5 to Try: Weekend Edition

Posted on October 27, 2010 by Stephenie

Head to the desert for the Borrego Springs 45th Annual Desert Festival. The celebration, themed “Art & Soul,” includes a parade, the Miss Borrego pageant, dance parties, live music, art and craft exhibitions and more.
On October 31, the city of Oceanside hosts the 10th Annual Dia del los Muertos celebration at Mission San Luis Rey. The mission grounds will transform into a Mexican plaza with thousands of marigolds that create ‘ofrendas,’ and you can enjoy music, dancing, food booths, a retail mercado and the Chalk Cemetery for creating memorials for lost loved ones.
Night crawlers enjoy the annual Monster Bash in the Gaslamp Quarter on October 30. This annual outdoor music festival takes over the downtown streets with live musical performances on multiple stages, beer gardens and an extreme costume contest. This ticketed event is for guests ages 21 and older.
Take advantage of October’s FREE things this last weekend of the month. Kids 11 years-old and younger get free admission into the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park, and Hornblower Cruises & Events is offering free San Diego Bay cruises for kids 12 years and younger.
And of course, don’t forget to check out many of the Halloween festivities for families, and other Halloween happenings like Scream Zone at the Del Mar Fairgrounds, with its 3-D ghost maze, 25-room house of horror and haunted hayrides; The Haunted Hotel in downtown San Diego where haunts from Hollywood’s favorite horror films fill the rooms; and Haunted Trail of Terror in Balboa Park where you’ll need to run for your life through an outdoor maze. I ain’t afraid of no ghost! Ok, that was a lie…

5 to Try: Family Halloween Edition

Posted on October 19, 2010 by Stephenie

great costume! a crocodile dressed as an alligator

Halloween makes a splash at SeaWorld during Halloween Spooktacular. Families can enjoy trick-or-treat stations, a Sesame Street-themed Halloween show, special Halloween-themed sea lion shows and Halloween characters along the pathways of the park. The event takes place every weekend in October.
LEGOLAND California joins in the Halloween fun every Saturday in October with its annual Brick-or-Treat celebration, featuring a one-of-a-kind, 4-ft. tall LEGO jack-o-lantern. Children can participate in fun-filled costume contests and trick-or-treat with a souvenir goodie bag along the park’s Brick-or-Treat Trail, a kid-sized cul-de-sac of spooky LEGO homes featuring fun and creepy creatures.
Get in the spirit of Halloween with a Spooky Sleepover at the San Diego Zoo on October 23 and 30. Your camp director, Dr. Zoolittle will introduce you to animals that wear colorful costumes year-round and other slithery friends before taking you on an exclusive bus tour to Camp Timbuktu where you will spend the night. Kids can trick-or-treat, participate in a costume parade, enjoy campfire entertainment and so much more. Reservations are required.
Enjoy a park-wide Halloween Family Day at Balboa Park on October 30, when over a dozen museums will open their doors free to children ages 17 and younger, per every paying adult. In addition, a variety of spooky activities, creepy crafts, spine-tingling tours and free treats will be available from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Other highlights will include a doggie costume contest at the Spanish Village Art Center, a kiddie costume parade at the Natural History Museum and so much more.
Fiesta De Reyes in Old Town San Diego celebrates Halloween this year with an outdoor movie night on October 29 and 30 and a children’s costume contest on October 30. Bring lawn chairs, blankets and enjoy a family-friendly spooky movie under the stars. Then, for the brave few, Old Town State Historic Park will host Séances at the Seeley Stable where you’ll hear scary, funny and tragic stories about the people who once lived in San Diego in the 1800s. Join Madam Stolichnaya as she summons “ghosts” that will tell their stories in a fun and spooky way. Performances are available on October 22, 23, 29, 30 and 31 at 6 and 7:30 p.m.

