Sunny San Diego
Last week my husband and I enjoyed 5 fabulous days with my family in and around beautiful, sunny San Diego, California. As a native Californian, I always cherish a chance to return to my home state and if you only needed to know one thing about the golden state, it is NEVER lacking in things to do! In fact when people ask me, that's my answer for what I miss most. This trip was primarily about relaxation and family time but that didn't stop us from finding some great spots along the way...I thought I'd share them for those needing some inspiration to plan a trip to SD for yourself!
On our first day we actually travelled from LA to San Diego and made a stop in Carlsbad along the way. This time of year you can find the most incredible display of ranunculus at the Carlsbad Flower Fields and I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to visit them for myself. A great half day activity, you can take time to explore the expanse flower fields, snap some stunning pictures, and then grab and ice cream or dole whip at one of the many food pop-ups. If you have the time, be sure to explore the sweet pea maze, the butterfly garden and the other beautiful spaces around the farm. If you arrive early enough in the day- and if you're visiting on the front end of your trip- you can purchase a bundle of ranunculus to take with you.
dress: En Saison (gifted) || hat: Sarah Bray Bermuda
Our second day in San Diego took us to Mission Beach for a few hours before heading to Island Prime steak house for a delicious- albeit expensive- family dinner. As a group, we had a lot of recent wins and milestones to celebrate so the occasion called for something special. We wined and dined and watched the sun set over the city skyline. As for Mission Beach, it's a very quintessential California boardwalk kind of beach offering surf shops, local vendors, and an eclectic mix of people. Though it wasn't my favorite beach we visited while in town, it is classic coastal California.
The following day was a little bit of everything as we were set to move hotel locations for the remainder of our trip and my family had a wedding to attend. Brad and I weren't part of the wedding crowd so we invited friends from LA to come down to spend the day with us. We spent the afternoon golfing and then headed into downtown for dinner at The Local Eatery & Drinking Hole. I loved this spot! The food was great and it's also home to Resident Brewing Company....it was the perfect spot to be on a Friday night downtown. Afterwards we headed to Coin Op and arcade slash bar for drinks and games before our friends had to head home. B and I decided to stroll down fifth avenue and it did not disappoint! There were countless bars, restaurants, and clubs that looked like a great time but after a long day we settled on some ice cream before heading back to our hotel- I might also mention that by this time I had developed a full blown cold so I did not have my normal dancing queen kind of energy.
The next morning B and I headed back down fifth avenue to stop into one of the places I had spotted the night before called Cafe 21. Everything we had was delicious....when I tell you I'm still dreaming about the Galaxy (iced) tea I had....HIGHLY recommend you stop in for breakfast, brunch, or lunch if you find yourself in downtown Sand Diego! The rest of the day was split between a visit back to Mission Beach and my first ever visit to Hotel Del Coronado and Coronado Beach. This was hands down my favorite beach and I wish we had gotten a full day there because it lived up to every expectation I had. "The Del" as is has come to be known was built in 1888 and was famously featured in the Hollywood classic film Some Like it Hot starring Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, and Jack Lemmon. We played frisbee on the beach, watched the sun set, took a quick peak in and around the hotel, and grabbed drinks at the tiki bar before heading back to our hotel for the night.
Our last day we all had early evening flights so we were able to take advantage of a half day visit to Ocean Beach before heading to the airport. This unfortunately was a very windy and overcast day but we still sat on the beach in our sweatshirts for a bit before catching the most delicious lunch at OB Noodle House....hands down my favorite meal of our whole trip. While waiting for my food to arrive I had a chance to try everyone else's dish- my food was accidentally not ordered so I had hunger pains and time to kill- and every dish tasted better than the last but the beef & vegetables chow fun that my Dad ordered was out of this world! It was the perfect way to end our time in San Diego.
Comments