StayCation

In February, the kids had a week off, but I was not sure I would be able to take the time off work. I negotiated a few days off so I started making phone calls. I wanted to stay in San Francisco near the wharf, but there was some trade show taking all the local rooms. The Best Western agent I was talking to found me a 50% off rate at a hotel only 30 minutes out of SF, but right on the beach.



The first day we drove directly to SF and bought the SF pass. It included tickets to several attractions and saves hundreds if you use them all... We started by using our first ticket on a bay cruise under the Golden Gate bridge. Kids loved that. Then to pier 39 for Bubba Gumps. We used a ticket from our pass to explore the Aquarium by the bay. We then headed to the cable cars for the price of 1 more ticket (unlimited rides). It started to rain, so we bailed and picked up some chocolate at Ghiradelli's. The rain was picking up as well as the wind, so we decided to head to the hotel.






When I arrived in Pacifica, the hotel looks a little weathered, but it is right on the beach. The agent asked for my business card and upgraded me for free to their best ocean view/balcony room RIGHT OVER THE BEACH on the 3rd floor. It was a beautiful view. We unpacked and went walking around the hotel. They had a few shops and restaurants around the area, so we picked a burger place. They had many choices and we all picked something a bit different and shared. We left and picked up some Dryer's ice cream on our way out.

That night at the hotel was amazing.. we kept the door open most of the time and just listed to the ocean as I worked (one of the deals to get away...).



The next morning, we headed out to a little Mom & Pop shop for breakfast, but we missed them by 5 minutes.. they closed at 10:30 to prepare for lunch...so we went a few doors down to the High Tide for breakfast. I am not exaggerating, we could have ordered 1 plate and all shared it. I have never seen such large plates overflowing with food. Not even my teen son could finish.

Back to SF for another busy day of touristing... started at the Walt Disney Museum, which I loved, but my youngest wanted to rush through. Then to Exploritorium for a day of kids hands on fun...We stayed until they closed then picked up Gorilla's BBQ (From Dine in's, Diners & Dives show). Again, so much food and so little room... It was really good thought.



That night, a bad storm blew in. I woke up around 2 am to what sounded like gun fire on our patio doors. It was raining and hailing so hard I thought the glass was going to break. Keep us up for several hours, so we all curled up and watched TV for a bit.

The next morning, the sun was shining and we tried breakfast at the Hotel restaurant. It was really good, but pricey. The view was wonderful, with a stacked row of tables all having an ocean view. We packed up and checked out and headed back to the city. We spent the day at the CA Academy of Science. Fun for all and then only a 35 minute drive home.

The benefits of a staycation is that it is far enough away to feel like a vacation, but close enough that we didn't lose days traveling. (rather inexpensive too)...Another great thing was it was Tulipmania in SF - so the whole city was beautiful: