Hampton Inn San Diego-Downtown anyone??

[wallygator]

Hi all I hope this was not covered before. We will be spending three nights pre cruise here. The last time we cruised from San Diego we stayed at the Holiday Inn on the Bay. This time we wanted to try the Hampton Inn. Has anyone stayed there? Any feedback? We love San Diego so we can't wait.

 

Thanking all in advance for their thoughts and experiences.

 

Thanks from a cold North Jersery.:) :rolleyes:

[sherree]

Thanks for asking your question- I am interested in the answer as well, we have it booked for pre-cruise April 5. From my research, looks nice, location looks good, price as well. It is cold here in Indiana too! But warm in Miami- GO COLTS!

[LaCat3]

I'm booked for one night pre-cruise March 20 -also interested in the responses.

 

LaCat3

[LaCat3]

I'm booked for one night pre-cruise March 20 -also interested in the responses.

 

LaCat3

[wallygator]

Some one must have stayed there!:confused: :confused:

[hommebronze]

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g60750-d224353-Reviews-Hampton_Inn_San_Diego_Downtown-San_Diego_California.html

[Crusin Karen]

Hey, wallygator! Greetings from Ridgewood in the Garden State of NJ. This is the lst time I have checked this forum, so hope this isn't too late! We went on the Spirit to Mexican Riviera 1/26-2/3. Stayed at the Hampton Inn 2 days pre cruise and l day post cruise. This was our lst trip to SD and I absolutely FELL IN LOVE with it! Some background: we usually cruise from NY or Bayonne since we are "right here" but sometimes we just have to get away from the cold NJ winters. We have always cruised out of FL for our winter get aways and stayed at the Embassy Suites which we love. So the Hampton Inn was a bit of a shock. It is very "basic." There is no bar, no lightlife, yes, it has a pool, but it is very small. Didn't use it at all, but did sit out and enjoy the CA sunshine and watch the planes come and go. We went with 2 other couples and I was worried we would be "bored" but in retrospect, for the price, it was great. It is VERY CLEAN. Rooms are very comfortable. We are used to a huge complimentary breakfast buffet at the ES. Hampton has a small almost continental breakfast, but it was fine. We were going to be eating for 8 days anyway! 4 different coffees, tea, danish, toast, bagels,cereal, fruit, juices, and usually some micro'ed omelettes and sausage. It was fine, and again, the breakfast area is IMMACULATE. There are plenty of tables and there is a little area right there with comfortable couches and chairs and a tv tuned to CNN. The staff was very friendly and even tho we were there early before cruise and early after cruise, they held our luggage in a store room for us until our rooms were ready. But again, there is "nothing to do" there if you are looking for "nightlife" or even want to just have a drink. BUT...the Holiday Inn is down and over one block. Very short walk so you can have lunch/dinner at the restaurant there (Elephant and Castle?) or Anthonys on the pier. We took the free shuttle to SD Zoo which was wonderful one day. Also took the shuttle to Gaslight District one night, wandered around, had dinner and then called shuttle for pick up. There is also a 7-ll and Rite Aide a few blocks away. And they both sell BOOZE! :D Go to the RA if you are planning to purchase any. Go out of the hotel, and to the right, turn right at the lst block and go up the block, over rr and trolley tracks a "few blocks." Stores are on the left side of the street. 7-ll is lst, then RA is a few blocks up from that. Easy walking distance and I am NOT a walker! We are booked to do the same cruise in 2/08 and I would NOT HESITATE to stay there again. Just realize that it is a "no frills" hotel. We bought some wine and beer and took out to the pool patio area at night and it was very nice.

Now, you have to help ME. What was the Holiday Inn like??? :D We stayed at the Hampton because we wanted to save some $ as we were traveling with friends. And Embassy Suites in SD was filled to capacity. But I am thinking of trying Holiday Inn next year. Do they have complimentary breakfasts? What is the pool like?

Well, hope this helped you. If you have any other questions, please let me know. Keep warm and happy cruising!

[wallygator]

:rolleyes:

Karen;9134387]Hey, wallygator! Greetings from Ridgewood in the Garden State of NJ. Now, you have to help ME. What was the Holiday Inn like??? :D We stayed at the Hampton because we wanted to save some $ as we were traveling with friends. And Embassy Suites in SD was filled to capacity. But I am thinking of trying Holiday Inn next year. Do they have complimentary breakfasts? What is the pool like?

Well, hope this helped you. If you have any other questions, please let me know. Keep warm and happy cruising!

 

Well thanks for responding Karen. Lets see I don’t recall if the Holiday Inn had a breakfast or not. We decided to book there after reading a post from someone on CC about their experience their and watching their ship arrive for their cruise in the morning. Sounded special to us so we booked early and requested a room with that same type view. The hotel is nice, clean has a bar on the left side as you look at the front it consist of a few buildings with a decent pool ground level between them. They have a steak house Judith Chris. Had no complaints. We had a room in the south tower on the eighth floor directly across from the cruise ship pier. We actually could lay in our bed and see the pier and hear the analog clock chime was nice. We did the San Diego Trolley (wheeled type) which we got almost directly across the street. We had a great time although our ship came in later in the day. Seems I didn’t plan correctly. Our ship The Dawn Princess was returning from Hawaii via Mexico. And heading thru the Panama Canal to Fort Lauderdale. Sorry I got carried away. I liked the hotel, the location and enjoyed a bottle of wine or two from our balcony as we watched the planes land on our right and the Navy base on the left side and the cruise pier and ships straight ahead just less than a football field away. Then when it was time to cruise we took the elevator down to street level, I stayed with our bags as my wife went to check us out. We then just walked across the street to our ship. Was nice. This time we stay at the Hampton have some wine and cruise to Hawaii for our 36th big one.

 

Thanks for your reply. Whatever you choose have a great one. Smiles from a very cold Morris County

[Crusin Karen]

Okay, thanks wallygator. We "know" the Holiday Inn as we ate there for lunch and dinner. BTW, there is a little "deli" just a few doors down from that. They have really good sandwiches! Take your sandwich out to the tables in front and people watch! Now, has anyone ever stayed at the Embassy Suites? It is further down from Holiday Inn. I think we are going to try to book there for 2/08 because we always enjoyed staying at the FL facilities. Is this in the general area of the cruise terminal/Holiday Inn area? Tried to figure it out on a map but all I can find is that it's "down the street." On W. Harbor vs. N. Harbor.

[Julia’s Journey’s]

Will have to look into all these hotels closer to the time, thanks for all the info:D

[wallygator]

Okay, thanks wallygator. We "know" the Holiday Inn as we ate there for lunch and dinner. BTW, there is a little "deli" just a few doors down from that. They have really good sandwiches! Take your sandwich out to the tables in front and people watch! Now, has anyone ever stayed at the Embassy Suites? It is further down from Holiday Inn. I think we are going to try to book there for 2/08 because we always enjoyed staying at the FL facilities. Is this in the general area of the cruise terminal/Holiday Inn area? Tried to figure it out on a map but all I can find is that it's "down the street." On W. Harbor vs. N. Harbor.

 

Karen try this link, then click on hybird near the top right corner and play. It might just help you.

 

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=1531+Pacific+Hwy,+San+Diego,+CA+92101

[Crusin Karen]

Thanks wallygator. Yea, ES is about 1/2 mile down. Will figure out what we are going to do in the next few months. ES is more expensive, but there's that complimentary cocktail hour and full buffet breakfast! :D

[kat9661]

Karen-My advice would be to book the Embassy Suites early to get the best pricing. I booked a little over a year ahead for our cruise to Hawaii this fall and the rates are now $50.00 more per night. ES seems to be reasonably priced considering the cocktail hour and full breakfast and the location is fantastic being right across the street from Seaport Village. This will be our first trip to San Diego and we look forward to exploring a couple days pre cruise. Enjoy your cruise! Kathy

[Crusin Karen]

Kathy, I am planning to talk to DH about this really soon. Have you ever stayed at an ES? We have a number of times in FL and it really is beautiful. If you have read some of my posts, Hampton Inn was "fine", really. It was just very no frills and nothing to do. But there was the Holiday Inn just 2 blocks away. The ONLY reason we are going on this cruise again is because of San Diego! I just absolutely fell in love with it. I have been on a lot or cruises, almost all in the Caribbean since we live here near the piers in NY and Bayonne, and this was our lst Mx Riv cruise. We went to Hawaii in 3/05 from LA and that was only my lst trip out west! I am way spoiled and almost at the point where one port/island is the same as another, I am more into "cruising" aka being on that big boat lol, so if I find something I REALLY LIKE, I want to do it again. And that's how I feel about SD!!! I enjoyed the MX Riviera, so why not go out to SD and spend some time, then do the cruise! ES was filled up as we had 2 other couples going with us, plus they griped about the extra expense. So I will have to figure out whether I want to spend the extra $ at ES. When we are in FL I can't be bothered going anywhere, so the hotel is IT. SD I want to explore more, so the place we stay might not be as important. So thanks for the advice. Be sure to take the ferry to Coronado. Don't take the tour/dinner package-just get a ticket for the ferry and wander around on your own. We walked all over, went to Coronado Hotel, wandered some more, then got a taxi back to the ferry. It was beautiful...

