms that are two bedroom suites. Dinner is walkable, which I appreciate and breakfast is included and the beach is right across the street. They’ve had some problems in San Diego with sewage from Tijuana. You can’t necessarily swim in the ocean in Coronado (I think it would be cold anyway. My understanding is you can in La Jolla but part of that is just different tolerance / town rules for contaminant levels.

We like Coronado because it is SO easy to get to the zoo / balboa park (and the airport).

Last trip we had a really fun (but long) day in La Jolla. We went tide pooling, saw the seals and sea lions, and played in a park. I would have loved to have gotten to the aquarium and / or Torrey Pines. The traffic getting back was terrible. If we go again, as much as we like Coronado, I’d consider spending a night in La Jolla to do more things, but I do prefer the vibe and zoo convenience in Coronado.

Thank you. Op here. I’ve now booked an Airbnb in Hillcrest. We get pretty late so I realized that I’d also like a short ride to the airport. This seemed to provide a balance between cost / distance and had nice reviews.

Thanks all for all the suggestions.

Hillcrest is definitely very close (and thus convenient!) to the airport but also the zoo as well.
In fact it is right next to them as well as Balboa Park.

This may not be an issue for you and it is not one for me at all but just wanted to offer full disclosure that Hillcrest is primarily known for being San Diego’s gay community.
There are a ton of gay bars, restaurants, clubs, etc. in the area.

Didn’t realize this. Thanks for the heads up.

I live in San Diego and have for the past four decades or so and I have to second this.
Hillcrest is most DEFINITELY the gay capital of our city.

Meaning the resident demographic is primarily gay - and the venues in the area are mostly gay “themed.”
I have friends who are gay and even they think Hillcrest is very gay…..Lol. 😊☺️
Some people may feel uncomfortable in this community so it is always a good idea to let people know about it before they visit.

I hope you enjoy your stay in my beautiful city.

Tons of people hang out at the beach during spring break.
It is a toss up ->> it may be warm or it may be cloudy.

[Anonymous]

I was in San Diego for SpringBreak a few years ago and it was very warm so I spent it mostly on the beach.

My family and I swam in the nice Pacific Ocean daily.
We also visited the water park too and swam there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was in San Diego for SpringBreak a few years ago and it was very warm so I spent it mostly on the beach.

My family and I swam in the nice Pacific Ocean daily.
We also visited the water park too and swam there.

Thanks pp. I didn’t expect it to be warm enough last week of March, and always heard the water is the pacific is cold so the beach didn’t really cross my mind. It’s also our first time in SD but the airbnb we got has lots of beach stuff so if it ends up warm we’ll check out a beach on one of the days.