Snowdrops Family West Coast Adventure Day 3. Palm Springs to San Diego via Oceanside

[snowdrop100]

We all woke at 5am again which is not surprising given we were all just so tired in the evenings at this point that we couldnt keep our eyes open past 9pm

We packed up and got ready to check out pretty quickly and dropped our key in the box on our way out. We went straight to starbucks and grabbed coffees and morning buns as per our brand new tradition.

The plan for today was to drive the scenic route down to San Diego with a few stops to break it up. We set off towards the mountains and took that route on highway 74 stopping at a lookout point for a quick selfie.

We actually stopped a few times to take photos. it was really an enjoyable drive as we went past white picket fenced ranches and amazing houses and just generally drove on roads very unlike ones we see back home.

We had wondered about going to Wet n Wild today but actually changed that plan because we wanted to be fresh for the Zoo tomorrow which was going to be full on and didnt want to tire ourselves out too much. i think it was the right decision but if i were planning my holiday again i would have added on one extra night to this part of the holiday to have a pool day/explore palm springs town in the lovely hot sun. I will tell you later in my trippie where I would have happily chopped a day off (dont worry AIMS, you're not about to be disappointed...its not a SD day!)

We felt quite chilled and headed to Temecular for a walmart stock up and bathroom stop. We grabbed some beach toys and a parasol. There is nothing in Temecular to see (we believe!) but it was just a convenient place to stop. We headed to Oceanside and got parked up in a small parking lot opposite the beach really easily. we noticed that the parking charges felt really reasonable everywhere (except Huntington and San Diego city centre). Unfortunatly my daughter had several nose bleeds in the car on this day (she gets them a lot) and i think it was because of the pressure changes on the mountain roads. She bled everywhere as soon as we got out the car in Oceanside. Luckily I had a few changes of clothes to hand and some wipes etc but its not nice for her bless.

We were hungry so i think we went straight to Zig Zag pizza as we saw someone walking with a pizza box past us and decided thats what we fancied. It was really lovely stone baked pizza in a cool rustic modern setting. Hit the spot and cost $25 which we thought was good value for 2 decent sized pizzas plus drinks.

We then headed straight down to the beach to chill out. It had a really cool beach town vibe and a huge pier. We played for a while before heading to the end of the pier for an ice cream. We really liked the vibe in Oceanside and recommend it as a stopping point asI would say its a medium sized beach town (compared with the others we visited)

We went for an Ice Cream at the Rubys at the end of the pier and were disappointing. It was expensive and just a lot of soft serve ice cream. there was also an annoying man who was a bit pushy wiht balloon animals and you had to tip him if he made them for your child. obviously our kids wanted them as they could see them being made for other people. All of the above was fine but he just kept chatting to us even when the ice creams came out...going on and on and on about his trip to the UK

We just wanted to eat in peace so over tipped him to go away!

Anyway we decided it was about time to head down to San Diego as we had been in Oceanside for our full 4 hour parking so got back in the car and travelled down.

Traffic wasnt good but we probably hit rush hour. We stopped at Trader Joes in the liberty Station area just before you get onto Shelter Island where we were staying. Grabbed some bits for dinner as we had a kitchenette and were all ready to just relax in a bigger hotel room. We had booked a suite at Best Western Plus Island Palms as it was a decent deal to upgrade just before we left. This was our favourite hotel of the holiday hands down and so spacious and really lovely. I didnt take any decent room shots so will just insert some from the internet as this is exactly what our room looked like:

The girls had a bath then we unpacked and tucked the girls in. J and I enjoyed a beer in the kitchenette while they went off to sleep and then we sat in bed watching TV, eating lovely american snack food and drinking beer.

[Aims]

I will tell you later in my trippie where I would have happily chopped a day off (dont worry AIMS, you're not about to be disappointed...its not a SD day!)

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Whew, I'm relieved! You did make me chuckle though when I saw my name 😄

Glad you had such a great time in Oceanside. It does have that small town beach vibe that people associate with southern California.

Lovely photos again! Love the one of your daughter with the horses and the one lone goat lol. Very cute picture!

Very glad to hear that Best Western Island Palms was your favorite hotel of the trip. Hopefully your report of your time there will help a few other Dibbers who are still deciding on where to stay in San Diego. Lovely big suite you got!

Off to read more...

[Melbatb]

What glorious scenery! The beach looks lovely - as does the hotel.

[snowdrop100]

Originally Posted by Aims

Whew, I'm relieved! You did make me chuckle though when I saw my name 😄

Glad you had such a great time in Oceanside. It does have that small town beach vibe that people associate with southern California.

Lovely photos again! Love the one of your daughter with the horses and the one lone goat lol. Very cute picture!

Very glad to hear that Best Western Island Palms was your favorite hotel of the trip. Hopefully your report of your time there will help a few other Dibbers who are still deciding on where to stay in San Diego. Lovely big suite you got!

Off to read more...

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i've just realised i've been putting your name in capitals when you just have the first letter capital and I could probably just call you Amy haha. not sure where I got the capitals from.

Yes i've seen a few other dibbers thinking of staying there and i cant imagine a traveller not enjoying it as it would have been equally lovely for couples too.

My daughter is horse crazy so she just loved how many we could see along that mountain drive. Next trip to Cali might have to involve a stay on a ranch i think

[Aims]

Originally Posted by snowdrop100

i've just realised i've been putting your name in capitals when you just have the first letter capital and I could probably just call you Amy haha. not sure where I got the capitals from.

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LOL No problem! I just figured you really wanted to make sure I saw it. And yes, you can call me Amy too.

I was horse mad when I was a little girl too, so I totally get her need to stop and see them up close!

[jocat]

The scenery is just spectacular. Can't wait to read your other days.

A lovely spacious hotel room you've got there. I love a nice big room so that you're not all on top of each other. It always used to end up for us with a few crossed words, just because we hadn't got much space.

You've left me wondering now where you'd happily chop a day from?

[tocpe321]

Loving your photos.

Agree the one with your DD and horses is really special.

We have booked the Best Western Island Palms too, so glad to hear it's really good.

[carolynne67]

Good to hear you liked your hotel as we're staying there in September.
Carolynne

[snowdrop100]

Originally Posted by carolynne67

Good to hear you liked your hotel as we're staying there in September.
Carolynne

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You will enjoy. Friendly helpful staff, nice facilities. Prompt maid service (and a properly clean room) and great location.

We didnt use the hotel restaurant but the pool and bike rentals were good

Enjoy your trip!

[MichelleB]

Lovely beach! I get the feeling I may be saying that a lot... !