Today’s San Diego is unrecognizable to someone whose last visit was 15 years ago. At that time, San Diego suffered through a recession that was particularly bad for the city because of the post-Cold War shrinking of the U.S. military. San Diego—whose unofficial motto was “Go Navy!”—was hit hard by losses of military jobs and shipbuilding business, as were the surrounding areas.
But long before 2007, San Diego was again the archetypal booming Southern California metropolis.
Several factors combined to pick the city up. Its economy diversified as first telecommunications and then biotech companies discovered its high quality of life, diverse population and universities. Limitless sunshine helped tourism become San Diego’s third-biggest economic draw. And the city made a determined effort to renew itself through major projects like the Horton Plaza shopping center, the San Diego Convention Center and the Gaslamp Quarter revival.
San Diego has experienced such a long construction boom, that “the city bird is one of those construction cranes,” says Steve Schell, associate vice president of sales and services at the San Diego CVB.
Downtown San Diego
Downtown is the center of the action in San Diego County, and it is the location of Petco Park baseball stadium, the corporate headquarters of wireless/telecom giant Qualcomm and other big companies, and the highly successful San Diego Convention Center—all beautifully outlined by San Diego Bay.
The 16-block Gaslamp Quarter is one of San Diego’s historic districts, named for the gaslamps that can still be seen on some corners. The area is home to hundreds of shops, restaurants and nightclubs, conveniently close to both the convention center and the baseball stadium, and great for strolling.
The sleek, waterfront San Diego Convention Center has 1 million square feet of space and has hosted events ranging from the annual Comic-Con comic book show to the 1996 Republican National Convention. It benefits from being just a five-minute shuttle ride from San Diego International Airport.
Steven Johnson, vice president of public affairs for the center, says the facility was planned as part of the beginning of San Diego’s downtown renewal in the early 1990s and has helped anchor San Diego’s comeback.
“It’s been hugely successful; last year we had record future room-nights sold. We’re doing great business,” Johnson says, adding that the destination as a whole is enjoying a wave of popularity. “There was a USA Today article last week about San Diego being the new Miami Beach. It’s really, truly unbelievable.”
The 1,190-room Hilton San Diego Convention Center is scheduled to open in late 2008, and there are plenty of existing options, with 10,000 hotel rooms within a mile of the convention center. Popular group choices include the San Diego Marriott Hotel and Marina, the Omni San Diego, the Manchester Grand Hyatt, the Hilton San Diego Gaslamp Quarter, the San Diego Marriott Gaslamp, and the landmark US Grant Hotel, which reopened last fall following a major renovation.
In their spare time, attendees should see Balboa Park, which is just as vital to San Diego as Central Park is to New York. At 1,200 acres, it’s no surprise Balboa can hold the San Diego Museum of Art, the Fleet Science Center, the San Diego Zoo, the Museum of Photographic Arts, an organ pavilion, and a replica of London’s Globe Theatre, and still have room for grassy meadows, a high school and an entire naval hospital.
Coronado
Coronado Island sits at the tip of a long peninsula that encloses San Diego Bay, and it is one of the wealthier sections of town.
Its two main attractions are Naval Base Coronado, which takes up the island’s northern half, and a downtown that includes the legendary Hotel del Coronado, which inspired both the Emerald City in The Wizard of Oz and gave Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon and Marilyn Monroe a glamorous place to play in Some Like It Hot. It has 65,000 square feet of meeting space—but of course, the “Del” isn’t the only place here to hold an event; planners should also check out Loews Coronado Bay Resort and Spa, which can accommodate up to 1,600 for meetings and boasts 440 guest rooms and suites.
Mission Valley/Old Town
North of Balboa Park, Mission Valley is renowned for shopping opportunities that include Fashion Valley Mall, Hazard Center, Mission Valley Mall and Fenton Marketplace.
If attendees prefer to walk the links rather than shop, the 27-hole Riverwalk Golf Club is next to Fashion Valley Mall, as are the Town and Country Resort and Convention Center’s 1,000 guest rooms and 165,000 square feet of meeting space.
Other meetings-friendly venues in the Mission Valley area include the Handlery Hotel and Resort and the Mission Valley Resort and Conference Center.
