Breton Buckley knows all about San Diego — but he can’t understand why other people don’t.
Buckley, 47, who has owned the San Diego Bed and Breakfast fornine years, said the city’s mild weather, avant-garde architecture, booming nightlife and pristine beaches make it a natural tourist destination. But even though a new convention center was recently built, the second-largest city in California is still largely undiscovered.
“We can’t believe this place is undiscovered,” said Buckley. “L.A. and Orange County are both booming, but we aren’t even on the map. Why hasn’t the whole world moved here?”
Why, indeed? It can’t be for lack of entertainment.
Choose any guidebook on San Diego, and it will extol the virtues of the Gaslamp Quarter, home to some of the area’s most popular nightlife, restaurants, and shops, and the 1,174-acre Balboa Park, site of the world-famous zoo, a renowned theater, museums, gardens and more.
But those activities don’t even begin to highlight the city’s entertainment options. Melissa Howe, 23, went to college at San Diego State University and “was hooked.” She’s even building a Web site on romantic activities there.
“Bonfires on the beach are great. There are big fire pits right there, and sometimes you can even see the fireworks from Sea World,” she said. Bay cruises, nighttime kayak tours and glider rides are other romantic ways to enjoy the area, she said.
Her mother, Kathy Howe, 52, of Manteca, Calif., said she and her husband, Steve, 54, both SDSU alums, are surprised and pleased that their daughter independently became a San Diego enthusiast and is following her daughter’s lead in developing a Web site, www.cheers2wine.com, paying homage to the area.
The 360-degree view of the area from Mount Soledad and a ferry ride to Coronado, site of the Hotel del Coronado, where Thomas Edison installed the electricity and Hollywood stars often mingled, are tops on Kathy Howes’ favorites list.
“When I was little [my family and I would] go to the zoo there,” said Kathy Howe. “I didn’t reallygo there again until college. … Now I love to go back.”
Sample round-trip airfares, BWI to San Diego:
Northwest Airlines, $256
» cheaptickets.com
United Airlines, $223
» Travelocity.com
American Airlines, $337
» Bookairlinetickets.com
