My parents - for some insane reason - decided to take a vacation to Palm Desert in June. They are at a really nice resort, but it is insanely hot. I drove out from LA to see them Sat morning and drove back last night. It was 110 degrees for a good portion between 2-6 PM. It was 100 degrees still at 9 PM last night when I left. You could only really spend an hour or two outside before needing to go back in. Can't believe people were golfing. PS - when we were out Saturday night in downtown Palm Springs for dinner, I had to stop counting the number of bachelorette parties I saw. Same thing with brunch on Sunday. They're all over the place. Probably a cheaper/easier alternative to Vegas for a lot of girls. Just saying if you're single in SoCAl...
well it's kinda far from everything other than nice beaches on Coronado Island or an okay beach in Imperial Beach. Either way, you have to deal with a good drive through either Coronado island & the bridge to be close to downtown San diego or drive south to Imperial Beach and use the 5 freeway to get going north to downtown San Diego or south towards Tijuana (tacos, strippers, & lucha libre!). What kinds of things you looking to do?
Hit up the nightlife a few nights, go to the beach, eat good food, other outdoors stuff, and anything else that's exclusive to the area.
I'm not an expert, but I've had more fun in Pacific Beach than in the Gaslamp district. Every place in Gaslamp seemed like it had a 30-40 minute line to get in and a cover charge, at least on Friday and Saturday nights. Maybe it would be different if you went on a weeknight.
Currently in San Diego on a pre-relocation trip for work to see if I want to move here from NJ/NYC. I was offered to work remotely from my house NJ or move to SD and work out of our HQ. Initially I had thought of this trip as just a vacation for the wife and myself. However, after exploring the area we are now actually considering making the move. The pros of living in SD are pretty obvious, but what are the negatives? The most glaring one is the price of housing. It's ridiculous, but outside of that I think it's hard to notice in a quick trip. If anyone is familiar with the area, what are your thoughts?
I've only visited there several times. It's hands down one of the best places to live in the country according to people who I know that live there. They love it.
Staying on Venice Beach from Thursday-Sunday. Also looking for restaurants/bars to go to and a good hiking route for at least one day.
Stayed in Venice Beach a few months back and I can attest that Gjusta is amazing for lunch. A bit pricey, but damn the food was top notch. If you want hiking, I went up to Malibu and the Santa Monica mountains and hiked to Sandstone Peak. It was pretty cool. Highest point in that mountain range.
Corky Bucek is a local There is a new area called Pacific City that has a lot of bars and restaurants that I've heard good things about but no experience with. What do you like to drink/eat?
Either Friday or Saturday evening try to get a reservation at High Rooftop on top of Hotel Erwin and have some apps and drinks on the rooftop while watching sunset (it gets packed so try to reserve soon). Then go to bars around Abbott Kinney at night. Also James' Beach tacos are pretty conveniently located to the beach and a fun quick lunch http://www.highvenice.com/
I'm a seafood, burger, steak, cold beer drinker kind of guy. Not into so called fancy food. Dive bars, lounges, not "clubs"
As Modevil said I'm from there, but I actually live in Long Beach now. Where are you staying? What do you like to eat and drink and all that fun stuff. Downtown Huntington aka Main Street is where a ton of restaurants and bars are. Tuesday night they close Main Street off to cars and have a street fair which has street food, music, and other stuff. Sugar Shack is the best breakfast place in the area and is a Main St staple. Bars to avoid IMO are Sharkeez, Hurricanes, 2nd Floor. Legends just opened up and is a sports bar. Pacific City is only a few months old and I've been a few times. St Mark has a bacon bar, Simmzy's is good and has q solid beer selection. Bear Flag Fish Co recently opened up iirc and based off of their other location it's worth checking out. My favorite Mexican joint is Las Barcas off Beach and Atlanta.
Yeah that's a solid spot then. You are quick walk over to Pacific City and then a little further from there is Main Street. Let me know if you have any other questions and I can help you out.
The hostel I'm staying at is within half a mile of all these places so I'll definitely be taking these recommendations. Thanks mayne.
No problem, I live about 30 mins east of the beach so don't get to Venice too often but always love it when I do. I'd also recommend just walking north on the boardwalk to Santa Monica (~2 mile walk) and going up to the pier and Ocean Ave in SM for an afternoon.
Best dive downtown is Perqs which is a few stores up from Jacks Surfboards. If you really want a dive then The Pen off of Beach and Adams which is a 5 min cab or uber from the Hilton. Where are you coming from?
You mean Stumbleweeds. Meant to post that along with the Pen even though it's not as big of a dive as the Pen. Johnny's is another big time dive off of Beach.
It's true. I have a friend that works for a company that supports Disney and the NFL out there that's hiring and I'm talking to him about working with him
As a local going on 6 years, here's a few of the places I enjoy. I tried to provide a wide range of options and price points. Sorry, but I don't eat on Coronado all that often so I don't have good recommendations for that part of the city: Searsucker Bankers Hill Bar & Restaurant Prep Kitchen Little Italy C-Level Tap Room (Pacific Beach) Blind Lady Ale House Tacos el Gordo (Cheap but awesome Mexican food - Chula Vista) Bluewater Seafood
Been to both Bankers Hill and Prep Kitchen and they are great. I actually recommend those two to a friend a week ago. I'm not an SD local anymore but a friend of a friend runs Trattoria Fantastica in little Italy. We go there once a year and it's always good if you want Italian. I also like Cucina Urbana.
Solid list, would second C-level, Searsucker and Blind Lady. Also would throw in Buona Forchetta for Italian. May be my favorite restaurant in SD.