Feb 24, 2020

Ever since moving to Bozeman I’ve become a big believer in winter escapes. In 2019, we had two months that didn’t have snow (July and August for those wondering.) Which means our summers can feel almost non-existent. Luckily, escaping to warmer weather this year was as easy as booking a flight to San Diego!

After spending a few days in the sun-drenched and taco-filled city, I can’t wait to share a quick little travel guide. (Forewarning this pretty restaurant heavy because your girl likes tacos.)

Where to Eat

The Taco Stand – I swear I’ve talked about this place more than anything else from the trip. Their Carne Asada tacos are out of this world, but my guy s w e a r s they have the best churros he’s ever had. And to answer your question – yes this is the one restaurant we visited multiple times on our trip.

Great Maple Hillcrest – You’ll want to time this one just right for brunch! There was a line out the door when we arrived and it only seemed to get longer after noon.

We loved the twists the restaurant took on more traditional fares and our guys definitely were eyeing their bacon old fashioned and their maple bacon doughnuts.

Ironside Fish & Oyster – Our splurge of the trip! Montana is about as landlocked as you can get, so their rotating menu of the fresh catch of the day was a welcomed change.

Stake Chophouse & Bar – The perfect location for enjoying a cocktail with a view!

This swanky restaurant is located on Coronado Island is worth almost any traffic jam. Their cocktails were the best ones we had on the trip and watching the sunset on the deck was possibly our favorite part of the trip!

Hint: get there between 4:40 – 6PM for their happy hour pricing

Rosemary Trattoria – Another spot on Coronado Island that is absolutely delicious! The fresh pasta or the lasagna are definitely the best options from this cute mom and pop setup.

Places to Play

Altipiano Winery – A small family owned winery about a 30 minute drive outside of San Diego with an absolute killer view. We traveled to only a few wineries, but this was the clear winner.

Not only is the setting idyllic, but their wines were so delicious! We had a hard time figuring out a favorite and made sure we didn’t leave without a bottle to take home.

North Park – We adored staying in North Park mainly because it gave us such good access to the restaurants and shops.

Artelexia and Pigment were two of our favorite shops to explore in North Park. Though I would say pick a street and start wandering! Artelexia and Sage Sisters weren’t on our radar and they ended up being our favorites.

Communal coffee, Holy Matcha and Nomad donuts were also fun places to stop in while shopping.

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San Diego Surf School – Full disclosure we are awful at surfing.

I’ve definitely become progressively worse with each surf lesson. Still we love trying and learning a sport that we will never be able to play in Montana!

Balboa Park – Unfortunately we ended up getting to this cultural park late in the day and the majority of the museums were closed! So, learn from us. Head to the park early in the day so you can see everything you want to and are dashing from place to place.

Where to Stay

For the majority of our stay we were in an Airbnb in a suburb called North Park! And we adored being by this upcoming neighborhood. Not only did we have short drives to multiple different restaurants, but the shops surrounding us were equally fun.

For our last night we traveled north and stayed in La Jolla. There are a lot of beautiful hotels (truthfully not many corners aren’t beautiful) in this seaside city, but we decided to mind our budget and used points to stay at the local Holiday Inn. Which turns out to be the nicest Holiday Inn I’ve ever seen – plus only 2 blocks from the beach!

If you are currently surrounded by snow and looking for a little winter escape, I hope this short +sweet San Diego travel guide helps you. Or at the very least helps you decide on which tacos to try!