Mission Valley is also home to the first of California’s 21 historic Spanish missions, the Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcala, which dates to 1769 and was founded by Father Junipero Serra.
Qualcomm Stadium, home of the San Diego Chargers, is located in Mission Valley along the San Diego River.
Farther west is Old Town, site of the first Spanish fort in California and today home to a State Historic Park that records the city’s 19th-century history as a Spanish, Mexican and finally U.S. possession. There are also many restaurants and shops in the area, particularly in the Old Town San Diego Marketplace.
La Jolla/Mission Bay
La Jolla is home to the University of California, San Diego campus and is renowned for both its land—it sits on a miniature version of the Monterey Peninsula—and sea, thanks to the clear and relatively calm waters of La Jolla Cove.
La Jolla has strived to maintain its “village” atmosphere, and strollers on Prospect Street will find cafes and shops that exude a remarkably laid-back ambience.
La Jolla is also home to the Scripps Institute of Oceanography and its Birch Aquarium.
Also marketed under the umbrella of North San Diego County, La Jolla caters to groups with properties such as the Lodge at Torrey Pines; the Hilton La Jolla Torrey Pines; the Estancia La Jolla Hotel and Spa, featuring the IACC-certified Learning Retreat; the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club; and the Hyatt Regency La Jolla at Aventine.
Just south of La Jolla, Mission Bay’s inland waterways are surrounded by the community of Mission Beach as well as Sea World San Diego, entertaining visitors with a variety of marine-related attractions, including the long-running Shamu the killer whale show.
Standout venues in the area include the Hyatt Regency Islandia, with 421 rooms and 22,000 square feet of function space; the sleek Tower23 Hotel, with its 1,000-wine-bottle wall in a private dining room; and the Dana on Mission Bay, with 271 guest rooms and meeting space for up to 400 people.
Other properties in the area include the Bahia Resort Hotel; the Catamaran Resort Hotel; the newly renovated Paradise Point Resort and Spa; and the former Shelter Point Hotel and Marina on Shelter Island, which is now divided into two properties: Kona Kai Resort and Island Palms Hotel and Marina.
North San Diego County
North San Diego County sprawls over nearly half of San Diego County’s 4,200 square miles and covers dozens of towns and properties.
Hilary Townsend, public relations manager at San Diego North CVB, says the region’s open spaces and huge variety of venues make it an inviting alternative to downtown San Diego.
“You certainly have downtown and Gaslamp and Balboa Park, but once you start moving north, we have the lagoons, the beaches, Torrey Pines, and the hiking—from the coast to the desert,” she says.
Cami Mattson, president and CEO at San Diego North CVB, says northern San Diego County’s geographic and property diversity create a healthy economy and an engaged attendee.
“We’re attractive to the corporate traveler, the leisure traveler and the meetings business, and that really helps sustain tourism and that visitor spending year-round,” Mattson says. “Also, we have a great drive market within a 200-mile radius that helps keep San Diego top-of-mind.”
Another big selling point for groups, according to Mattson, is the large number of hotel properties that are being renovated or are coming online in the destination. This year alone, several properties catering to meetings will debut, including a Hilton Garden Inn in Del Mar’s Carmel Valley, a Marriott Residence Inn in Oceanside and a Marriott Courtyard in Escondido, as well as the highly anticipated Grand del Mar Resort and Spa, which will feature 30,000 square feet of function space and a Tom Fazio-designed golf course.
“It’s exciting to see the region fill out with quality product,” Mattson says. “It helps solidify our statement that the north is San Diego’s resort region.”
Indeed, resorts are the order of the day, with more than 50 golf courses and venues like La Costa Resort and Spa, the Four Seasons Resort Aviara, L’Auberge Del Mar Resort and Spa, the Rancho Bernardo Inn, the Morgan Run Resort and Club, Harrah’s Rincon Casino and Resort, and Pala Casino Resort and Spa, in addition to the upscale properties in La Jolla.
Additionally, northern San Diego’s towns are quite distinct from one another as well, according to Townsend.
“Each city has a kind of flavor,” she says. “For instance, there is the historic 101 route from Oceanside to La Jolla, with different points of interest and historical places along it—the adobes and all kinds of museums, wineries and breweries.”
