# Carlsbad, California



## Icc5 (Feb 12, 2011)

Can anyone tell me about Carlsbad and what is in the area.  Any restaurants you find with good food yet comfortable feeling? We don't mind spending more as long as it is a relaxed type place.  We usually are willing to drive the entire area withing about 75 miles or so to see things.  We will be in that area for about a week at the end of October.  Any good websites to suggest?
Favorite sights
Favorite restaurant
Thanks in advance,
Bart


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## csalter2 (Feb 12, 2011)

*Relaxed Town*

I have been through Carlsbad on several occasions as I live about 45 minutes away. It is between San Clemente and San Diego right past Oceanside. 

It is a quiet town. There is a beach. There are several restaurants in and around the Carlsbad area. You will be close to San Diego so you can do several things? There is the La Jolla area with its nice beaches and coves. There is the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park, Seaworld, Legoland (best for smailler kids), you can take a trip to Mexico (at your own risk these days), and there's the Balboa Park area with its museums and lush grassy areas. The popular Gaslamp area of San Diego offers entertainment and night life. 

The stuff that I mentioned is all in the San Diego area proper. Carlsbad itself is a smaller beach community that is pretty quiet. It's a suburb of San Diego. People commute from Carlsbad to San Diego daily.


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## puppymommo (Feb 12, 2011)

Legoland is actually in Carlsbad.  The Wild Animal Park (now called the San Diego Zoo Safari Park) is not in San Diego but about 35 miles away in Escondido (closer to Carlsbad than it is to San Diego proper).  Carlsbad and nearby Oceanside have nice beaches.


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## funtime (Feb 12, 2011)

I suggest you do a search on this forum for Carlsbad and you should get some good information - I know we have discussed restauratns before.  Funtime


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## Barbeque (Feb 13, 2011)

We have owned at the Carlsbad Inn for several years now. (Tamarack is very close to the Carlsbad Inn too)   So both timeshares offer superior locations in my opinion because of location to beach and village..

We really like the beach and village and love the Location of the Carlsbad Inn beacause we can walk in the evenings to dinner to many of the places we really like and can enjoy a couple of drinks. 

Our favorite restaurants are
Fish House Vera Cruz  Good grilled fish Consistant not too fancy
Fresco  (right across the street from the Carlsbad Inn)  Good Italian.
Also Kings Fish House   Near Legoland  Very Good but I prefer Vera Cruz  
Harbor fish is fine for a more casual meal  Mostly like fish and chips but some grilled.  
Pizza Port has good pizza   
There are many other choices too. 
In Leucadia Up the coastal highway  La Especial del Norte is outstanding Mexican 
I like to eat their octopus  They are famous for their tortilla soup
http://www.laespecial101.com/
In Del Mar   Jakes is very nice and on the water.  The Fish Market is good too.


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## DeniseM (Feb 13, 2011)

*TUG discussions about Carlsbad*


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## DaveNV (Feb 13, 2011)

I think Cathyb lives in Carlsbad.  Try sending her a PM?

Dave


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## Icc5 (Feb 14, 2011)

*Wow, great info.*

Thank you everyone.  Denise and Barbeque gave a goldmine of info.  I appreciate it.
Bart


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## kool_kat (Feb 15, 2011)

*Casinos*

Does anyone have a favorite casino within driving range of Grand Pacific Palisades (hour or less)?  I saw there are several casinos around the area.


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## John Cummings (Feb 15, 2011)

kool_kat said:


> Does anyone have a favorite casino within driving range of Grand Pacific Palisades (hour or less)?  I saw there are several casinos around the area.



Being casino aficionados, we are very familiar with every casino in Southern California. We have been to them all. Some of them we go to for 3 nights at their hotels even though we live less than an hour away from them. Of course we have also spent a lot of time at the casinos in Las Vegas, Reno, Lake Tahoe, Laughlin NV, Northern California, and several other states and even Canada. We have visited approximately 150 casinos.

