Go West! Our Spring 2026 Coastal Adventure
Part 2
The morning of April 2nd, (Maundy Thursday) we checked out of the Homewood Suites Long Beach Airport, and drove our Enterprise Rental SUV down the 405 to the 5 (if you watched the SNL sketches called the Californians, you’ll know why that’s funny) and arrived a couple of hours later in beautiful San Diego !
We filled up the car with gas, checked into the Embassy Suites San Diego Bay (another brand in the Hilton chain) dropped off the rental car across the street at the Hyatt, and then had lunch at the hotel restaurant. We had a great smashburger and fries -then a nap in our gorgeous, huge suite – later had room service and wine for dinner. (with meh flatbreads) The Embassy Suites generally are a kind of retro hotel, with lots of space in the rooms and this room (booked as a basic one) had a separate bedroom, 3 sinks, a full-sized living room and a separate work area with a large table where we could both catch up. It also had a great view and a weird indoor corridor setup.
After a comfy sleep, breakfast and some work, we went on the San Diego Bay Harbor Cruise that I booked through Viator on the Spirit of San Diego. Here’s the description:
“Explore the huge ships, scenic skyline and wealth of marine life of San Diego Harbor during this 1- to 2-hour cruise. During your ride you can enjoy informative commentary about the city’s history while doing some sunbathing, sightseeing and relaxing in the cool ocean breeze. Pick your preferred departure time for your cruise, choosing from among morning and afternoon options, then make your way to North Harbor Drive to begin your trip. As you step on board, take note of the ship’s variety of amenities, including ample sun decks, comfortable seating options and an onboard cafe to buy food and drinks. Then cast off for your harbor excursion, enjoying a fully narrated overview of the sights you’ll see along the way. Among the sights you’ll see during your ride are the home of the US Naval fleet, the city’s busy shipyards, Coronado Bay Bridge and the Star of India, the oldest iron-hulled sailing vessel still floating. Those on the 2-hour trip will receive the full itinerary. Those on the North Bay trip will check out North Island Naval Air Station, the Naval Subbase, Harbor and Shelter Island and Cabrillo National Monument. Meanwhile, the South Bay cruise covers the Star of India, Coronado Bay Bridge, US Navy fleet and the shipyards. Enjoy breathtaking view of the beautiful San Diego Bay including downtown San Diego, Midway ship, Coronado Island, Coronado military base, Coronado bridge, cruise ship terminal and many more!”
It was a really great cruise, and I’d recommend it to anyone visiting San Diego. The views were lovely and the commentary (by a Veteran) was really interesting. It made us want to visit San Diego again and see more. We especially loved watching the lounging sea lions.
After a quick nap, we headed to dinner at another Mexican restaurant- Puesto at the Headquarters, right across the street from our hotel. Although this is part of a small chain, it has the feel of a family-run establishment. We sat outside and our server, Chloe, was really good at explaining the dishes and making suggestions. It was a really good meal, and they had very good margaritas.
Cruise Apr 4-11 on the Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam
The day before, I booked our ride to the pier with Jet Limo California for $100 even though it’s a really short trip – but with all our stuff, (see previous luggage picture) it was not a walkable trip. Our driver arrived on time and got us to the pier in good time. Within 20 minutes we were on the ship – the Nieuw Amsterdam by Holland America. It’s our first time sailing with them and it’s very different from Celebrity – very old fashioned, staff too busy to chat. We’ve noticed many differences and a lack of things we’re used to. But our suite, one of the Neptune Suites, was gorgeous.
For this trip, I managed to get a “sort of” deal on a suite, and the layout did not disappoint. My favourite parts of it were the wrap around huge balcony, the separate makeup table with my own closet behind it, 2 sinks in the bathroom, a separate work area, and Steve also had his own gigantic closet.
Here’s a link to a quick YouTube video of an aft-facing suite, which was our choice.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nw8jljc_EYM
So far, so good. We unpacked, sent our laundry out, and got organized. Then, the not-so-great parts of the cruise began.
First dinner – Steve got his 2 soups, and lasagna, and I had a really interesting and yummy shrimp cocktail which was more of a salad – then grilled mahi mahi with rice and veggies, and a lemon cake. The food was all very good. But it takes a loooonnngggg time to get service on this ship.
This ended up being pretty much the only issue we had with this cruise, but it was a BIG issue. For the first 2 nights, both in bars and the Main Dining Room, we were ignored for the first 10-15 minutes after being seated, then finally we were able to order a cocktail, then after another 15-minute delay to get that, and the same with food. This happened again on Night 3 in the (allegedly) Italian Specialty Restaurant. At that point, we had had enough, and Steve began his series of requests to meet with the Hotel Director. (the officer in charge of food, beverages, and Staterooms)
That whole process took about 3 days – the Concierge kept calling and asking why Steve wanted to meet with him and finally Steve saw 4 of the Officers (incl. the Hotel Director) in the Dining Room one Night 4 and went over and chatted with them and procured the appointment. The discussion the next day (with the Concierge in attendance) wasn’t really productive; they didn’t admit they are short-staffed, or that their process of having to walk quite a way from the Dining Room to get cocktails and wine wasn’t really efficient, especially for those of us with Drink Packages who like regular refills of wine with dinner. They seemed to imply that it was our job to remind staff that we’re in a suite so we should have special service everywhere we go.
On Night 4, we had our last (and slightly better) dinner in the Main Dining Room. After that, we had our last 3 Dinners in the Pinnacle Grill, a specialty restaurant that specialized in steaks, and we loved it. However, one wonders whether the only way to get decent service on this ship was to have to pay extra for it.
However…… the main reason for booking this cruise was for the itinerary and I’ll continue with that in the next post after another week off for travel! The cruise will take us to Catalina Island, San Francisco, Astoria, Oregon, Victoria and finally Vancouver.
Where do you plan to go in 2026 and 2027? (I’m looking at 2028-2029 bookings too!)
May I help you?
Happy Travels!
https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/sandnes-embassy-suites-san-diego-bay-downtown/
https://www.viator.com/en-CA/tours/San-Diego/San-Diego-Harbor-Cruise/d736-5144_C0001