info required on Mission Bay / Beach

Planning to visit San Diego for 4/5 days in May or Sept 2008. Have seen some very nice vacation rentals in Mission bay / beach area and wondered if this would be a better and more economical option than staying in a hotel (2 bedrooms required).

We do not really want to rent a car while in San Diego so I would appreciate any advice on public transport in the area.

Plan to visit - downtown, Gaslamp, Seaport village in one day;

Seaworld - 1 day; La Jolla - one day. Given the locations planned is Mission Bay / beach a fairly central option.

Also advice please on general safety / security in that area. All rentals I%26#39;ve looked at appear to have large balconies / patios more or less right on the beach / boardwalk. Any problems with burgularies, street crime etc. Also what is the area like for day to day essentials - grocery stores, coffee shops, restaurants etc.

Any responses would be much appreciated.

info required on Mission Bay / Beach

I understand your reluctance to rent a car BUT please be aware that you will be dealing with a bus from MissionBay to get around and if you have young children in your party it might not be a convenient way to travel. The area is one where lots of visitors rent although I cannot guarantee safety anywhere in a big city. Most Californians use their cars to go everywhere including shopping. TheMissionBay/beach area is a large one so it might me better if you got a few address of places in which you are interested and then we can tell you which are near to shopping and which are totally residential.In general , the area along MissionBlvd near Grand and Garnet and along Garnet going away from the beach,have stores.

info required on Mission Bay / Beach

Not wanting to step on Riffsmoms toes...she is a local and knows it better than I do. Just wanted to add that we vacation down there every year for the last 5 years and have never felt unsafe. We shop at the stores off Garnet and Grand. What always surprises me is the number of 20 somethings. It is a ';college town';.

I cannot recommend a place to stay as we camp atCampland on the Bay (it is on the beach) and rent a trailer from Campnstyle. Campland does have security guards all night watching the place and curfew at 11:00. (no roaming around after that)

Have you looked at Crystal Pier for a place to stay?

ihave2dogs,please don%26#39;t apologize for helping a fellow traveler.That%26#39;s what we are supposed to do on this site. I am not alone here and since I have not stayed in MissionBay ,your input is most helpful. I just wanted to explain that when people ask about safety ,noone can ever really guarantee that anywhere in the world.

We just got back from San Diego last week and rented a condo in Mission Beach - it was on Mission Blvd about 2 blocks from Belmont Park (small amusement park). It was not right on the beach but between the ocean and the bay and an easy walk to either. We never felt unsafe and we were travelling with three kids, often rolling in around 11 at night. We had never rented a condo before but this was a great experience - it was much more economical than the hotels we were pulling up, I would definitely recommend renting. There were some pizza places a block or two down one way and a little mini mart where my husband walked to get coffee in the morning which had all the essentials you needed. By the amusement park was a Jack in the Box and Subway as well as smaller sandwich and pizza places. At night, by Belmont Park and the beach it is a younger college age crowd and there are a number of bars around but we didn%26#39;t feel uncomfortable walking around.

We had a rental car so I can%26#39;t comment on public transportation but Mission Bay/Beach is close to everything - within 15 minutes or so of downtown and La Jolla.