4th of July Fireworks

Posted on July 1, 2010 by Stephenie

The epic 20-minute Big Bay Boom fireworks display over San Diego Bay is the largest display in the region. At 9 p.m. on July 4th, fireworks are launched simultaneously from four barges placed around the bay and choreographed to music broadcast on 105.7 FM radio. Back for its 10th year, the Big Bay Boom fireworks display can be seen throughout downtown San Diego, neighboring Coronado, Point Loma and many communities throughout the city. Great viewing spots are all along the bay front and aboard popular harbor cruises.

Coronado will celebrate a patriotic Independence Day with events on Saturday, July 3 including a morning rough water swim, two-hour American flag-waving parade along Orange Avenue, the community’s main thoroughfare, Art-in-the-Park and an afternoon concert in Spreckels Park. The festivities culminate on July 4 with a spectacular fireworks display over Glorietta Bay that complements the Big Bay Boom fireworks show just across the water.

On July 4 at 9:30 p.m., SeaWorld San Diego will celebrate Independence Day with a special, patriotic Shamu’s Skysplash USA fireworks show over Mission Bay. One of the most popular fireworks shows for locals, best viewing areas are from the shores of Mission Bay, Mission Beach and Pacific Beach.

After a spectacular fireworks show at 9 p.m. on July 4, Joan Jett and The Blackhearts take the stage at 9:30 p.m. at the annual San Diego County Fair at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. The concert and fireworks are included with fair admission, and all the exhibits halls and rides stay open until midnight.

Farther up the coast in Carlsbad, LEGOLAND® California will present a star-spangled Red, White and BOOM! Celebration on July 4 with live musical performances by The Jumpitz at 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. and festive fireworks at 8:30 p.m. During the day, family favorite Uncle Sam will also be roaming LEGOLAND on stilts, as guests enjoy old fashioned lawn games including potato sack races and LEGO Limbo.

Fireworks over San Diego Bay

Get Seuss This Weekend & Celebrate World Oceans Day

Posted on June 4, 2010 by Stephenie

Underwater reading at SEA LIFE Aquarium

San Diego is proud to join hundreds of conservation organizations and thousands of individuals from countries around the world to celebrate World Oceans Day (June 8th) and help raise awareness about the important ways we can protect our oceans.

This year, World Oceans Day is themed around the 50th anniversary of the Dr. Seuss classic, “One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish,” and since Dr. Seuss was a local San Diegan, we’re excited to celebrate his legacy.

We’re so excited in fact, that we’re starting the party a little early with a number of fun events taking place this weekend:

Attractions and Museums

The San Diego Zoo will host a World Oceans Day snow sculpture building contest with polar bear “judges” and a reading of the book, with help from sea lions, on at 11 a.m. on June 5.
SEA LIFE Aquarium will celebrate in Seussian-style with an underwater reading of the book at 11 a.m., Seuss-themed arts & crafts, games and caricature portraits from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on June 5.

On the Water

Surf Diva will host a paddle out and reading of the book in the Pacific Ocean at 11:30 a.m. on June 5.
Hornblower Harbor Cruises will offer Seuss-themed face painting free for children aboard all six of their green-themed, narrated Harbor Cruises on beautiful San Diego Bay on June 5.
The Bahia Belle will provide special children’s cruises around Mission Bay with songs, games and activities from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. on June 4-6.

Hotels

Omni San Diego Hotel offers an “Oceans of Life” hotel package during June 1 – December 30.
The Grand Del Mar will host a World Oceans Day Coloring Contest, a reading of the book and other activities from 12 to 1:30 p.m. on June 5.

Around Town

The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System will host a reading of the book at 11 a.m. at Barnes and Noble in Hazard Center followed by a trolley ride through Mission Valley on June 5.

It’s Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas

Posted on November 20, 2009 by Stephenie

I know, I know…We haven’t even celebrated Thanksgiving yet…but the spirit of the holidays is just so contagious!!! Especially in San Diego, where we put a sunny twist on “Seasons Greetings.”

Here’s a sneak peek at the holiday events kicking-off in November (click on photos for more info):