The big ones are:

1. Pala - Large casino resort, 26 miles from Carlsbad.

2. Valley View - Casino resort, 32 miles from Carlsbad

3. Harrah's Rincon - Large casino resort, 35 miles from Carlsbad

4. Pechanga - Very large casino resort, 36, miles from Carlsbad

5. Barona - Large casino resort, 47 miles from Carlsbad

These are all large casinos with many restaurants, hotels, show rooms, etc. Pechanga is larger than any casino in Las Vegas. There are also several smaller casinos which I would be happy to list if your interested.

I recommend Valley View and Harrah's as 2 of our favorites. We also like Barona but haven't been there in awhile as it is farther away for us. We used to live much closer to Barona and went there frequently. Pechanga is only 10 minutes away from us but we don't go there often. Actually our favorite casino/ resort is Agua Caliente and its sister casino the Spa which are both in the Palm Springs area but that is too far for you.

We far prefer our California casinos to Las Vegas. If you have a Harrah's Total rewards card, it is good at Harrah's Rincon and the points can be used at any of the 11 Harrah's properties in Las Vegas.

Let me know if you want any more information


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## Cathyb (Feb 15, 2011)

*I'm here and waiting *



BMWguynw said:


> I think Cathyb lives in Carlsbad.  Try sending her a PM?
> 
> Dave



More restaurants:  Just ate again at P.F. Chang's for Valentine's Day.  They have a four course dinner for $39 which is very generous in portions!  It is real close to the upscale outlet mall (across street).  Great service!

Dini's is at Tamarack Beach Resort and has daily specials.  Their special salad is great -- bleu cheese, cranberries, greens and walnuts.  They fix their fresh fish in delicious ways.

Benihana's is off Poinsettia and on Avenue Encinas.  They have the BEST lunch special:  Sushi, choice of piece of fish or chicken, soup, salad, tea, orange, rice, and 3 pc sashimi all for $9.99.

Very casual but creative food:  Naked Cafe on Carlsbad Village Drive.  We like the chicken tacos served with coconut rice and black beans.

What to see:  If you like music, there is a Music Museum right near Lego that displays all types of instruments for the last 100 years and lets you play some of them.

I'm open to answer what questions I can.  My DH volunteers for the Carlsbad Visitor's Center (I used to also) and we have lived here almost 12 years now.

Oh, one more idea:  The Coaster train stops in Carlsbad (about 3 blocks from  Carlsbad Inn) and can take you to downtown San Diego -- a beautiful city on the water.  You can catch a ferry to Coronado Island  from there for part of the day too.


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## Cathyb (Feb 15, 2011)

*John - question*



John Cummings said:


> Being casino aficionados, we are very familiar with every casino in Southern California. We have been to them all. Some of them we go to for 3 nights at their hotels even though we live less than an hour away from them. Of course we have also spent a lot of time at the casinos in Las Vegas, Reno, Lake Tahoe, Laughlin NV, Northern California, and several other states and even Canada. We have visited approximately 150 casinos.
> 
> The big ones are:
> 
> ...



John:  Do they still offer free bus transportation from the Carlsbad mall off El Camino Real?  We took it once (we aren't into casinos, went for the lobster   ).  It's been many years since we did that.


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## kool_kat (Feb 15, 2011)

John Cummings said:


> Being casino aficionados, we are very familiar with every casino in Southern California. We have been to them all. Some of them we go to for 3 nights at their hotels even though we live less than an hour away from them. Of course we have also spent a lot of time at the casinos in Las Vegas, Reno, Lake Tahoe, Laughlin NV, Northern California, and several other states and even Canada. We have visited approximately 150 casinos.
> 
> The big ones are:
> 
> ...



Wow - this is exactly the post I needed.  My mom & I are the casino lovers (heading to Vegas at the end of March), but we are going with my dad (who thinks it is a big waste of time) and my 12 year old niece.  I'm hoping one day to leave them at the pool and go to the casino for a few hours.  

Harrah's would be my first choice as they are who I mainly play with (staying there in Vegas) so I am glad you say you like it.  The closest casino to me is Harrah's Cherokee owned by the Cherokee Indians and it is absolutely horrible.  I've learned to just save my money for Vegas or Tunica (or flush it down the toilet if I really want to get rid of it).  Do you feel like the slots at Harrah's Rincon are comparable to the other casinos?  

