San Diego Travel Guide

 I had such an amazing trip to San Diego in August! I planned my trip to a T - I like to know everything I am going to do before hand. Of course, there were changes and I was flexible with them, but I will share my main itinerary below!

I hope this is helpful, please let me know if you have any questions.

Where we stayed:

Carte Hotel San Diego - this location is in between Little Italy and Downton San Diego. I felt very safe in this area, it was a walkable distance to a lot of attractions we wanted to see. We were close to a Starbucks, A Rite-Aid and 10 minutes from the airport. 

                                                  

The pool also had great amenities such as a gym, hot tub, pool & rooftop restaurant.

                    

             

Speaking of the pool, this was my first time on vacation since starting laser hair removal at Milan Laser. Let me tell you, it was one less thing to worry about while planning to leave for vacation. I didn't even have to think twice about shaving, such a liberating feeling! My results have been so amazing. It is important to make sure any areas being treated don’t have sun exposure & also, touse lots of sunscreen. I packed a cutesarong to pair with my suits so I could enjoy the pool without exposing the area to the sun.

Places to Visit

La Jolla:

Our first day was planned to visit La Jolla, this is a popular tourist attraction to see the La Jolla Coves and Sea Turtles.

             

                                

We got dropped off at the cove and walked down. It was so cool to see the coves & the beauty of La Jolla! After experiencing the beach, we walked to the shops.

We went to better buzz coffee , which I loved! I got a vanilla latte that I am still dreaming about. 

There are so many gorgeous places to eat there! One I would recommend is Valencia Hotel. The views of the ocean from this spot is gorgeous. 

Seaport Village: 

We went to Seaport Village, we walked around & saw the USS midway ship. We also visited the famous kissing sailor statue.  You can get on & explore the ship if you would like as well - you can buy tickets here. 

Gaslamp Quarter:

A good place to visit at nights! Lots of popular restaurants and bars, they have STK and Fogo De Chao, similar scene to Downtown Chicago. 

Balboa Park:

I was not prepared to see how big this park was! There was so much to see & do. 

We visited the San Diego Museum of Art ($20 admission for adults), it was really nice to see a new museum.

There is also a Japanese friendship garden, we didn't get to it but looked beautiful! 

  

Coronado Island:

We spent the day at the beach & walking along it. 

We checkend out the famous Coronado Hotel, very cool to see it from the outside & you can walk in as well. 

There was such nice shopping at Paris & Me Boutique & Shop Avenu.

 

 

Places to eat:

Choice Juicery - My go to! I went here for fresh juice, açaí bowls & avocado toast. They had all my favorites to stay healthy on vacation. 

Crack Shack  - This was my favorite lunch spot!! Delicious chicken sandwiches, probably one of the best ones I've had.

Cloak & Petal - Great spot for dinner! They had nice music going, good drinks & delicious sushi. 

Salvatores - I went here for dinner! The vibe was so cool. They had amazing drinks, they had a build your own cocktail bar that they can bring to your table. The decor was very insta worthy. Food & drinks were delicious. I would definitely come back.

Invigatorium - I went for breakfast, they had great vegan options before my flight home. 

 

Barbusa - Cute Italian spot! Loved the decor, appetizers were amazing and can't recommend the pesto pasta and the pizza enough. 

 

The Taco Stand  - Great casual spot that is a crowd pleaser! My family loved this place. Tacos were delicious! Especially the fish. 

 

Coffee:

Achilles Coffee - Many breakfast options as well as coffee.

                     

Bird Rock Coffee Roasters - Great place for an afternoon treat.

Lofty Coffee - Love the vibe of this place!

                                                 

Drinks: 

Pali Wine Bar  - I had Sangria here that was delicious.

Snacks/dessert:

Donut Bar  - These donuts were insane! Oh my gosh, you have to try these. They were huge, cakey & delicious. 

 

Pappalecco for Gelato 

Salt & Straw - Delicious ice cream, fun spot & open late 

Holy Paleta  - dipped ice ream bars that were so good! I had a cookies & cream one. 

I hope this is helpful for trip planning! Ioved staying in the Little Italy Area, if I didn't stay there I would probably want to stay in La Jolla because of how beautiful it was. Please leave any travel questions down below.

Xo,

Danielle 

4 Comfy Travel Shoes

Before I took my Europe trip, I knew that I needed comfortable shoes to take with me! I've always been about comfort and style but I wanted to pack light (at least try to!)

I narrowed it down to a couple pairs of shoes and they were amazing!

