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Spring break 2009: Stay close by in San Diego

Mission Beach sunset, San Diego

Winter’s still in the air, but spring’s around the corner. What that means, of course, for college students everywhere — currently building up those brain cells only to render them happily helpless over a week or two soon — is that it’s time to plan for spring break.

Cancun, the Bahamas and Jamaica get prime placing in About.com’s “Top Spring Break Hot Spots for 2009” list. But, given the times, I wonder if some students, those local to our region anyway, will be heading to places relatively close to home this year — like, say, San Diego?

The city is pitching itself to spring-break planners, having launched a “Time to Spring-Diego” campaign for travel between March 1 and April 31, 2009.

Its online guide is equipped with a hotel reservations booking system, with packages and deals noted. A sample trip itinerary for spring breakers suggests the Hard Rock Hotel’s “See San Diego Like a Rockstar” package, which includes, for rates starting at $1,000 per person (pre-tax), a four-night stay, a city nightlife tour and a VIP Nightlife Passport, which gets you select club entries, discounts and more.

However, a do-it-yourself approach is simple in San Diego. Stay downtown if you plan to spend time crawling the Gaslamp’s bar-teeming streets (see the aforementioned Downtown San Diego website for events, including live music). Sure, the Hard Rock Hotel is an option, as is the new, tempting Se San Diego. There are also cheaper beds to be had, like those in hostels.

If, to you, the whole point of a San Diego vacation is the beach, your destination choices include an always-partying Pacific Beach, a quieter and funkier Ocean Beach, a boardwalk-abuzz Mission Beach, and a family-friendly Coronado. The San Diego Reader can give you the scoop on events ranging from live music and DJ-driven parties to theater.

Are you breaking for spring this year? If so, where are you heading? Let us know in the Comments below.

— Susan Derby, Special to the Los Angeles Times

[Photo: Mission Beach sunset by Ralph; Your Scene / Los Angeles Times]

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 11, 2009 at 2:02 pm by Susan Derby and is filed under California, Deals, San Diego, Spring. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.

3 Comments on “Spring break 2009: Stay close by in San Diego”

SDGO Says:
February 11th, 2009 at 3:45 pm
Hard Rock Hotel’s special package noted “See San Diego Like a Rockstar” is also available for booking at: http://reservations.sdgodowntown.com/2297_package-info_p3599.html
San Diego Tim Says:
February 13th, 2009 at 5:17 am
For those who are concerned that perfect beach weather can be hit or miss during the spring, San Diego still has a lot to offer including SeaWorld and the Zoo. If you’ve already visited those places, there are hundreds of other attractions in the area: http://thebestplacesinsandiego.com/

The nightlife for college students is great in the Gaslamp and in Pacific Beach. All of the restaurants are offering great deals.

If your vacation includes the weekend of April 4th and 5th, you should definitely check out the scene at the Crew Classic, where the top collegiate teams in the country will compete: http://www.crewclassic.org/

So, don’t hesitate and book your trip! You’ll have a great time.
Jared J. H. Catapano Says:
March 5th, 2009 at 11:20 am
There are tons of options for Spring break this year. Read about a few!…

http://campus.ology.com/2009/03/02/listology-what-to-do-with-your-spring-break/

-Jared J. H. Catapano (ology.com)