Suggestions for long weekend trip in or near SoCal

[villanelle75]

DH is ridiculously stressed out with work and school right now, to the point that I am a bit worried about him. We decided to do a weekend trip in late March, leaving on a Thursday night or Friday morning and returning on either Sunday or hopefully, Monday.

We definitely want mellow and relaxing. We will probably want massages but that doesn't have to happen at the place we stay, as long as it is nearby. I'm pretty open to suggestions for other activities as we don't have anything specific in mind, other than getting away.

We want to be fairly thrifty as this isn't something we had planned for, but we'll spend what we need to. We'd probably prefer driving (or the train?) since it is cheaper and also less stressful, but would fly if cheap and necessary. We are in San Diego.

I am looking for suggestions both for general destinations and activities, as well as specific places to stay and things to do. TIA!

[MLA]

It might be a bit farther north than you want, but how about Santa Barbara?

[PinkMartini]

Yea, SB rocks... Perfect place for a weekend getaway :) Or even a bit further north, Solvang

[villanelle75]

Santa Barbara probably isn't too far. I think it is about a 3 1/2 hour drive. Any recommendations on places to stay or things to see and do while we are there? Or for a place to get a good massage?

[framboise]

SB is great!! The Doubletree (http://www.fpdtr.com/index1.html) is probably the nicest place to stay. I've never been able to afford to stay there myself, but I have been in the public areas several times & it's lovely.

State Street is great for shopping & food, plus some nightlife / bars. The various beaches & pier are good for beachy stuff. :p There's a art fair-type thing along much of the beach on weekend mornings so you would probably be able to browse that some. Wine tasting is very convenient too because the Santa Ynez Valley is just inland from SB. If you're looking for history, there's the Mission & a handful of other similar sites. There's a botanical garden & nice zoo. Just about anything you're looking for really!

Also, I came across these two websites when I was putting together my wedding website (our venue was about 40 minutes from SB so it was a logical day trip or extension for some of our guests): Convention & Visitor's Bureau (http://www.santabarbaraca.com/) and santabarbara.com (http://www.santabarbara.com/). Maybe those will give you some ideas.

[ee_chick]

I love Santa Barbara. It's close enough that it's a day trip for us, so I don't have any hotel recommendations. I do know that there are a number of resorts there with spas as well as a slew of bed and breakfasts in town. We generally spend some time at the beach, and there's lots of diving available. I like to wander State Street - lots of cute shops/galleries/etc.

Santa Barbara Brewing Co is a favorite with the guys for lunch and beer. We love the Palace Grill (http://www.palacegrill.com/) for good food and a fun dinner. Opal (formerly Brigitte's) is next on our list. We ate there on the night we got engaged, but that was a looong time ago. :)

[HeatherFL]

I love, love, love the The Bacara Resort (www.bacararesort.com/ ) in Santa Barbara.

Two other places that come to mind are in Laguna Niguel/Dana Point that are beautiful:

Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel (www.ritzcarlton.com/resorts/laguna_niguel)

St. Regis Monarch Beach (http://www.starwoodhotels.com/stregis/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=1361)

All have spas for massages. :D

~H.

[meatpie]

Laguna Beach is also nice. I'd look to stay at a resort, although I could never afford them when my Hus was in BS, so I'm not sure about $$$$ in Laguna. the resorts are all pretty pricey.

Although we stayed at a Hilton not in Laguna Beach, but up Highway 1 and it was really wonderful.

I'd say Mexico, but if you are there over Spring Break it could be a disaster. You could try Los Cabos, or maybe a smaller town such as Loreto or La Paz.

[Taurus]

My sister and her BF just raved about spa treatments they got in Santa Barbara at a spa that they said isn't much to look at from the outside but was incredible inside, called Qui Si Bella (http://www.quisibella.com/index.htm). They had a couples' massage where they drew them a soak bath w/ rose petals in the same room right after, and then they had other treatments together. Just an option that would cost less than the resort spas but accomodates couples nicely.

[Jennifer]

We stayed at the http://www.hotelsantabarbara.com last year and it was very charming and a nice location right downtown so you can walk to fun shops and places for dinner.

[GoCougs]

What about Palm Springs/Palm Desert? Definitely close enough to San Diego to be able to drive to it and a ton of hotels/resorts to choose from, most of which offer on-site spa services. I went down there last March and loved it!

[villanelle75]

Does the weather in SB in late March suck? I don't want to go somewhere dreary and gray, if we can help it.

Right now, that's at the top of our list. We are considering taking the train to make it more of an adventure, but I the Amtrak website sucks and I can't figure out the pricing very well. If we do go that route, we'd be w/o a car in SB but i think we'd be okay since it seems like everything it fairly centralized.

Right now, i am looking at the Hotel Oceana. (http://www.hoteloceanasantabarbara.com/home.php). It looks really nice and seems to be in the middle of the city. Plus, I found a great rate.

I will look into Palm Springs as well now. I hadn't thought of that and it's definitely worth exploring.

[meatpie]

Palm Springs is a great idea. It will be warm and there are a ton of resorts. If you plan far ahead enough Arizona might not be bad, but it is Spring Training and a popular time to be there. Still, AZ has a ton of spas to relax.

The weather in SB won't be cold and dreary, no. Averages are in the upper 60s. If you want great weather - Palm Springs is it.

[trestlegirl]

Does the weather in SB in late March suck?

It may, or it may be beautiful. Same as here in San Diego with our 70s/sunny one day, foggy and cold the next day weather. I'm sure you know what I mean!

If you want almost guaranteed sun, I'd go to Palm Springs or Borrego Springs. Borrego is tiny and not a whole lot to do, but there's great hiking, some cool little art galleries and other shops. There are several day spas there. Borrego Valley Inn (http://www.borregovalleyinn.com/) is a very nice place to stay and sit by the pool. You can stop at Julian on the drive out.

Or you could fly to Phoenix - tickets on Southwest or America West are super cheap and it's a quick trip!