Groups can also head north to the Temecula Valley in Riverside County, where Old Town Temecula, the Temecula Valley Wine Country, golf courses, spas, and hot-air ballooning are among the main lures.
The region features meetings-friendly properties such as Pechanga Resort and Casino, with 40,000 square feet of function space; Temecula Creek Inn, featuring a golf course; and the Embassy Suites Hotel Temecula Valley Wine Country.
South San Diego County
Positioned halfway between downtown San Diego and the thriving Mexican border city of Tijuana, Chula Vista boasts bay views and several hotel properties with meeting space, including a Holiday Inn Express, in addition to Coors Amphitheatre, an outdoor performing arts theater with reserved seating for 10,000 and additional seating for 10,000 on an attractively landscaped lawn.
With 200,000 people, the city is already the second-largest in San Diego County, and its eastern reaches, including the areas around Otay Ranch, Eastlake and Rancho del Rey, lead the city’s continuing growth.
The big news downtown is that Gaylord Entertainment has signed a letter of intent with the port authority to build a hotel and conference center on Chula Vista’s bayfront, kick-starting redevelopment with a projected 1,500-room facility that is slated to also include up to 400,000 square feet of function space. Although groundbreaking may still be years off, Gaylord’s statement is seen as a powerful sign that Chula Vista may be heading for the dynamic downtown revitalization that San Diego’s core has long enjoyed.
One of the Chula Vista’s latest developments is the Otay Ranch Town Center, a 900,000-square-foot complex that debuted in October. The shopping and entertainment development features an open-air design with dozens of shops, restaurants and outdoor cafes.
The city also boasts the Knotts Soak City water park and the only year-round U.S. Olympic Training Center, which features meeting space against a backdrop of focused athletic dedication.
While in the past Chula Vista might have been seen as someplace to pass through on the way to Mexico, Tina Medina, general manager of the Chula Vista CVB, thinks the city increasingly shows up on the San Diego region’s radar.
“With the development of the eastern portion of our city, we’ve really been able to boost the income level, so there’s been a lot more investment in terms of shopping and restaurants,” she says. “Where before Starbucks would say, ‘We’re not going into Chula Vista,’ now there are 15 Starbucks, including the busiest one in the country. People are really taking notice, and that’s a good thing.”
East San Diego County
East of San Diego, the terrain transitions from Mediterranean to desert, and by the time you hit the mountains, warmer days give way to cooler alpine nights.
Julian is a big bed-and-breakfast destination in the region, and although its development was spurred by a short-lived gold rush in the 19th-century, Julian’s major business today is golden apple pies. In fact, it’s the apple-pie equivalent of Renaissance Italy, as the town’s bakers have spent years vying for the title of “best apple pie in town.” Judge for yourself.
Eastern San Diego County is also home to numerous natural attractions, including Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and several other large wild or semi-wild areas accessible for hiking and mountain biking.
Meetings-ready properties in the region include La Casa del Zorro Desert Resort and Native American gaming properties such as the Barona Valley Ranch Resort and Casino, which boasts more than 100,000 square feet of function space and a 400-room hotel and has plans to add another hotel in the next two years.
Across the Border
A short drive, or better yet trolley ride, from San Diego, Tijuana has matured into a thriving large city in its own right and has become a bedroom community for thousands of San Diego workers. Groups can easily cross the border from San Diego for quick tours of Tijuana, and whether they’d like to shop, eat, go to nightclubs, or watch sporting events, the city has something to welcome them.
Visitors who have more time or want to extend their visit to Mexico can venture farther down the coast to Rosarito, which attracts many tourists and has a Fox Studios production facility, where parts of the movie Titanic were shot.
Farther south but still a short drive from the border, Ensenada beckons as a popular tourism and cruise destination due to its natural beauty and the surrounding Bay of All Saints (Bahia de Todos Santos).
For More Info
Carlsbad CVB 760.434.6093
www.visitcarlsbad.com
Chula Vista CVB 619.426.2882
www.chulavistaconvis.org
Coronado Visitors Bureau 619.437.8788
www.coronadovisitors.com
San Diego CVB 619.232.3101
www.sandiego.org
San Diego East Visitors Bureau 619.445.0180
www.visitsandiegoeast.com
San Diego North CVB 760.745.4741
www.sandiegonorth.com
