Hotel Solamar, Downtown San Diego
By Mark Goodkin
San Diego Coast Life
San Diego Boutique hotels run the gamut from small Inns and cottages to large, luxury resorts. Boutique hotels are not chain hotels, but independently owned and operated. They tend to be smaller and more personable than chains, and offer custom amenities and features.
Downtown San Diego
Downtown San Diego boutique hotels are sophisticated and ecclectic, combining old fashion luxury and elegance with modern design features and amenities. These hotels tend to be in older, ornate, mid-rise buildings, which have been renovated and yet still retain much of their old world charm. They have elaborate spas and restaurants. Rooms tend to be lavish with no detail overlooked. Friendly, with personable service, these hotels cater to both the vacationer and business traveler. Nearby attractions include San Diego Bay, The Embarcadero, PETCO Park, Convention Center, Gaslamp District, and Downtown San Diego. Examples: The Westgate Hotel, Ivy Hotel, and Sophia Hotel.
Pacific Terrace Hotel, Pacific Beach, CA
San Diego Area Beaches
Boutique hotels near or on the beach are typically smaller, less sophisticated, and more causal and quaint, than those downtown. Some offer only few amenities, with the beach as the main attraction. Examples: Leucadia Inn, Del Mar Motel on the Beach, and Inn at Sunset Cliffs.
At the other extreme, some boutiques are extravagant, offering many amenities, such as luxurious spas, resort-style swimming pools, fine dining, and elaborate fitness centers. Examples: Hotel del Coronado, Valencia Hotel, Hotel Parisi, and L’Auberge Del Mar Resort & Spa.
Then there are those hotels somewhere in the middle: Examples: Carlsbad Inn Beach Resort, Pacific Terrace Hotel, and Oceanside Marina Suites.
Coastal Inland
Several resort-style boutique hotels can be found in Carlsbad, Del Mar, and Solana Beach, within 1-3 miles of the beach. Examples: Grand Del Mar, La Costa Resort and Spa, Morgan Run Resort and Club, and Winners Circle Beach & Tennis Resort.
Bahia Hotel Resort, Mission Bay
Mission Bay
Mission Bay has six large resort-style hotels, each with its own version of paradise and all exceptional. Four of the six resorts are boutique. They offer many amenities, including fine and casual dining, sophisticated spas, watersports, private marinas, fitness centers, vacation packages, and much more. The most isolated resort is Paradise Point, a boutique hotel with a private marina and beach on Vacation Isle . The other boutique hotels are Bahia Resort Hotel, Catamaran Resort and Spa, and The Dana on Mission Bay. Nearby attractions include SeaWorld, Downtown San Diego, San Diego Bay, San Diego Zoo, and beaches.
Shelter Island
On San Diego Bay, this island peninsula has three boutique resort-style hotels, each with a private marina and one with a private beach. Two hotels have Mediterranean decor and one has South Pacific. These hotels are smaller than the resorts on Mission Bay. They are elegant, and yet casual, and offer fine dining, pools and hot tubs, fitness centers, and spa services. Across the street is San Diego Bay, a shoreline park, a waterfront walkway, and a public boat launch, pier, and anchorage. Boutique hotels: Humphrey’s Half Moon Inn and Suites, Kona Kai Resort Spa Marina, and The Bay Club Hotel and Marina. Nearby attractions include the airport, Point Loma Harbor, Downtown San Diego, San Diego Zoo, and Cabrillo National Monument.
Hotel del Coronado
Coronado
This island peninsula has several small, casually elegant boutique hotels, mostly on Orange Ave in the downtown area, and a few on the bayside. Examples: Glorietta Bay Inn, El Cordova Hotel, and Coronado Beach Resort Condos. Built in 1888, the Hotel del Coronado is a large, Victorian-style resort, the last of California’s grand old seaside hotels. The hotel has a private beach. Nearby attractions include Ferry’s Landing Marketplace, San Diego Bay, Downtown San Diego across the Coronado Bay Bridge, and The Silver Strand.
For boutique hotel info, rooms & rates, location & maps, vacation packages, and booking, visit San Diego Boutique Hotels.