A Great Stay in San Diego

 I took the Summer off from writing, because we were very busy, and I've been finding it hard to get motivated to write, but now that it's Fall, I wanted to get back into blogging. We traveled quite a bit over the last few months, and our biggest trip was a week in San Diego. I already talked about our flight in a previous post, so now I want to focus on our hotel.

After doing some research, I settled on the Hilton Resort and Spa San Diego on Mission Bay. I like Hilton Hotels because I stay on their properties a lot for work, so I get reward points through their Hilton Honors Program, and also because this particular property was located extremely close to just about all of the attractions we wanted to visit!

When we arrived at our hotel, I noticed how beautiful it was, sitting right on the water on Mission Bay! We had a great view of the bay and the resort from our room, and we could also see SeaWorld in the distance. I had booked a Deluxe King Bayview Tower room, and I was not disappointed! Our room was quite large and bright, and it had a balcony. There was plenty of room for all of our gear and Sara's Pack N Play. Sara loved being able to use the bench at the foot of the bed to climb up, and it was low enough that I wasn't afraid that she'd fall off. She was also a huge fan of the balcony, and she loved sitting out there watching all of the activity and playing!

The Deluxe Bayview Tower King Room

View from Our Balcony

Mission Bay, just steps away

Checking in was quite easy, and after getting our room keys, the resort staff told us about all of the activities going on, and there were many! Each day, all of the activities were posted in front of the lobby for reference as well. The evening we arrived, they were hosting Smores on the Beach, which I thought would be perfect to take Sara to so that she could unwind from our flight. There was also a shop on site, right behind the main lobby, which stocked food items, clothing, and anything else you might need.

Onsite shop

Sara enjoyed exploring the beach

Roasting marshmallows

Smores was a popular event!

The smores event was a bit hit! As soon as it started, people came from all over to enjoy the complimentary treats! This was Sara's first experience roasting marshmallows, and she wasn't too sure what to think. She didn't want to get near the fire. Instead, she wanted to explore the beach. I made us a few smores, and we then took a walk together, enjoying the evening.

The pool was awesome, and the highlight of the resort! There were cabanas that you could rent, and plenty of lounge chairs for everyone. They offered towel service, and also served food and drinks poolside from their bar, Fresco's. In the evenings, they had plenty of fire pits to gather around! Sara loved the Children's Pool, with it's center fountain, and complimentary toys. She loved splashing around, and playing in the shallow water, and when she gained some confidence, wanted to go into the big pool! I of course obliged, and carried her around in the pool, and let her play on the steps!

A fun kid's pool!

The Poolside food and drinks were amazing!

She Really enjoyed her pool time!

One of the available cabanas

Evening fire pits at the pool

Another great feature near the pool was the family game area! They offered paddle ball, life size checkers, ladder ball, and corn hole. Sara's favorite was the ladder ball and corn hole. She couldn't get enough! There was also a shop on the beach where you could rent water craft to enjoy out on the bay. You could get paddle boards, sail boats, and jet skis! This was a very popular attraction for many of the resort's guests!

Some sail boats available to rent

Some of the pool side family games

Dining at the resort offered so many options! There was everything you could think of. Pizza, casual dining, fine dining, and happy hour at the bistro. Most days, we ordered room service for at least one meal. Sara doesn't like sitting for very long at a restaurant, so having prompt room service with a lot of choices was very convenient for us, and we could enjoy a meal at our leisure.

Dining outdoors

Sunset glass of wine

The first full day that we were there, I went out on my own while Mark and Sara napped, and enjoyed happy hour at the Olive Lounge. The food was delicious, and beautifully presented, and they had an extensive selections of drinks to choose from!

We did go out to the main restaurant, Acqua California Bistro, one night, and enjoyed a delicious seafood meal. They had a kid's menu with a lot of choices, and since Sara loves chicken fingers, so that's what I got for her. The portions were large enough to have some left over's to take back to the room, so she had lunch for the next day as well. 

One last thing on my agenda for the week was to check out the onsite spa, Spa Brezza. I love spas, and I always try to book a massage whenever we travel. I booked the Noble Massage, which is a personalized experience, where you let your therapist know exactly what areas to work on. The massage was great, and relaxing. I went mid week, because I knew that I'd be sore from doing a lot of walking. It definitely helped!

Private Massage Suite

The waiting room at Spa Brezza

The spa was very spacious, with a calm, relaxing waiting room, and private massage suites. They offered complimentary drinks, including hot tea, champagne, wine, and water while you waited.  

The last evening that we were there, the resort hosted a family movie night at the pool. I thought this would be a great activity for Sara! They showed a family friendly animated movie, which I believe was Despicable Me 3. Sara was able to splash around in the pool some more, and we enjoyed complimentary popcorn! When she got tired, we went back to our room, where we could still see the screen and hear the movie right from our balcony! It was a great last night of our family vacation!

Waiting for the movie to start

The Hilton Resort and Spa in San Diego is a great place to stay on a family vacation! I'd definitely recommend it! The prices are reasonable, and there's so much to do onsite, and it's really close to many of the big family attractions. SeaWorld, the San Diego Zoo, and several beaches are just minutes away!

Some of the ground level rooms had private fire pits

Spacious enough for everything we brought

Sara enjoying the balcony

A room with a view!

I was not paid or endorsed for this post. All opinions are my own.