Do I need a car in SD, best area to stay

Hi My wife and I will travelling to Las vegas in Oct and we are flying from Vegas to San Diego were we will spend 4 nights. We want to do the usual stuff e.g Seaworld, Zoo, Gas Lamp district etc and I was wondering whether we needed to hire a car at SD Airport for a few days.

Is public transport a) convenient to all attractions and b) safe.

will I need to take Taxis ? do the Hotels have shuttles ?

Also regarding best area to stay in order to easily get to those above - was thinking of Mission Valley, Old Town or La Jolla which of these are central and safe at night ?

Any suggestions welcome.

Do I need a car in SD, best area to stay

answers to your questions...........

you will need a car

public transportation is not convinenet but is safe

taxis are expensive and you have to call ahead for one. very seldom can you get one right on the street.

some hotels have shuttles to the airport only.

old town and mission valley are the most central. la jolla is in the north part of the city and is upscale. all are safe.

Do I need a car in SD, best area to stay

All the tourist areas are safe although you know noone can guarantee safety in this world. IF you stay in downtown,little italy(just north of downtow) or inour old town area you can get many places using our public transportation system.SOME parts o f MissionValley are also accessible to public transportatin. LaJolla is a neighobrhood that is about 20min north of downtown and to get ther e it would be easiest if you had a car. There is a bus that goes there but it takes a while. by bus.See:www.sdcommute.com to lan travel with pub transportation

Our downtown is only about 3miles from the airport so it is easy to get to any of the hotels. Some of the hotels have shuttles from the airport but since it is very close by ,getting to your hotel will not be a problem

There is also a very good hop on hop off toue that leaves from downtown,oldtown and some hotels in other areas have arrangements to have guests get picked up for this tour.

See:www.trolleytours.com

I f you let me know your price range and exact dates and IF you decide on a car or not, then I can help you with hotel ideas.

many thanks for your replies.

We are looking to be in San Diego from 11th October for 4 nights - I was hoping to try to get tickets to see the Chargers game that weekend - is this possible ?

Sunday Oct 14,inth e afternoon is the Chargers game against the Raiders which is an ugly rivalry that often results in large crowds and angry fans. It will not be as bad as an international soccer match but it should be a large crowd. There a re some single game tickets on sale now on www.stubhub.com these are probably from season ticket holders who cannot go to that particular game. Single tickets MAY become available after the season starts also.

Since you have not told me your price range or IF you have decided to get a rental car I will not suggest hotels at this time.

I haven%26#39;t been to SD in 6 years. We rented a car b/c we were staying north of the city, but I don%26#39;t really remember what the parking situation is like. Is street parking easy or difficult? Is parking expensive? Thanks

If you%26#39;re talking about parking downtown, it can be frustrating. You will eventually find a space, but it might involve some driving around. Once you get a space, it%26#39;s relatively expensive - the meters are $1.25 per hour, and some are limited to 2 hours, so you have to move your car. You can park at seaport Village or Horton Plaza and get some free hours, but those lots are sometimes full - and after the ';free hours, it%26#39;s really expensive. Patience and lots of change will eventually get you a spot though.

No question-rent a car. Just remember what side to drive on.

Downtown, parking is more of a challenge but there are many parking garages, one of the cheapest is at 6th and Market.

Public transportation here is not convenient. You will see so much more with your own car. Downtown, in the Gaslamp, is probably the easiest to get to and from the freeways and still have plenty to walk to if you don%26#39;t feel like driving. I lived there for 3 years and walked my little dog several times a day. There are plenty of people and police around the Gaslamp area. I never felt ';not safe';.

Mission Valley is bland, you will have to drive everywhere. La Jolla is beautiful but harder to get in and out of but probably the safest and has lots of shops, beaches and restaurants to walk to. It%26#39;s fairly dead at night, everything tends to close early compared to downtown.