Which California Resort?

[brookberry]

We are a family of four with two kids, 10 and 13. We are planning for a family trip to one of the California resorts next Spring Break, end of March 2016. MarBrisa, Palisades, and CalrsBad Seapointe.

My question is which one is more family friendly, best for first visit? Other attractions near by? I assume rental car is highly recommended?

We've never been to San Diego area so any suggestions would be appreciated, thanks!

Brook

 

[Jason245]

We are a family of four with two kids, 10 and 13. We are planning for a family trip to one of the California resorts next Spring Break, end of March 2016. MarBrisa, Palisades, and CalrsBad Seapointe.

My question is which one is more family friendly, best for first visit? Other attractions near by? I assume rental car is highly recommended?

We've never been to San Diego area so any suggestions would be appreciated, thanks!

Brook

Two of them are right next to lego land I think. Just know that you are about 40 minutes to an hour from San Diego (depending on Traffic).

If you plan on spending a lot of time in San Diego, you might want to look into something that is actually in San Diego.

Probably not the best idea to go to mexico.

Spring Break is very popular, so you might want to look into calling and reserving something ASAP as you are already well into the 9 month window.

 

[Luanne]

San Diego area for kids:

The San Diego Zoo
Marine World
Wild Animal Park
LEGOLAND

It will be too cold to swim in the ocean in March. Actually it's pretty chilly year round, but as a kid I could certainly tolerate the water during the summer.

Dh and I toured the USS Midway on our last trip to San Diego. We found it fascinating. The kids might think it's fun. It's a self guided tour so you could take as little, or as much, time as you wanted.

Yes, a car is definitely a must. Remember, this is California, and Californians love their cars. We did use the trolley system a lot when we were there as it covered a lot of the areas we wanted to see.

 

[1Kflyerguy]

All Three HGVC resorts are pretty close to each other.. I have only stayed at Marbrisa. Its the newest, and was pretty nice. It has some sort of back entrance to Legoland for guests. My son is grown, so we didnt use that.

Palisades is on the other side of Legoland, but does not have a private entrance as far as i know.

SeaPointe is closest to the beach, just across the street in fact.

You will definitely want a car.

 

[SmithOp]

Ocean temps are up from the effects of El Nino, it was 70 last week, and there are predictions for a wet spring so you might see rain.

Thursday night street fair in Oceanside is a fun night out.

http://www.mainstreetoceanside.com/#!sunset-market/c1yvd




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[VegasBella]

Of those three, I think Palisades is the most family-friendly. But the other two are fine for kids also.

The Legoland private entrance from MarBrisa is shared with the Sheraton. The walk from Palisades to the main entrance of Legoland is a bit further, but then you get the main entrance benefits (photo ops, kids' excitement builds, you're near the lockers and rental strollers and the big store, etc). Also, if you have early entry access (a benefit of some types of passes) then you have to use the main entrance (technically it;s just off to the side of the main entrance, point is you can't use the private MarBrisa entrance).

Seapointe is closer to the beach and you can walk, but it's not a super short, easy walk. You have to cross highway 1 and the train tracks. They give you wagons to haul your stuff but still... Also that part of the beach is not my favorite. I like the part that's closer to the main area of town.

As far as activities go, we go to Carlsbad every year. We spend time at Legoland and time at the beach. We also usually drive up the coast a bit to visit things like the tidepools in Laguna Beach (they're fantastic, some of the best in the world). If it's strawberry season we always pick strawberries. It's just fun. We often rent bikes and go for a ride around town. We spend a bit of time shopping or window shopping. And we get ice cream at SubZero, lunch at Veggie Grill. We also try to stay up late to see the grunion because they don't live anywhere but the California/Mexico coast. And of course there's a movie night or two. We also usually go whale watching one day during the Summer. So far we've seen three different types of whales, plenty of dolphins, sea lions, and lots of other sea creatures. We've done SUP, surfing, boogie boarding, and kayaking.

There's lots to do right there, you don't need to to drive to San Diego. If you do go to San Diego, you can take the train because that's kind of fun if you live somewhere that doesn't have many passenger trains. We sometimes take it down to see a ballgame. The stadium in San Diego is particularly kid-friendly.

