San Diego quick trips: Beyond the popular hot spots are attractive options on and off the beaten track

COSTA MESA, Calif. – The mantra is money is tight, so is time. Even with the siren call of summer, many vacationers this year are looking to keep things a little shorter, a little less expensive. Even a whole hog trip to San Diego might be a bit too much this year. So we’re offering up slices of San Diego – little morsels that can be collected together and perhaps turned into a one- or two-day trip. They’re appetizers and side dishes to go with the famous main courses of most visits – The San Diego Zoo, Sea World, Legoland, The Wild Animal Park, Mission Bay, Old Town, the Padres at Petco Park or the Chargers at Qualcomm Stadium. Of course, you can always skip the main courses and buy into my whole menu of offbeat choices to create your own week. -Beaches Coronado: The Florida oceanography professor who goes by the nickname “Dr. Beach” rates this as the fourth-best beach in the U.S. With the Hotel del Coronado across its broad strip of white sand, I’d bump it up a few notches. Read the entire SanLuisObispo.com article here.