BTW-we are complete slot players if that would change your casino recommendation.


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## John Cummings (Feb 15, 2011)

Cathyb said:


> John:  Do they still offer free bus transportation from the Carlsbad mall off El Camino Real?  We took it once (we aren't into casinos, went for the lobster   ).  It's been many years since we did that.



Which casino are you referring to? I assume from you mentioning lobster, you are referring to Valley View.

Valley View does have the free bus pickup. Here is a link to it. Just put in your zip code and it gives you the nearest bus pickup place.

http://www.valleyviewcasino.com/LuxuryLine/default.aspx

We have never used the bus, in fact we avoid the casinos during the time the buses are there.

If you sign up for Valley View's rewards card ( free ) you will get the lobster buffet for free.


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## John Cummings (Feb 15, 2011)

kool_kat said:


> Wow - this is exactly the post I needed.  My mom & I are the casino lovers (heading to Vegas at the end of March), but we are going with my dad (who thinks it is a big waste of time) and my 12 year old niece.  I'm hoping one day to leave them at the pool and go to the casino for a few hours.
> 
> Harrah's would be my first choice as they are who I mainly play with (staying there in Vegas) so I am glad you say you like it.  The closest casino to me is Harrah's Cherokee owned by the Cherokee Indians and it is absolutely horrible.  I've learned to just save my money for Vegas or Tunica (or flush it down the toilet if I really want to get rid of it).  Do you feel like the slots at Harrah's Rincon are comparable to the other casinos?
> 
> BTW-we are complete slot players if that would change your casino recommendation.



I am a Harrah's Diamond card member so I am very familiar with all the Harrah's properties in Las Vegas as well as others. Harrah's Rincon is definitely looser than any of the 11 Harrah's properties in Las Vegas. We were just at Harrah's Rincon a week ago for a few hours. I spent $400.00 and left the casino with $900.00. We usually go to Harrah's Rincon for 3 nights as they comp us a suite and all our food, shows etc. there are 4 casinos within 20 minutes of Harrah's so there is competition. Harrah's Rincon has a pretty good buffet as well.

Just so you know, all of the casinos in California are Indian casinos. They not only compete with each other but also have to be competitive with Nevada.

Are you a Video Poker player? That is my favorite game but I also play a lot of slots. I don't play table games. Harrah's Rincon has full pay ( 9/6 ) Jacks or Better quarter machines. Pechanga does also. These are very rare and you won't find any on the strip in Las Vegas. In fact South Point in Las Vegas doesn't have them. However, NOT all of Harrah's or Pechanga's Video Poker machines are full pay. You have to know where they are in the casino. At Harrah's Rincon, they are along the wall by the sports' bar. Just make sure you check the pay table.

I have also been to the Harrah's Aka Chin casino in Arizona and it is horrible just like you mentioned. 

Caveat: There is no guarantee you will win at any casino. There are more losers than winners. It is a matter of being in the right place at the right time. However, your money will last longer at the looser casinos.


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## kool_kat (Feb 15, 2011)

John Cummings said:


> I am a Harrah's Diamond card member so I am very familiar with all the Harrah's properties in Las Vegas as well as others. Harrah's Rincon is definitely looser than any of the 11 Harrah's properties in Las Vegas. We were just at Harrah's Rincon a week ago for a few hours. I spent $400.00 and left the casino with $900.00. We usually go to Harrah's Rincon for 3 nights as they comp us a suite and all our food, shows etc. there are 4 casinos within 20 minutes of Harrah's so there is competition. Harrah's Rincon has a pretty good buffet as well.
> 
> Just so you know, all of the casinos in California are Indian casinos. They not only compete with each other but also have to be competitive with Nevada.
> 
> ...



I'm getting into video poker, so I will definitely be looking for the full pay 9/6 JOB when we go.  I'm a pretty low roller so I very rarely win.  To me, a win is walking away with all or most of my money.  I just want to play for a few hours before I pay the "entertainment tax" to the casino.


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