The best hotels in San Diego for luxury stays, family trips and beachside views

Rancho Bernardo Inn

Sunny San Diego is something of a dream city, with a welcoming seaside, thriving beer scene, family-friendly attractions like Balboa Park, and a stack of world-class restaurants catering to every palate. Public transport makes it easy to get around so you can explore the various neighbourhoods without having to rent a car and it’s also a very cycle-friendly city should you prefer to venture out by bike.

The city has accommodation for just about every traveller, whether that’s a chilled coastal resort looking down on sandy California beaches, a high-rise pile with a view of Petco Park’s baseball games, or a practical pillow near a downtown office. You’ll find somewhere comfortable to lay your head no matter your budget or taste.

There’s heaps of choice around San Diego County, but there’s also an array of hidden-away luxury resorts to escape to should you venture just a few miles up the coast or into the hills. For this list though, I’ve stuck to the city (bar one) and picked out the best places to stay right in the heart of San Diego.

The best hotels in San Diego are:

• Best for a classic beach holiday: Hotel Del Coronado
• Best for a retro aesthetic: The Pearl
• Best central location: Hotel Solamar
• Best for sustainability: Hotel Indigo
• Best for a spa retreat: Rancho Bernardo Inn
• Best for palatial luxury: The US Grant
• Best for budget travellers: Hotel Z
• Best for designer nightlife: Pendry San Diego
• Best for a historical theme: Cosmopolitan Hotel
• Best for a coastal getaway: Tower23

Best for a classic beach holiday: Hotel Del Coronado

Neighbourhood: Coronado Island

(Hotel Del Coronado)

Located on Coronado Island, across the bay from downtown, the Del, as it is affectionately known, has housed dignitaries, presidents and stars since opening in 1888. In fact, its conical red roofs were made famous as the backdrop for the 1958 Marilyn Monroe film, Some Like it Hot. In recent years however, the 757-room beachfront property underwent a $400 million (roughly £350 million) renovation to protect its Victorian architecture while adding chic bungalows, private cabanas and a new ocean-view pool. Onsite fitness classes, a shopping centre and beach bonfires mean you don’t need to leave, and there’s a kids’ club with a “living aquarium classroom” if mum and dad need a break.

Best for a retro aesthetic: The Pearl

Neighbourhood: Point Loma

(The Pearl)

This sweet little mid-century motel is a vintage dream, all cut-stone walls, mirrored ceilings and exterior desertscaping that feel lifted right out of 1965 Palm Springs. Though it opened in 1959, the Pearl had a 2019 renovation that softened and modernised the interiors with beachy textures and a calming desert colour palette. Organic Mooncloth x Casetta bath amenities and handmade pottery add luxe touches but it’s not overdone, and gladly, they retained the vintage mid-century furnishings and classic oyster-shaped pool.

Best for central location: Hotel Solamar

Neighbourhood: Gaslamp Quarter

(Hotel Solamar)

Located smack in the centre of the busy Gaslamp Quarter, the Solamar is just a block from Petco Park – when the baseball’s on you can virtually see the home runs and certainly hear the crowd roar. It’s big, with 235 large rooms, but in Kimpton style feels boutiquey with pops of colour in the decor and cosy, dark-wood interiors. A real highlight is the rooftop pool and bar, which keeps you a level above (literally) the Gaslamp’s busy nightlife scene.

Best for sustainability: Hotel Indigo

Neighbourhood: Gaslamp Quarter

(Hotel Indigo)

A chain it may be, but San Diego’s Hotel Indigo really pushed the boundaries of sustainable design to become the first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certified hotel in southern California. Salvaged materials, ambient heating and cooling, a drought-resistant green roof, rigorous recycling and composting programmes and amenities for staff who cycle are a few of the sustainability tick boxes. And you don’t sacrifice anything in terms of the stay either. This is a full-service boutique hotel with 210 rooms in bright, fresh decor – a particular highlight is the 9th-floor roof bar with fire pits and close-up views of downtown’s high rises.

Best for a spa retreat: Rancho Bernardo Inn

Neighbourhood: Rancho Bernardo

(Rancho Bernando Inn)

A grand exception to this list’s city-only stays is the tranquil Rancho Bernardo Inn, with its Spanish Mission ranch-style rooms and sprawling gardens. The spa is a highlight here, with treatments in private, outdoor “casitas” in the garden. You can book a gemstone facial or restorative balm massage and then lounge on a tropical flower-laden veranda or dip into a salt-water whirlpool. Elsewhere on the property, there is a bar and a fireside restaurant where you dine at oakwood tables made of ​​re-purposed wine and bourbon barrels.

Best for palatial luxury: The US Grant

Neighbourhood: Downtown

(US Grant)

The name of this luxury pile nods to its long history: it was constructed in 1910 by the son of former US president Ulysses S. Grant. Regal elements like corinthian columns and shimmering chandeliers run through the entrance and lobby, and into the crown mouldings in the 270 guest rooms. These have been modernised, though, with 350-thread-count, white bedding, jewel-tone accents and bespoke paint-drip headboards that feel both luxurious and contemporary. Grant Grill, the restaurant, is beautifully art deco with mahogany walls and circle-booth seating that takes you back to the 1920s.

Best for budget travellers: Hotel Z

Neighbourhood: Gaslamp Quarter

(Hotel Z)

Hotel Z is part of the Staypineapple group, which aims to buck tradition. It has 96 rooms with cute amenities like welcome drinks, in-room Keurig® machines and beach-cruiser bikes for guest use. The property is clean, simple and easy on the frills but, given the location in the centre of the Gaslamp Quarter, you get good value (and aesthetics) for money.

Best for designer nightlife: Pendry San Diego

Neighbourhood: Gaslamp Quarter

(Pendry San Diego)

Pendry San Diego’s design is sophisticated and young – its 317 rooms feature marble counters and subway tiles softened and warmed by painted wood furnishings, greenery and cosy lighting. It’s as much a nightlife venue as a hotel, with a breezy cafe, classy seafood restaurant, dimly lit, New York-style bar, rooftop pool lounge, craft beer hall and a social club. There’s even a Moët & Chandon vending machine that doles out bottles of bubbly. The crowd leans toward trendy Millennials and the venues can be busy, so this is a good choice if you value progressive mixology along with designer bedsheets.

Best for a historical theme: Cosmopolitan Hotel

Neighbourhood: Old Town

(Cosmopolitan Hotel)

A registered national historic landmark, the Cosmopolitan Hotel opened in the 1820s as a coaching inn on the road from Los Angeles to San Diego. After a few changes of hands, it was fully restored to its 19th-century grandeur in 2010. It has 10 boutique rooms, each featuring a unique selection of Victorian furnishings and Old West period features, like vintage floral wallpaper, hardwood floors and antique mahogany beds. There’s even a real saloon where you can sidle up to the bar for a whisky (or wine).

Best for a coastal getaway: Tower23

Neighbourhood: Pacific Beach

(Tower 23)

Named for a nearby lifeguard tower, this 44-room boutique hotel overlooks the sand and waves at Pacific Beach. And it’s certainly worth springing for the ocean-view rooms, as they have perfectly-formed sundowner balconies overlooking the sea. The decor is coastal-clean with splashes of colour in teal sofas and palm-green accent pillows. There’s also a large ocean-facing deck and restaurant serving Californian specialities, but you’re also in a busy, youthful neighbourhood with plenty of beach clubs and fusion eateries to venture out to.

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