[kat9661]

Hi Karen-

This will be our first trip to San Diego and our first stay at Embassy Suites. We look forward to our West Coast departure as all of our previous cruises have been from the east coast and San Juan. My husband discovered the web cam for Sea World San Diego today so we now need to add that to our to do list! Will probably arrive three days pre cruise to allow time for the zoo, Sea World and just walking around Seaport Village and Coronado. Thanks for the advice on Coranado......now to fit everything in pre cruise will be the problem. Vacation time only stretches so far so adding another day to a 14 day cruise will take a day from somewhere else! Would love to take a cruise to Mexico at some point but looks like Italy/Greece will be next in 2009. We live near Albany so we are neighbors so to speak! Happy sailing-Kathy

[Crusin Karen]

Kathy, we didn't do Sea World, but I'll look into that for next year. Our plane landed about noon time (3pm our time) which was perfect. Got our bags, checked in to hotel then just wandered around and relaxed for the rest of the day enjoying the sights (and the warm weather!) We had the next day "free" (the following day would be our cruise) so we went to the SD Zoo. Now, I am NOT a zoo person! I live very close to the Bronx Zoo and don't think I've been there in 25 years. Just " not my thing" and you can be sure I was scowling when I found out we were spending our one full day in SD at the zoo! Well, it is beautiful. I would go again in a heartbeat. Get there early (we got there about 10am) take the bus tour which takes you to all the "major sights." I think it's a 2 hour tour. When that's over, walk back to the places you went to to see close up. Good because you know where you want to go back to. It really was fabulous. I didn't notice too many eaterys, tho, (but we weren't looking either!) We just had a pretzel, so have a big breakfast, stay the day, then have a nice dinner that evening. We visited Coronado on the day we got off the ship. Had to wait until the next day to fly out. Have a great time.

[Crusin Karen]

If anyone is interested in seeing the San Diego area, Rachel Ray's $40/day was filmed there and is being shown on the Food Network tonight at 10:30 EST. Check www.foodnetwork.com for listings in your area.

[kat9661]

Karen- Thanks for all your advice! I did catch the Rachel Ray show last night, it was interesting and now I want to take the ferry over to Coronado. Wish we had more time to spend in San Diego but with a two week cruise it's hard to spare extra vacation time. We are going three days pre cruise as it is now! Will probably do Seaport Village and Coranado the day we land and devote a full day each to Sea World and the zoo. Glad to hear you enjoyed the San Diego Zoo, I think that will be a fun day. I've been watching the Panda Cam from the Zoo's web site and it's been a hoot! I haven't been to the Bronz Zoo in years although we drive by it when we drive down for Yankee games! Happy planning! Want to cruise a bit early and join us in October????

[Crusin Karen]

Hey, Kathy, thanks for the invitation! Too late...we went to HI 2 years ago. This trip (in Feb. '08) is back to the MX Riviera. I will be home watching the Yanks play in the WS while you are on your cruise!! :D Zoo really is a lot of fun. Make sure you see the gorillas, koala bears and the elephants. Believe it or not, they are very playful!

[Splinter]

The Zoo bus tour is 45 minutes, not two hours, but it is a good way to get an orientation to the layout of the Zoo, and then decide what you want to walk back to.

[kat9661]

We'd love to do the Mexico route in the future Karen. To date have only been to Cozumel which I loved! We are leaning towards a cruise around Italy in 2009 as our next big adventure. If the Yankees make it to the World Series I'll be heart broken not to be home! We had hoped to take this cruise around our anniversary in early September but the Oct. 26th cruise was the only one that fit with my work schedule. Tell me about Mexico!

Bus tour sounds like fun at the zoo, I'll put it on my to do list!!