Luxurious San Diego Weekend

San Diego is a beautiful city on the Southern California coast known for its ideal climate, miles of beaches and location on the Mexican border. It has a rich heritage built around sailing and is home to the Pacific Fleet of the United States Navy. One of the top family travel spots in the country, San Diego also is well known for its part in the wildlife conservation movement, being home to a SeaWorld theme park and the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park.

Visitors to the city can also enjoy activities from whale watching to scuba diving to rock climbing, or visit one of its many notes sites, including Balboa Park, the Old Globe theater, Legoland, the nearby resort town of La Jolla, the San Diego Maritime Museum or Old Town, with its preserved buildings and icons of the Spanish heritage of San Diego.

The US Grant, San Diego, a luxury collection hotel, offers classic and elegant luxury in the heart of bayside downtown San Diego. Built in 1910 by Ulysses Grant Jr. to honor his father, the hotel has exclusive ranking on the United States National Register of Historic Sites as well as the National Trust of Historic Hotels. An unprecedented 56 million dollar renovation completed in 2006 has captured the historic ambiance of this landmark property to create a world-class urban sanctuary.The hotel offers its signature California Native Regional Cuisine in the legendary Grant Grill and Lounge. Newly designed and infused with energy, this iconic downtown institution represents the best in San Diego contemporary dining in a setting of sophistication and relaxation. One can enjoy premium libations in the privacy of the Grant Lounge or mingle in the hotel's Grand Lobby Lounge where celebrities and dignitaries have mingled for almost a century. For intimate dining, 24-hour room service offers serenity, romance, and culinary satisfaction. The hotel also offers 33,000 square feet of fashionable and architecturally distinct event space. Parking is available at a charge.The 285 guest rooms include 40 suites that provide spacious accommodations amid Queen Anne decor and Chippendale furnishings. The twin Presidential Suites includes multiple levels and a commanding balcony overlooking the city. The eleventh floor Penthouse Suite sits atop the hotel with privacy and elegance and includes its own cucina. The guest room windows open to breezes off the bay with city, park, and partial bay views. All rooms feature Internet access, pay-per-view movies, PlayStation games, CD players, imported Bvlgari bath amenities, plush robes, pillow top mattresses, hairdryers, irons and ironing boards, and private bars.

San Diegans of Italian ancestry are working hard to restore and revitalize this seaside district just off downtown San Diego and the results are fabulous. Visitors will enjoy the plethora of Italian markets and bakeries, may watch a game of bolla at the local park or light a candle at the Our Lady of the Rosary Church where Italian fishermen of San Diego's once-massive tuna fleet used to seek blessings. In October, a three-day festival brings 50,000 visitors to the area. Credit card acceptance varies.

San Diego is blessed with a beautifully-housed art collection, which includes the work of Old Masters, American artists and an extensive selection of Asian art pieces. Founded in 1926, San Diego Museum of Art originally focused on acquiring American works of art and the collection is still very strong, from "plein air" school California Impressionist paintings to Putnam bronzes. The museum also hosts major traveling exhibitions. Call ahead for hours.

Bazaar del Mundo is one of the happiest and most colorful of all marketplaces in San Diego to shop. Part of historic Old Town, where the city's first inhabitants set up the original city, this shopping area is a delight to all five senses: colorful parrots screech, riotous color blooms everywhere, mariachis stroll the grounds, sparkling fountains babble, delicious Mexican dishes permeate the air and delight the palate. Five restaurants, 15 international specialty shops and plenty of historic sites in adjacent Old Town provide much to explore.

This venue is housed by The Lodge at Torrey Pines and overlooks the 18th hole on the golf course. It is named after an early 1900s California artist and the decor includes an exhibit of Valentien's work. The menu changes daily to offer the best selections from local farmer's markets, ranchers, and fisherman. The food is California cuisine and boasts fresh, seasonal ingredients.

Vibrant, eclectic, and endlessly entertaining, the Gaslamp Quarter covers more than 16 city blocks of downtown San Diego, with hundreds of specialty shops and dozens of trendy restaurants, bars and avant-garde playhouses. Most of the shops keep late hours, so delightful shopping, drinking, and dining can occur virtually simultaneously. Cutting-edge women's fashions elbow up against exclusive art galleries, while nearby is a hardware store founded more than 100 years ago. The San Diego Convention Center is just steps away from the Gaslamp, and during major conventions the flow of souvenir-hunting attendees floods the area. For an upscale shopping mall experience, the adjacent Horton Plaza offers major department stores and a hundred or so mall shops set in an architecturally amusing maze of bridges, stairways, and intricately tiled walls. If you have just a few hours to devote to shopping - or San Diego itself - spend the time and the money here. Credit card acceptance varies by business.

The US Grant, San Diego, a luxury collection hotel, offers classic and elegant luxury in the heart of bayside downtown San Diego. Built in 1910 by Ulysses Grant Jr. to honor his father, the hotel has exclusive ranking on the United States National Register of Historic Sites as well as the National Trust of Historic Hotels. An unprecedented 56 million dollar renovation completed in 2006 has captured the historic ambiance of this landmark property to create a world-class urban sanctuary.The hotel offers its signature California Native Regional Cuisine in the legendary Grant Grill and Lounge. Newly designed and infused with energy, this iconic downtown institution represents the best in San Diego contemporary dining in a setting of sophistication and relaxation. One can enjoy premium libations in the privacy of the Grant Lounge or mingle in the hotel's Grand Lobby Lounge where celebrities and dignitaries have mingled for almost a century. For intimate dining, 24-hour room service offers serenity, romance, and culinary satisfaction. The hotel also offers 33,000 square feet of fashionable and architecturally distinct event space. Parking is available at a charge.The 285 guest rooms include 40 suites that provide spacious accommodations amid Queen Anne decor and Chippendale furnishings. The twin Presidential Suites includes multiple levels and a commanding balcony overlooking the city. The eleventh floor Penthouse Suite sits atop the hotel with privacy and elegance and includes its own cucina. The guest room windows open to breezes off the bay with city, park, and partial bay views. All rooms feature Internet access, pay-per-view movies, PlayStation games, CD players, imported Bvlgari bath amenities, plush robes, pillow top mattresses, hairdryers, irons and ironing boards, and private bars.

San Diego is a beautiful city on the Southern California coast known for its ideal climate, miles of beaches and location on the Mexican border. It has a rich heritage built around sailing and is home to the Pacific Fleet of the United States Navy. One of the top family travel spots in the country, San Diego also is well known for its part in the wildlife conservation movement, being home to a SeaWorld theme park and the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park.

Visitors to the city can also enjoy activities from whale watching to scuba diving to rock climbing, or visit one of its many notes sites, including Balboa Park, the Old Globe theater, Legoland, the nearby resort town of La Jolla, the San Diego Maritime Museum or Old Town, with its preserved buildings and icons of the Spanish heritage of San Diego.