1. WHITE SNEAKER - Gucci convertible sneakers - So I bought these right before my trip and it was my first time wearing them which I was kind of nervous about. The only thing that took a minute to loosen up was the tongue of the shoe. It was kind of stiff in the beginning but it got more comfortable with time! I would give them a 4/5 for comfort! They are comfortable but not out of this world comfy, if that makes sense. I have common project sneakers that are a little comfier due to the fact that they have a thicker sole. All in all, I recommend a white gym shoe for travel in general! 

price of  Gucci is 730 and the price of the common projects is 465. White sneakers will always go with everything!

2. ESPADRILLE -  I think espadrilles are such a great slip on option because they don't have a sneaker look to them. They can look more dressed up and can go well with dresses and more feminine outfits. I got the Sam Edelman Krissy ones which I loved and were good for doing things like going through TSA and little day trips but they were not THAT comfortable for a 10 mile day. I would recommend wearing little peds so the woven part doesn't rub on your skin but other than that part, it was comfy! These are priced at 79.99!

3. SLIP ON SNEAKER -  So I've never really been a slip on sneaker person because I personally feel like they always fit a little weird. I found these at DSW and I originally went for the 9 but then I realized they had a bit of room so I sized down to a 8.5 and they were perfect! They have memory foam and were super comfortable to walk around Rome in all day. Some days I did 10-15 miles walking and they felt amazing! These are just under 50 and are so worth it.

4. PLATFORM SANDAL -  I also bought these before actually testing them out and wearing them. They were crazy comfy! I was scared the back strap would rub the back of my heel but nope they were amazing. I totally recommend these sandals and I think they were only 27.99!

What is the one shoe you always take when you travel?

Shop my favorites here:

Xo,

Rome Travel Guide - What to see, eat, & do in Rome

Hi guys, Rome was a blast and definitely a sight to see. There are so many tourist attractions that are amazing & delicious food. We stayed for a week but I think you could probably see all of Rome in 4-5 days.

I'm going to break this post down my category, so that it is easier for you guys to locate what you need from this post!

FOOD

First up,  food. Food's always the best part, right?  We tried some really good spots. Something to note about Rome is that it's mostly 'take out' food. Their culture was built on take out & a lot of places don't have sitting areas. It's more of a grab your food & go type of thing. If you want to sit, I definitely recommend going to a nicer spot.

1. Alfredo ALLA SCROFA - Fettuccine alfredo is probably one of my favorite Italian dishes. This spot is the people who originally invented this dish. It was so cool to experience it from where it was made. Service was great & drinks were lovely too. When they bring your plate to you, they cover it in parmesan and toss the pasta for you right in front of you. This spot is finer dining, but I would definitely recommend.

2. La Freschetta - Ok this place was bomb! The drinks were so good  (I had an aperol spritz for the first time, bomb) and the food was even better! My sister and mom got pasta dishes and I ordered a pizza that came straight out of a brick oven. We also tried appetizers of bruschetta, suppli& fried mozzarella. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of the food ( I ate it before I could haha) but I would definitely recommend this spot! So yummy and unique.

3.  Al Forno della Soffitta - This was THE BEST pizza of the whole trip. All the ingredients were so fresh and made in an oven right in front of you. If you're looking for tasty thin crust pizza, this is the spot. It wasn't busy around 3 pm so when we ordered the pizza it took literally ten minutes to come to your table. Now that is fresh! I put a picture of the pizza from this spot here!

4. Giolitti- Best Gelato in all of Rome. Don't waste your time at the other spots, this is where the locals go!

5. Pastificio  - For 4 euro you can get pasta & wine. This is an amazing price! This spot is near the spanish steps & is great if you just want something really quick to eat. Not five star dining, but none the less a great spot for a decent lunch! They make two pastas daily and it varies by the day.

6. Caffe Vatican - If you're visiting the Vatican, grab a cappicino or espresso at this spot! So delicious and my favorite one.

                                             

7. Antico Caffe Greco - I had a delicious caffe latte with soy here. This spot is in the spanish steps where the luxury shopping is. I loved it! It was a super old coffee shop and had such cute decor.

8. Tazza d'oro Caffè - A super yummy coffee shop right next to the Panthenon. Extremely busy, be prepared to drink and go.

9. Canova Tadolini - This cafe is so cool! It has sculptures inside of it which I thought was so interesting and unique.

SIGHTS

• Trevi Fountain - You must make a wish here! So touristy but so fun and the fountain is just breath taking.