San Diego, CA - A Quick Visit to Coronado

After touring the USS Midway earlier today, we drove over to Coronado Island. Strictly speaking, Coronado is not an island as it is joined to the mainland by a narrow, but natural, strip of land on the south end - it is more accurately described as a peninsula. Coronado is a town unto itself, separate from San Diego.

About two-thirds of Coronado is occupied by Naval Air Station North Island - this is considered to be the official birthplace of Naval Aviation because the Navy's first aviator, Lieutenant Theodore Ellyson, and many of his colleagues were trained here. This installation is the home port of two aircraft carriers along with 23 fixed- and rotary-wing squadrons. The air station also hosts 80 tenant commands and activities, including the U.S. Naval Air Forces and the Naval Aviation Depot, which is the largest aerospace employer in the San Diego area.

The rest of Coronado is comprised of very attractive beach areas, some beautiful homes (no two alike), shops, restaurants, hotels, and the famous Hotel del Coronado, known affectionately as "The Del." Coronado is very bicycle-friendly and this is a great way to get around, rather than worrying about finding places to park a car.

You can get to Coronado one of three ways: take a scenic ferry ride from San Diego, drive over from San Diego on the Coronado Bridge, or drive from Imperial Beach on Highway 75 up and along the strip of land

The Del - from the beach side

Lynda and I used the Coronado Bridge and parked just around the block from the Visitors Center. We only had about an hour to see at least a bit of Coronado and so, taking the advice of the woman in the Visitors Center, we walked down to "The Del" and out onto the beach. The Del is  impressive!

As we walked on the beach, I took my shoes and socks off and waded in the cold waters of the Pacific. Brrrr... I would not go swimming in that water! The sand looks like it is peppered with flecks of  gold, and was shining in the afternoon sun. I took a photo but it does not show the effect very well.

Dragon Tree (Dracaena Draco)

We walked around to the front of The Del - the landscaping all around the hotel is just gorgeous. We went into the Lobby... lovely rich brown woodwork throughout, accented by a beautiful chandelier suspended in front of the Reception area. Curiosity got the better of us and Lynda looked up the hotel's room rates - off beach "economy" rooms are a mere $400/night; beach-side suite-type accommodations for four cost around $1000/night.

After visiting The Del, we returned to the car and took a drive around the perimeter of Coronado, looking at some very nice (very expensive) homes - this took all of 10 minutes but we enjoyed it.

And so that was our quick visit to Coronado. We agreed that it would be fun to come back when we can spend several hours. So, that is on our Next Time list of things to do in the San Diego area.