What's New in San Diego

PRESTIGIOUS RECOGNITIONS

The November 2007 issue of Conde Nast Traveler featured the 2007 Readers’ Choice Awards for the best hotels, cruises, islands, cities, resorts, and airlines worldwide.  San Diego ranked # 9 on the top 10 list of best cities in the United States.  Hotel Solamar ranked # 97 on the list of 100 best mainland hotels.  Four Seasons Resort Aviara ranked # 17, the Lodge at Torrey Pines ranked # 27, L’Auberge Del Mar ranked # 40, and Rancho Valencia Resort ranked # 49 on the list of 50 best mainland resorts.  For more information, visit www.concierge.com/cntraveler.  (10/07)

Travel + Leisure’s list of America’s Favorite Cities highlighted San Diego as the # 1 city with the best weather and # 2 city with the most attractive people and most athletic/active people.  For more information, visit www.travelandleisure.com.  (10/07)

Amusement park enthusiasts voted LEGOLAND® California the Best Children’s Park for the fourth year in a row based on an international poll conducted by industry experts at Amusement Today.  For more information, visit www.legoland.com.  (10/07)

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UPCOMING MAJOR EVENTS

During January 27- February 1, 2008, San Diego’s culinary community will join forces for San Diego Restaurant Week to offer diners an amazing deal — prix fixe menus at many of the region’s top restaurants for just $30 or $40 per person.  An estimated 125 participating restaurants will offer three-course dinner menus giving visitors a chance to sample their signature dishes and experience the service and style that makes San Diego’s dining scene one of the region’s top attractions. For more information, visit www.sandiegorestaurantweek.com. (8/07)

The annual PGA Buick Invitational Golf Tournament returns to Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla on January 21-27, 2008 featuring top players from the PGA Tour. The event includes Pro-Am and practice rounds.  For more information, call 619-281-4653, or visit www.buickinvitational.com. (8/07)

Mardi Gras in the Gaslamp Quarter is the largest Mardi Gras party on the U.S. West Coast.  The celebration of "Fat Tuesday,” from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. on February 5, 2008, features a Mardi Gras parade and an outdoor block party with several stages offering live musical acts in downtown’s historic Gaslamp Quarter. Participating restaurants and bars offer Mardi Gras specials. This is a ticketed event for guests aged 21 years and older. For more information, call 619-233-5008, or visit www.gaslamp.org. (8/07)

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MAJOR ATTRACTIONS

In May 2008, the cast of Sesame Street will come to SeaWorld San Diego with “Sesame Street Bay of Play at SeaWorld.”   This two-acre Sesame Street-themed interactive play area will include three kid-friendly rides: Elmo's Flying Fish, Abby's Sea Star Spin and Oscar's Rocking Eel.  Also, the musical production Big Bird’s Beach Party will take stage at SeaWorld’s Pets Playhouse stadium, and the new movie Sesame Street presents Lights, Camera, Imagination! in 4-D starring Elmo, Bert and Ernie, Cookie Monster, and Big Bird will showcase at the park’s Mission Bay Theater.  Additionally, guests will have the opportunity to join their favorite Sesame Street friends for dining, pictures and character meet-and-greets at the newly themed Breakfast with Elmo and Friends eatery.  For more information, call 1-800-25-SHAMU, or visit www.seaworldsandiego.com.  (10/07)

In March 2008, LEGOLAND® California will uncover a forgotten city, Land of Adventures, which will feature four new attractions and rides. Lost Kingdom Adventure, the park’s first dark ride, will transport guests back to ancient Egypt on a family journey through ancient temple ruins as they ride in desert jeeps blasting targets with lasers.  Beetle Bouncers will boost children nearly 15 feet into the air as they are launched up one of two towers.  Pharaoh’s Revenge will offer a play area filled with catapulting foam balls that the whole family can enjoy, and Cargo Ace will stimulate imagination as children become airplane pilots, soaring on planes that fly up to six feet. 

Also coming to LEGOLAND in 2008 is SEA LIFE LEGOLAND® California, a two-story, 36,000 sq. ft. aquarium that will feature play zones, fun facts, quiz trails, and marine exhibits designed to educate children about life under the sea.  SEA LIFE features will include a seahorse kingdom, a 360 degree ring of sting rays and fish and an interactive tide pool.  Slated to open summer 2008, this $20-million project will open as a separate park admission.  For more information, call 760-918-LEGO, or visit www.legoland.com.  (10/07)

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NEW HOTEL DEVELOPMENTS

The five-star luxury condo-hotel The Setai San Diego (formerly known as The Diegan) is slated to open early 2008.  The Setai San Diego will feature 161 luxury rooms and suites and 24 penthouses ranging from 400 to 2,700 sq. ft. with extensive room amenities, design and detail.  Room additions will include 10-foot ceilings, balconies overlooking the historic Gaslamp Quarter, Brazilian Walnut wood floors, lux bedding and draperies, and state-of-the-art technological features.  Bathrooms will flaunt floor-to-ceiling stone walls finished in Jerusalem Bone, teak vanities and limestone floors.  The new 22-story hotel will also include a world-class restaurant, 5,000 sq. ft. spa, ballroom, seven meeting rooms, 30-seat private screening room, professional-quality recording studio, fitness center, and pool with a surrounding bar and private cabanas.  For more information, call 619-702-6666, or visit www.setaisandiego.com.  (10/07) 

The Sheraton Carlsbad Resort & Spa will open in San Diego’s North County in mid-January 2008 offering 129 rooms, including 13 suites, and panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean. The contemporary Mediterranean coastal resort will expand to 250 rooms by early summer 2008, and be completed with 350 guest rooms by 2010. The 5,200-sq. ft. Twenty/20 Grill and Wine Bar will feature ocean views, a terrace for outdoor patio dining and a menu of organic, locally grown produce with regional seafood to emphasize the resort’s coastal location. The resort’s 4,600-sq. ft. Ocean Pearl Spa will include eight treatment rooms, fitness center, gym, and a free-form outdoor heated pool with water play equipment for children. The resort will also feature more than 25,000 sq. ft. of flexible indoor and outdoor meeting space that can accommodate up to 900 guests. Facilities include two expansive ballrooms, eight break-out rooms and outdoor terraces and gardens. The resort is situated on 15 acres alongside The Crossings at Carlsbad golf course and LEGOLAND® California. For more information, call 760-827-2400, or visit www.sheratoncarlsbad.com. (8/07)

The Hard Rock Hotel San Diego opened its doors November 1, 2007 in downtown’s historic Gaslamp Quarter.  The property features 420 luxury rooms and suites that infuse cutting-edge design by the San Diego-based architectural design firm Graham Downes; the property also embraces the trademark rock ‘n’ roll attitude and high-octane nightlife for which Hard Rock hotels are famous.  The 12-story, 315,000-sq. ft. hotel houses signature restaurant NOBU, an ultra lounge and sky bar by Rande Gerber, a world-class spa and fitness center, state-of-the-art screening room, landscaped outdoor pool deck with pri
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