Category — San Diego CA

On the last day in San Diego, after we made a quick stop at Cabrillo National Monument we made the trek up the highway to San Diego’s Zoo Wild Animal Park.

We should have arrived much earlier than we did. But after a grueling itinerary with non-stop visits to Legoland, San Diego zoo, Science museum and Sea World. I think it took a little toll on us. So we took it easy that day.

The Wild Animal Park is part of San Diego Zoo but is located in Escondido about 45 minutes from San Diego. So plan your trip accordingly. We chose to visit Wild Animal Park on the last day in San Diego so that we could continue our trip to Los Angeles from there.

The Kilimanjaro Safari Walk

When we first arrived at the park, I thought we were in Disney Animal Kingdom park. The park looks really clean with shaded path. After picked up the map, Miss J went into guide mode and studied the map.

Our first stop was the gift shop! Yeah.. Not such a good beginning but we forgot a hat for everyone. And we knew we would be doing a lot of walking in the Sun. So shopping it was.

With the size of the park and knowing my kids’ energy level, I knew we had to lower our expectation. We wouldn’t be able to explore the whole park so we settled to only a few spots. First of, I saw the schedule for Cheetah feeding so we marched down the path heading to Cheetah’s area by following the Kilimanjaro Safari Walk. But it was almost at the totally opposite side of the park. But that didn’t mean that we didn’t stop to enjoy feeding ducks near the Congo Fishing Village.

I have read many reviews about the walking concerns for family and I agree. Know thy children! For younger kids, I would suggest a jogging or umbrella stroller. It will be much more pleasant for the whole family. I saw several moms pushing strollers along the path. Looked like a great place for a workout.

So did we make it for the feeding? NO!

In light of trying to get it there, I actually missed the Cheetah area and kept on walking. By the time, I turned around the feeding was done.

Now, on to plan B.. A quick ice cream stop was in order. We stopped by in front of the entrance to Journey Into Africa and sat down to enjoy our ice cream before got in line for a ride.

Journey Into Africa

If you have limited time and can only do a couple things, THIS is the one I would highly recommend. It’s a no gimmick safari ride that takes you to habitats where animals live together just like in the wild. There is no fancy story of chasing a poacher.

The ride was really educational and informative. I really love our driver who gave us great information. Now I know what make Wild Animal Park different from other typical zoos. The park is big on animal conservation and strives to provide a safe habitat for wild animals.

We rode on a tram along the fence-in area. It’s not really safari experience but hey.. we are in California so what do you expect. Even so, I still think it’s one of the closest experience we can get here and provide us with more understanding on what they are doing in the park.

Little Break for Little Ones

By the time, we were done with the ride, it was late in the afternoon. We decided to hike back to the entrance. It was quite a walk. Then we stumbled upon a staff who provided a much-needed distraction for kids of all ages with the bubble station. He was creating a huge bubble using special solution and allowed kids to forget about that long walk. This shows how family-friendly this park is. I love all this little details that they think of for family with kids.

Not Your Typical Petting Zoo – Petting Kraal

We have been to many petting zoos in the past but definitely not this type of petting zoo. Most petting zoo you will meet goat, chicken, rabbit and other smaller creatures. But here you meet Kraal. Kids were nervous at first to get up-close and personal with big deers. But they were all very tame. Plus we read them the rules before we got in. Definitely, one of unique experience we had!

Our last stop of the day was the Conservation Carousel. This African theme carousel was a great fun to end our day!

So I have been wondering before visiting the Wild Animal Park as to what is the different between the Wild Animal Park and San Diego Zoo and whether it’s worth a trip.

My verdict

For family with younger kids, they might enjoy San Diego Zoo more. But for family with older kids, it’s SO WORTH it!! My kids absolutely loved the safari ride experience. They also begged us to get on the balloon ride but we stood ground on that request. :)

I just wish we had more time to spend and explore. It’s definitely worth extra money to buy the Journey Into Africa ride. There are so many other parts of the park that I wish we had time to explore.

Family Tips:

• Arrive early because this park is huge. You will be able to explore more.
• Bring stroller for younger kids.
• Stop for frequent break with bigger kids. This will allow them to enjoy walking a bit more. There are many interesting things to see and check out along the path so the walk wasn’t that bad.
• Go on Journey Into Africa!

Disclaimer: I received complimentary tickets from San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park. However, this post is based solely on my experience and my opinion without any outside influence.

Food is one of the 3 main component in our travel – what to do, where to eat and where to stay. I think we have covered a lot of what to do in San Diego in the past few weeks.

But it’s so typical of us that we didn’t get to taste as many great places as we would love to. Spending a whole day in a park certainly cut our chances to taste out many restaurants on our list.

Nevertheless, we were able to finish off a couple and would love to share with you.

Covette Diner – Family Fun Food

On our first night, we made a plan to meet up with my lovely blogger friend, Coleen from Travel Mamas. Coleen is a San Diego resident so I trust her in guiding us to a great place to eat. And she didn’t disappoint.

We met up at the Covette Diner in Liberty Station. It’s their new location in a revitalize History Navy Training Center. The place is a giant fun house for kids and ahem.. adults too.

As soon as you stepped in, you knew this is a place where kids can enjoy and adults don’t have to worry about melt down. The staffs are friendly and very well into the character of the 50s theme.

There was a dance break for all of us to enjoy and join in if you dare. :)

The food was also pretty good.. Ok.. I didn’t pay that much attention to the food to be honest because I was already full from the huge appetizer plate and milkshake.. Ah.. The milkshake is what they are famous for. You can order it so many ways that I think Starbucks will not want to compete with their combination. And if they don’t have it in the menu, you can even create your own creation!

While you wait for the table, or the food or after the food, little ones can enjoy the arcade type area with fun games.

Overall, it was a great fun experience especially sharing with good friends. Thank you Colleen for the recommendation.

The In-N-Out Experience

In-N-Out Burger joint is the local fast food joint that I have heard so much about. Whenever I talk to my neighbor who moved from Southern CA, they always talk about how much they miss In-N-Out. So we just have to give it a try.

The place reminds me a little bit of Krystal burger but with more clients and better burger. We went there during dinner time and the place was packed.

The menu is very simple but we learned after the fact that there is a secret menu! Hmm.. Next time, we might have to try that out. The price is very affordable for everyone. But burger is burger. Don’t expect that this will be a healthy choice for the whole family.

The burger itself is ok but I guess for the price it makes a better alternative than McD. The burger does taste better and seems with better ingredient than your typical fast food burger joint.

But don’t take my word for it. I’m not a big fan of any burger by nature. I still don’t get why the Varsity is so popular in Atlanta. It’s a good stop when you look for a quick meal that don’t break the bank. Another big plus is you don’t have to worry about if your kids will behave here. It’s a burger joint after all.

When we visited San Diego, I had done a lot of research on where to stay. Originally, I was leaning toward VRBO because we would be there for a while. I wanted to have space and didn’t want to feel like boxing in to a 4 wall hotel room.

However, budgeting was also a big factor. The VRBO tends to be more expensive when you rented for just one family. It makes more financially sense if we travel with a couple more families to share the cost.

So I looked for another option – extended stay hotel and suites. This hotel type tends to cater more to family and business travelers with free breakfast, suite room and other amenities.

After careful consideration with pro and con with both options, I narrowed down my choice to Homewood Suite Liberty Station. I contacted them and was able to get a discount rate. This was the only compensation I received in term of discount but not FREE.

Location Location Location

This hotel is conveniently located merely 5 minutes from the airport. I think it took us longer to ride the bus to our car rental office than going back to the hotel. It’s right across the river from the airport at the revitalized urban village created from History Navy Training Center in Liberty Station area.

The hotel sits right on the bank with the walking/jogging trail along the river. Kids enjoyed running along the trail after breakfast. It was such a great spot to just sit back and relax.

It was a perfect location as our home base to explore San Diego. It’s about 10-15 minutes from SeaWorld and Downtown area.

Enough Room for Everyone

We booked the 2 bedroom suites. The room has 2 bedroom and a living room with full-size kitchen (microwave, dishwasher, refrigerator and stove). Typically, when we traveled in a tight budget, extra room might not be necessary but it’s really NICE to have. Having a separate room for the kids allow us to put them to sleep sooner and provide us with some much needed rest.

The kitchen is a great feature to have when traveling with kids. However, this trip I didn’t even cook once. There are just so many places I want to try in San Diego!

Make-Your-Own Waffle, anyone?

I think one of the big plus in Mr. Z’s book was the Make-Your-Own-Waffle station at the breakfast area every morning. The hot breakfast had spoiled us that I had a hard time with continental breakfast when we went to LA.

This was definitely a factor to consider when looking at the accommodation. Free breakfast not only will help save the money but also time as well. Just think about the time you will spend driving out to eat. Another budget friendly option will be to buy your own breakfast like cereal or simple breakfast bar and enjoy them at your hotel room.

Another little feature that I love is the outdoor fireplace. It’s a perfect place to relax after a long day from sightseeing. There is also an outdoor pool but we went there during Winter so it’s too cold to enjoy that amenity. But I’m sure if we let them, my kids will be the first to jump in no matter how cold that is.

All Things Consider

So even though we received discount rate during our stay, when looking at the current rate available online ($159/night for 1BR Suite), I would consider staying there again when we visit San Diego. Here are the reason why.

• Convenient location and close to airport (but we never notice any noise from the airplanes)
• Free HOT breakfast everyday
• Free light dinner meals 4 times a week (Mon-Thu)
• Free parking (downtown area hotels typically charge $20-$30 for parking per day)
• Great outdoor fire place to hang out
• Nice area and walking trail for kids to run around
• Friendly staffs

Disclaimer: I received discount hotel rate from Homewood Suites. However, I paid the total cost out of my own pocket and this post is based solely on my experience and my opinion without any outside influence.