The Stuck at the Airport team’s visit to San Diego, California ticked off the boxes of most of our quick trips: an airport visit, some museums, great meals and a cool hotel.

If you’re headed that way, here are some places not to miss.

(Artist: Thomas Erhard, image courtesy San Diego County Regional Airport Authority)

San Diego International Airport (SAN) has dozens of permanent public art pieces distributed throughout the terminals, a creative line-up of temporary exhibitions and a performing arts residency program.

Be sure to leave some time to look around both when you land and before you fly out of SAN.

The San Diego Zoo + San Diego Museums

We spent most of our touring time in Balboa Park, the 1,200-acre home to the San Diego Zoo, gardens, museums, theaters and many other attractions.

The zoo is an all-day affair and we returned two additional days to visit just a few of the 18 museums in the park, including the folk art-focused Mingei International Museum, the Museum of Photographic Arts, the San Diego Natural History Museum, the San Diego Museum of Art and several others.

From the Mingei International Museum exhibition Blue Gold, about the color indigo.

Where to stay: The Lafayette Hotel and Club

(Lafayette lobby. Credit:_Matt Kisiday)

We were delighted to learn about – and stay – at the Lafayette Hotel and Club in San Diego’s North Park neighborhood. It seemed hip, historic and fun from the description. But it exceeded expectations on many levels.

Built in 1946, the 2.5-acre, over-the-top, colonial-style property was the only hotel constructed in the US during World War II and had a pool designed by Johnny Weissmuller, of Olympic swimmer and Tarzan role fame. Here’s how it looks today.

(Photo Credit_Matt Kisiday)

In its heyday, the hotel drew Hollywood elite. The hotel lists Ava Gardner, Lana Turner, Lucille Ball and John Wayne among the celebrities who’d come by.

Like so many grand properties of the era, this one fell on hard times after multiple ownership changes. But in 2021, CH Projects stepped in to revive it with a $31 million renovation by Brooklyn-based Post Company. The property reopened in 2023.

Here are some snaps from our visit, starting with our poolside king room with a charming loo and a maxi mini-bar.

The updated hotel has 139 guest rooms, and seven unique food and beverage areas, including a 24-hour diner that recreates a 1940s Worcester lunch car, a two-lane bowling alley and other games in the bar called The Gutter, and a late-night supper club with live entertainment; John Waters was set to perform the night we left.

And here’s the lobby bar. During our visit it was all decorated to the hilt for the holiday and filled – as every other part of the public areas usually are – with visitors trying to get the perfect Instagram shot. Here’s what the lobby bar looks like when no one is there.

(Photo Credit_Matt Kisiday)

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