Coronado Travel Guide
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The Doggie Surf Contest Returns to Loews Coronado Bay on June 4
In what's probably the cutest contest ever, the Loews Coronado Bay will hold its sixth annual Surf Dog Competition on Coronado's Imperial Beach on June 4. You can't beat adorable dogs on surfboards.
More than 60 pooches are expected to jump into the ocean and hang 10 on their boards in hopes of winning bragging rights. Plus, the first-place winner of each division scores prizes, like a pet vacation at the dog-friendly hotel.
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It's Officially Sandcastle Season by the Hotel del Coronado
The famous red-roofed Hotel del Coronado may have quite the storied history—Thomas Edison dealt with the electrical installation, Marilyn Monroe's Some Like It Hot was filmed here and author L. Frank Baum wrote much of The Wizard of Oz on one of the rooms—but these days some of the coolest creativity is happening outside of its walls down on the beach.
While wandering barefoot in the smooth sand, watching the nearby navy base's helicopters fly over, we stumbled upon a sandcastle. It's not just any sandcastle, however; this is a work of art by Billy Pav, aka "The Sandcastle Man." For over thirty years, he's been building intricate designs solely from the sand, water and shells of San Diego beaches. According to his website, Coronado is his favorite spot, and it's fortunately where we found him this weekend. This particular sandcastle instantly made us think of architect Howard Roark from Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead.
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The Empire (Line) State Of Mind Of The Hotel Del Coronado
Admiring the herb garden from the trashcan. Posh!
Posh, we often think, is a state of mind, not just a clear cut economic thing, and our recent visit to the Hotel Del Coronado made us think that, while the trendy hotels of the Gaslamp District may be giving her a run for her money, the grand dame could still teach them a thing or two about detail.
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Hit the Beach at the Hotel Del with a Buy-Two-Get-One-Free Room Offer
The iconic on-the-water Hotel del Coronado isn't a recession-friendly hotel. But us suckers just might pony up the nearly $300-a-night fee if the hotel throws some freebies in. Plus, its gorgeous beach is a draw; it's usually voted one of the best in the United States.
Buy two nights at the famed hotel, the setting for the Marilyn Monroe flick Some Like It Hot, and you'll get an evening free. Rooms hover around $283 a night for the package.
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The Hotel Del Coronado Gets Sugary Sweet with Their Holiday Decor
Hotels are getting in a holiday mood! Usually around this time, we spotlight all the delicious holiday cocktails that hotels concoct for the season. Don't worry, we're not giving up the booze, but we are keeping tabs on all the wonderful, wild, and in some cases, weird Holiday Hotel Decorations that hotels put up this year. Seen some great holiday decor in a hotel recently? Send us a snapshot!
For the holidays, the Hotel Del Coronado is bringing out the gingerbread, lollipops, cupcakes and candy canes. But don't worry about packing on the holiday pounds. The treats are ornaments on the hotel's Christmas tree.
The 30-foot tree is decked out with 2,000 of these sugary, albeit fake, sweets and other sparkly ornaments. It's all set aglow with more than 15,000 lights. The decor all falls under this year's holiday theme, "The Sweetest Season."
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Get Tipsy at the Hotel Del Coronado for Just $10
We were looking to unwind with a glass of wine while watching the sunset at the Hotel del Coronado, so we headed to Eno, a wine bar that serves cheese and chocolates. There we found a great wine-tasting deal: 10 wines for $10. Why, that's less than the hotel's ridiculous $25 resort fee!
In lieu of happy hour, every Tuesday from 5 to 8 p.m., Eno hosts wine tastings. The outdoor patio was packed with wine sippers at the communal tables when we strolled in around 5:30 p.m. While the indoor section of the wine bar had plenty of free seats, we wanted a view of the water, so we stayed in the patio and hung out in a corner.
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Can Your Dog Surf...Well? If So, You Could Win a Free Hotel Stay
Head to the Loews Coronado Bay Resort if you want to see furry surfers ride some waves. We don't mean hairy dudes. The hotel will host its fifth annual Dog Surf Competition at Coronado's Imperial Beach on May 22.
Loews expects 60 pooch surfers and more than a thousand dog lovers to come out. Canine contestants and their owners get a special perk this year: entry into the VIP viewing of the new doggie flick Marmaduke, based on the comic strip. The hotel has a special connection to the movie, since scenes were shot at last year's Surf Dog Competition.
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Three Ways to Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth at the Hotel Del
The Hotel del Coronado may be known for its picturesque beachfront location, but we were too busy getting a sugar high all over the restaurant to notice. Whether you crave candy, ice cream or cake, the Hotel Del will hit the spot.
Find out three ways to get sugar shock at the hotel after the jump.
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Is the Hotel del Coronado Shilling Budweiser?
A National Historic Landmark, the legendary Hotel del Coronado is usually remembered as the setting for Marilyn Monroe's old Hollywood flick Some Like It Hot. The posh beachfront hotel isn't exactly the background you picture for a Budweiser ad.
But at the nearby Avenue Liquor Store, at 9th and Orange Ave., a window display has a poster-sized photo of iconic hotel with three big bottles of Bud plastered in front of it.
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Surf's Up for This Frenchie in San Diego
As everyone throws themselves full throttle into Thanksgiving prep, let's pause for a moment and think of how much joy our four-legged friends give us. That's right, it's time for Cute Hotel Doggie of the Day!
Today's little surfer dude may not seem seasonally appropriate but we can all benefit from a little cubicle dreaming on a Friday. Besides, this Frenchie is just too damn cute not to share. We found him on the Facebook page for Loews Hotels, snapped hangin' four paws in this year's Loews Coronado Bay Resort annual Surf Dog competition.
When we first heard about dogs surfing we thought it was just a fad for rich hippies or a marketing gimmick, but it looks like the sport is a keeper for Loews. Their contests have raised over $15,000 for charity and attract pups from all over the U.S.
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Gondolas Rides Don't Usually Come with Couples Massages, Do They?
Excuse me, Mr. Gondolier Man. Keep your eyes on the water!
We swoon at the idea of taking a gondola ride with our honey and we're big fans of massages (who isn't?), but we're not so sure about combining the two. The Loews Coronado's latest romantic rudbown deal may have missed the boat. The hotel offers couples' massages on 33-foot gondolas while cruising down the waterways of the Coronado Cays.
As part of the Voga Voyage package, you'll hop on an authentic Venetian gondola—though, the two massage beds aren't so authentically Venetian—and depart from the resort’s private marina. You lovebirds get a sunscreen application, since the sun can be especially harsh while out on the water, and a 40-minute massage. Afterward, if you aren't seasick, you'll sip Champagne and nibble on strawberries for the final 10 minutes of the cruise/spa treatment.
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Tony Curtis To Check Into The Del's 'Some Like It Hot' Weekend
Fans of the cross-dressing classic Some Like It Hot can celebrate the comedy's 50th anniversary by hanging with star Tony Curtis during a weekend of film-related festivities at the storied Hotel del Coronado.
Hosting the film's anniversary party is appropriate, since the Del appears in the flick as Miami's Seminole-Ritz Hotel. "The Del is so prominently featured in the movie, it almost becomes a fifth character," says Christine Donovan, the hotel's historian. The Del will pay homage to SLIH with a special two-day package that includes hotel digs (starting at $340 per night at the Del and $595 per night at the Beach Village at the Del), an SLIH DVD, a copy of the new book Some Like It Hot: The Official 50th Anniversary Companion by Laurence Maslon and two tickets to all of the events.