I've been meaning to go to the Botanic Gardens and the museum of making music. We will probably do that next Summer. We also plan to go out to Catalina next Summer and spend a day or weekend there. We want to snorkel out there to see all the Garibaldi and other fish you can't easily spot elsewhere.

 

[buzglyd]

Any of those resorts are great choices.

Bella gave some good advice but you don't have to cross any train tracks to get to the beach from Seapointe. The tracks are East of the resort.

Mar Brisa is the newest and has the nicest units and pool.

I like Seapointe because you can hear the waves crashing on the beach. I love sleeping with the sliding doors open with that sound.

 

[presley]

Those are all my timeshares and I've been to them plenty of times. Chances are, you'd be happy with any of them. Be sure to read the timeshare reviews. I've probably reviewed all of them.

Marbrisa: Shares some stuff with the Sheraton hotel. The pool area tends to be cold to me. It is constantly being built up and I have never known it to not be under construction. They have room service from twenty/20 grille at the Sheraton.

It is the only true Hilton of any of them and has the dark granite that other Hiltons have. They finally added some activities, but it still doesn't come anywhere close to what Palisades and Seapointe offer for activities. As a non owner, you'll be forced to pay a daily resort fee at all 3, whether you use anything or not.

Palisades: I would say the most family friendly. Lots of activities and onsite things for kids to do. Rooms were recently renovated. It has room service from Karl Strauss brewery and a shuttle that will take you anywhere within 4 miles of the resort. There is an adults only pool area and a family pool area. I don't know about the family pool, but the adult pool is always heated warm enough, no matter what the outside temp is.

If you are going in Spring, the flowers may be in bloom. For only a couple months every year, the Carlsbad Flower Fields are gorgeous and they back up to the Palisades property. You'll also be walking distance to the Musuem of Making Music.

Seapointe: My favorite of the 3, but some of the rooms are really old and people who want Hilton quality may be very disappointed. They have many activities during the week, including some for adults only, but mostly family friendly. You can walk across the street to the beach and they will lend you a wagon and any beach equipment you could possibly need. The beach is not one of our better beaches. In fact, I only go to that beach when staying at Seapointe because it is across the street.

The train passes by behind this resort and can be noisy. The staff and activities can't be beat by the other 2 on your list. Sadly, no convenient restaurant walking distance. This resort has a family pool and an adult only pool. They also have basketball, tennis, putting green, volleyball, ping pong, pool...

I think they all will (at least Palisades and Seapointe do) have a couple day trips you can pay for and take a van to places like Hollywood, Catalina Island, the places change once in a while, but it's the same van/group for all the resorts. You will need a car for all the San Diego attractions except for legoland.

 

[JSparling]

We're going in October and spending 5 nights at Marbrisa. I picked that property mostly because of the new kids pool they opened. We have 2 kids (7 1/2 and 1 1/2) and we're hoping the weather and kids pool area are good. We also plan on using the back entrance to Lego Land. We'll hit Disney for a day and perhaps Knott's (and we understand both are a bit of a drive).

I loved the ideas about the street fair in Oceanside and the tide pools in Laguna.

I'll post a review after our early October trip although your kids are older so it may not be very relevant.

 

[klpca]

We just spent a weekend at Seapointe (first visit even though we own there) and I was pleasantly surprised. Our unit was recently updated with the exception of the kitchen cabinets. There were a ton of kid friendly activities there, but unless the beach is your primary focus, I would stay at one of the resorts that are closer to Legoland.

And as far as the beach across the street from Seapointe, if you cross the street and stay to the right the beach is just so-so. We much preferred the beach that was reached by going right after you get across the street, then going left into the state park campground. Just before you reach the restrooms, you will see stairs going down to the beach. The stairs are substantial (and the last step is a doozy), but it's well worth it. The beach is wide, has a lifeguard, and was uncrowded when we went - on the hottest Saturday of the summer. I was shocked at how empty it was.

