Confirmations for flights and your San Diego lodge have each hit your inbox. That’s a reduction, for certain. Nevertheless, you continue to seemingly have some San Diego trip choices that should be made earlier than you depart.
The purpose of this put up is to handle what you should take into consideration subsequent. It’s for individuals who come to us after they’ve booked flights or a lodge or each. I’ve rather a lot to say and this listing is predicated on the questions that folks electronic mail in.
If You Don’t But Have Flights or Inns
1. Shield Your Journey
My mantra for 2025 is that everybody must verify their journey insurance coverage protection. This begins together with your bank cards. And you probably have protection in your bank cards, be sure that to make use of that bank card for related bookings.
Nevertheless, you’ll discover that bank card protection may be restricted and that you simply may have to complement it. When you’ve got a non-refundable flight or lodge reserving that you simply’d like to guard, the earlier you purchase journey insurance coverage after buying your journey, generally the cheaper it’s.
Whereas it appears pointless to buy journey insurance coverage you probably have a versatile lodge cancelation, mom nature might produce other plans. We needed to get exceptions for lots of people who had been inside their cancelation home windows and a few massive lodges had been surprisingly troublesome to get this to occur.
- Hurricanes got here quick and livid and we needed to unwind a number of lodge stays within the Caribbean. Dangerous climate can have a domino impact on the airways.
- This week in San Diego was extraordinarily foggy to the place planes had been diverted and couldn’t land. Lodge stays had been impacted.
- You or your youngsters may get sick and develop into unable to journey (this occurs rather a lot).
- Life occurs and you may’t journey.
2. Determine Out How You’ll Get Round San Diego
After arriving by automobile, practice, or aircraft, think about whether or not you’ll depend on a rental automobile, black automobile companies, or rideshare apps. Folks do all three, so which you select will depend on your itinerary and finances.
Most individuals hire automobiles. When factoring in price, do not forget that most San Diego lodges cost for parking, which may be steep even at downtown finances lodges (avenue parking is sort of by no means an alternate).
A number of locations provide free parking as a part of the resort price (Bahia Resort Lodge, La Jolla Seaside and Tennis Membership, and 4 Seasons Aviara come to thoughts) however count on to pay between $25-70/night time to park in a lodge.
About Public Transportation in San Diego
3. Plan Your Airport Switch
This ties into the above, after all. Many lodges can organize airport transportation for you. A black automobile service or Uber Black can choose you up on the curb at San Diego airport.
Black automobile companies will normally provide you with a selection. They’ll park and are available to fulfill you at baggage declare. Or, they’ll wait within the cellular phone car parking zone. After you accumulate your luggage, you’ll go to the curb and take a look at the inexperienced zone signal. Name and textual content them with the letter on the inexperienced zone signal.
Tip: In case you’re flying American or Alaska like I do, the zones outdoors of your baggage declare are O or P.
4. Analysis What You’ll Placed on Your Itinerary
I’d first mock up a tentative to-do listing. In case you want concepts, we have now an enormous aggregation of issues to do in San Diego based mostly on finances, curiosity, and neighborhood that will help you analysis.
Remember that our county is about 70 miles lengthy and a bit wider than that. There’s site visitors generally so that you’ll need to attempt to lump actions into the a part of city you’ll be in slightly than zig zag.
Don’t overschedule. Depart room to glide. We’re a relaxed city. You could not really feel like leaving the seaside.
The explanation why I say tentative is due to #5 under.
See additionally: Prime Household-Pleasant San Diego Actions
5. Determine Whether or not You’ll Purchase a Sightseeing Move or Particular person Tickets
There’s completely NO NEED to pay gate pricing at our main San Diego points of interest. You’ll have to crunch some numbers to resolve whether or not to save lots of extra with a sightseeing go or low cost tickets to particular person parks.
I work with distributors round city to offer unique financial savings on tickets however I actually consider that the way you save will depend on what you need to do. There are three sightseeing passes to select from (in my view):
- Go Metropolis San Diego
- San Diego CityPass (solely is smart when you’re going to LEGOLAND California and/or SeaWorld San Diego)
- Balboa Park Explorer Move (for the Balboa Park museums solely)
See additionally: Go Metropolis San Diego or San Diego CityPASS — Which to Select
In case you do go along with a sightseeing go, this will likely alter your itinerary a little bit as a result of chances are you’ll select to see included points of interest that you simply may not have in any other case thought-about.
See additionally: Our Listing of San Diego Tickets and Reductions
6. Make Reservations
A handful of points of interest require timed tickets, like LEGOLAND California. In case you bought tickets via us ensure you have a reservation. In case you purchased via LEGOLAND, then you definitely in all probability have a date particular tickets.
The opposite reservations I’d make are for a few of our increased finish eating places like those with Michelin stars comparable to Addison. Or, something that’s waterfront just like the Marine Room.
You’ll additionally want reservations for sightseeing excursions like whale watching or harbour cruises.
7. Plan For What You’ll Have to Deliver
I’ve written a information about what to pack for San Diego. An important tip is all the time to pack layers and solar safety. You will get sunburned within the winter right here, belief me.
Life is usually a number of athlesiure until you intend to go clubbing or to a nicer restaurant.
8. Overview and Set up Your Journey Paperwork and Memberships
In case you’re arriving from abroad, your passport must be legitimate for six months after your journey.
One other FAQ is about numerous journey applications chances are you’ll or might not belong to that you simply may want logins or playing cards to entry (that’s when you’re not app savvy).
- Precedence Move: This will get you into the Aspire Lougne (all the time busy don’t plan on it) and Chase Sapphire Lounge
- CLEAR: We do have CLEAR in Terminal 2. I’m a member and find it irresistible. Nevertheless, Terminal 2 has two “wings” for lack of a greater strategy to put it. CLEAR is situated over the place you verify in for Delta. In case you fly American or Alaska chances are you’ll need to simply courageous TSA Precheck to keep away from a protracted stroll to your gate.
- TSA Precheck: Sure, we have now it in all terminals.
- American Specific Lounge Entry: Aspire Lounge
- American Airways Admirals Membership: Aspire Lounge
Aspire Lounge provides precedence to Admirals Membership members above AMEX so know that if it’s busy.
9. Obtain Useful Apps
Listed here are some apps that may assist make your keep simpler. Seek for them in your related app retailer.
- Uber or Lyft
- Waze: To search out out what the actual site visitors state of affairs is.
- Circuit: Some locations like Pacific Seaside, Downtown, Oceanside, Nationwide Metropolis, Carlsbad, Chula Vista, and Coronado run low price Circuit shuttles which are actually nice.
- Pronto: It is a reloadable fare card for public transportation.
- San Diego Zoo and Safari Park each have apps
- SeaWorld San Diego
- LEGOLAND California
- Balboa Park
- Opentable for restaurant reservations
- Your lodge app: Hilton, Hyatt, 4 Seasons (that is the perfect app)
- SpotHero: Disclaimer that I haven’t personally used it however folks inform me it’s a good way to search out parking for occasions and busy days close to the seaside and downtown. I’ve downloaded it and may see why it’s helpful.
10. Double or Triple Test Your Confirmations
I do get frantic emails from vacationers generally who booked the flawed dates or didn’t understand their lodge was in Oceanside once they thought it was in downtown. Earlier than you go, double verify every little thing particularly the placement of the place you reserved relative to your itinerary.
Have questions? Let me know.
