Kona Kai Resort, San Diego

The Kona Kai Resort is located just south of Mission Bay on Shelter Island in San Diego. It is just 10 minutes from Cabrillo National Monument, 20 minutes from Sea World and the San Diego Zoo, and 30 minutes from Qualcomm Stadium.

The resort has it's own private beach, pool and hot tub, fitness facility, and even a small courtyard with ladder ball. The parking area is very secure in that it requires a room key to enter and to exit the lot.

The rooms come equipped with a TV, mini fridge, coffee maker, and safe. Here are some pictures of our room and the resort:

The door into the bathroom was a rather unique sliding door.

The presentation of the Shampoo, Conditioner, and Body Wash was fantastic. 

The closet is located inside the bathroom, which was a little awkward...

The mini fridge is located in the cabinet to the right under the TV while drawers are located in the cabinet to the left.

Expensive bottles of water were placed strategically around the room. 

A look at the pool, hot tub, and harbor from our balcony.

Here's a look at the courtyard from our room.

And finally, here's a look at the private beach.

We enjoyed our stay at the Kona Kai. The scenery here is by far superior to any of the other hotels in which we have stayed in San Diego. With that said, there is no continental breakfast at Kona Kai which is important to us since we had a family of 5 travelling and dining bills can add up quickly! Also, while there was a sense of security with the parking set up, it was rather inconvenient to have to have your room key handy to get in and out of the parking lot.

Cabrillo National Monument, San Diego

Having been invited by some friends to attend the Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego, we thought we would take the time to see some sights as well the morning before the game.

I vaguely remember my mom taking me to Cabrillo National Monument when I was a child and have found many pictures of her going there without me. So to visit it again was great not just for the spectacular vistas, but to also relive memories from my past.

Because Cabrillo National Monument is operated by the National Park Service, there is an entry fee to get in. We have a National Parks Pass since we live so close to Zion National Park so entrance for us was free but normally it is $10 per car which is well worth it. Here are some pictures from our visit in December, 2016:

Heading down the covered walkway to the Visitor Center.

The view looking north, towards Shelter Island where we stayed at the Kona Kai Resort.

After taking in the views from the top of the cliffs, we drove down to the Tide Pool area to get a closer look.

The views were amazing and my whole family from my 2 year old to my 17 year old loved watching the waves crash up against the rocks.

There were trails and stairs that could take you quite a ways down the shore line.

An excited visitor...

The family.

Marine biology lessons...

Overall we spent about two hours at Cabrillo National Monument which was about the perfect amount of time for us to see all that there was to see. I would have loved to have hiked on the Bayside Trail, a 2.5 mile round trip trail that descends about 300. But with my family in tow, I'll have to save that for another time.