 

[SmithOp]

We also prefer the State Beach south of Seapointe resort, usually walk south and cross the road at Poinsettia Ln. There is a small shop on the bluff that has refreshments and shaved ice. It makes a nice morning or evening walk to start there and walk north along the beach back to the resort.

There is a rail stop at Poinsettia for access to San Diego, with a short cut from the street at the rear of Seapointe. Senior (over 60) fare is $5 round trip. We use it to visit Old Town and Downtown. Old Town Mexican Cafe is one of our favorites, watch the ladies make tortillas in the front window.

For the Oceanside street market from Seapointe just stay on the coast road, no need to get on I-5, park at the transit center garage free. If you prefer not to eat standing around on the street, nip into the Stone Brewery Store beer garden with your food and buy a pint. Its mid way down Tremont St.


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[buzglyd]

We also prefer the State Beach south of Seapointe resort, usually walk south and cross the road at Poinsettia Ln. There is a small shop on the bluff that has refreshments and shaved ice. It makes a nice morning or evening walk to start there and walk north along the beach back to the resort.

There is a rail stop at Poinsettia for access to San Diego, with a short cut from the street at the rear of Seapointe. Senior (over 60) fare is $5 round trip. We use it to visit Old Town and Downtown. Old Town Mexican Cafe is one of our favorites, watch the ladies make tortillas in the front window.

For the Oceanside street market from Seapointe just stay on the coast road, no need to get on I-5, park at the transit center garage free. If you prefer not to eat standing around on the street, nip into the Stone Brewery Store beer garden with your food and buy a pint. Its mid way down Tremont St.


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Dude! You're practically a local!

 

[VegasBella]

We're going in October [...] We'll hit Disney for a day and perhaps Knott's (and we understand both are a bit of a drive).

October weather will be nice for Disneyland Also, they do Halloween things during October so if you're into that wear a costume, etc. https://disneyland.disney.go.com/events-tours/halloween-time-at-the-disneyland-resort/

I see coupons for Knotts all the time. So look around before you go and you can probably save a few bucks Enjoy!

 

[klpca]

We also prefer the State Beach south of Seapointe resort, usually walk south and cross the road at Poinsettia Ln. There is a small shop on the bluff that has refreshments and shaved ice. It makes a nice morning or evening walk to start there and walk north along the beach back to the resort.

There is a rail stop at Poinsettia for access to San Diego, with a short cut from the street at the rear of Seapointe. Senior (over 60) fare is $5 round trip. We use it to visit Old Town and Downtown. Old Town Mexican Cafe is one of our favorites, watch the ladies make tortillas in the front window.

For the Oceanside street market from Seapointe just stay on the coast road, no need to get on I-5, park at the transit center garage free. If you prefer not to eat standing around on the street, nip into the Stone Brewery Store beer garden with your food and buy a pint. Its mid way down Tremont St.


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Thanks for the train info. We ran out of time to check it out. Btw for a real San Diego mexican food experience, check out Mexican Fiesta in Little Italy. It's getting a lot of love on Yelp so I guess that the secret is out. (It's been my regular lunch spot since 1990). It's walking distance from the Santa Fe depot, walk up, cash only. No seating either but there's seating across the street at the fountain (corner of Beech and India). The carne asada is awesome. Everything is great except the quesadillas, which should be avoided.

 

[presley]

For anyone wanting to book Marbrisa, if you want to see their "insider tips" of how to book the room you want, PM your email address to me and I will forward the latest newsletter to you. I love to delete stuff, so let me know by this Monday.

ETA: The tips are for owners, but anyone booking via HGVC can use the same guidelines. If you are exchanging through something else, you are at the mercy of your exchange company.

 

[rebels]

Resort fee

If you are a HGVC owner (not Marbrisa) do you still pay the resort fee at Marbrisa?

 

[presley]

If you are a HGVC owner (not Marbrisa) do you still pay the resort fee at Marbrisa?

When you book through HGVC, you don't pay the resort fee at any of the Carlsbad resorts. If you exchange via RCI, you won't have your HGVC advantage and will have to pay it.