Hotels

Hotel Del Coronado

With expansive meeting facilities situated right on a gorgeous beachfront, the Hotel del Coronado offers both a stunning seaside setting and an elegant experience for meetings and events. And that experience is heightened with the completion of a half-billion-dollar re-envisioning, which includes a grand restoration of the hotel's original Victorian building and guest rooms, an upgrade to the grand front entrance, the addition of 142 new luxury guest rooms and the addition of 29,000 square feet of event and meetings space. The great meetings options here include the Southpointe Center, a state-of-the-art facility that opens onto a 14,000-square-foot Great Lawn with views of the hotel's historic Victorian architecture. The updates arrive in tandem with the luxurious guest experiences offered by the recently opened Shore House at The Del. In all, the hotel now offers more than 65,000 square feet of event space across the 28-acre property.

DoubleTree by Hilton San Diego Bayside

The former Holiday Inn San Diego Bayside has announced that it has joined the Hilton portfolio and has reopened to guests as DoubleTree by Hilton San Diego Bayside. In addition, the property has been transformed with a full $5 million renovation, including updates to the lobby, guest rooms, restaurant, fitness center and exterior. And the hotel welcomes the addition of two new meeting spaces. 

The Bower Coronado

The Bower is one of Coronado’s first new developments in decades. The hotel takes a unique approach to hospitality, with transaction-free arrivals and custom-built itineraries for guests. The architecture and design embrace the Japanese wabi-sabi philosophy of perfection in imperfection, emphasizing natural materials and serene aesthetics in homage to its location on the historic grounds of John D. Spreckels' Japanese tea garden. The Bower also features Coronado’s first and only rooftop bar and restaurant, Dive, which offers panoramic views from Point Loma to Mexico.  

Manchester Grand Hyatt

The Manchester Grand Hyatt is preparing to reopen the newly renovated Sally’s waterfront restaurant. Designed with nautical-inspired elements, the reimagined space offers a Baja Med-inspired menu by Chef Alvaro Garcia, featuring dishes such as grilled octopus, ceviche and premium aged local beef. Guests can enjoy mezcal- and tequila-based cocktails while taking in stunning views of San Diego Bay from the expanded outdoor terrace.

Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina

The bayfront Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina on Harbor Island has completed the next installment of its over $100 million property-wide renovation with a newly transformed lobby and the opening of three onsite dining concepts. Rumorosa presents Cali-Baja cuisine with sweeping views of the marina. Brewery X Harbor Island is the first San Diego location of the Orange County-based brewery and features a menu of wild and whacky named dishes. Along with the refresh of the property’s three pools, Sunglow Cabana Bar offers frozen drinks for all ages.

Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa

Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa has unveiled two new on-site eateries following the completion of its $26 million renovation and redevelopment. On its pool deck, guests can visit The Palma Bar & Grill, offering cocktails and light bites. The Trading Post Café & Bar offers a slightly more elevated dining experience on an outdoor patio with menu items made with locally sourced ingredients.

Omni San Diego Hotel

Just in time for its 20th anniversary, the Omni San Diego Hotel in Downtown's Gaslamp Quarter has announced the completion of its top-down renovation.  This includes a redesigned poolside experience, two new food and beverage concepts, refreshed meeting and event spaces, and a reimagined lobby and guest rooms.

Lafayette Hotel & Suites

North Park's charming Lafayette Hotel has seen a whole lot of San Diego history, from serving as a movie-star hangout in the 1940s to gaining fame as a "Top Gun" filming location in the ‘80s. Now the elegantly retro boutique hotel has reopened after a $26 million makeover courtesy of San Diego's high-profile Consortium Holdings. The property offers almost 11,000 square feet of event space, with eight meeting rooms hosting up to 764 people. And the hotel’s revamp brings a raft of new bars and restaurants, a live-music venue, even a throwback bowling alley.

Granger Hotel

The Gaslamp Quarter's newest hotel, the Granger boasts a fascinating history that includes serving as a temporary home for San Diego Zoo animals during the early 1900s. This sister property to the Guild Hotel offers boutique luxury accommodations in 96 rooms and suites, with an inviting lobby scene that includes bites and beverages at the in-house 5th & Lox. 

Retail/Commerce/Recreation Developments

IQHQ

Now coming online along San Diego’s bayfront is the Research and Development District, a state-of-the-art science campus backed by $2.6 billion in funding and promising to turbocharge San Diego's biotech presence with 5.5 million square feet of life science research space. Developed by IQHQ, the Research and Development District (or RaDD, as the project is known) sits on 6 acres and includes a mix of midrise buildings and a 17-story tower, plus retail, restaurants, a public paseo, roof decks and green space with community access.

UC San Diego Park & Market

This multipurpose facility in the East Village — with easy access to the San Diego Trolley's new UC San Diego Blue Line Extension — aims to be the premier meeting and event center in San Diego’s urban core. The gleaming 66,750-square-foot building boasts tech-ready executive conference rooms, a pair of theater/event spaces, an expansive outdoor terrace and more. The center not only can host a wide variety of meetings as well as cultural and community events, but it serves as a key home for university programs, providing broad access to education and advancement for those in the community.

Entertainment Venues

Jacobs Music Center

A cornerstone of San Diego's arts and culture community, the Joan and Irwin Jacobs Music Center — the San Diego Symphony's historic indoor performance home — has staged a grand reopening after a $125 million renovation. The Downtown center's 1929-vintage concert hall has been outfitted with state-of-the-art digital sound and lighting and can seat up to 1,750. It serves as the ideal companion to The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park, the symphony’s stunning outdoor performance venue on the San Diego waterfront.

The Joan

This summer brings the long-awaited official opening of the Joan & Irwin Jacobs Performing Arts Center at ARTS Center Liberty Station in Point Loma. Affectionately known as The Joan in memory of Joan Jacobs, a beloved arts patron and philanthropist (alongside her husband, Irwin), the center will serve as a permanent home for Cygnet Theatre. It will feature two dedicated performance spaces: the Joseph W. Clayes III Theater, a 280-plus-seat proscenium theater, and the Dottie Studio, a 150-seat flexible space.

Western Metal Supply Co. Building at Petco Park

Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres, has unveiled extensive renovations to the ballpark’s Western Metal Supply Co. Building. The project includes a complete makeover of group spaces, including the Budweiser Loft on the Fifth Level, the Foul Pole Suite, the Entertainment Suite, and the Rooftop. Among improvements are an elevated social space in the Budweiser Loft that celebrates the building’s historic character, and a new grand staircase connecting the Loft directly to the renovated Western Metal Rooftop.

Jewels of the Sea: The Jellyfish Experience at SeaWorld San Diego

SeaWorld San Diego has made a big splash of late with exciting new rides and other offerings, and now the world-renowned park is celebrating yet another opening: Jewels of the Sea, the Jellyfish Experience. The new aquarium, with a signature walk-through arch, 18-foot cylindrical display and giant viewing wall, is as interactive, immersive and about as close as you can get to the fascinating jellies without plunging in for a swim. And it makes for a one-of-a-kind event venue.

Belmont Park

A San Diego icon, Belmont Park has been a vibrant part of the Mission Beach boardwalk since 1925, drawing visitors to its vintage Giant Dipper roller coaster, nostalgic beachside treats and perfect endless-summer vibe. And this year, Belmont marks its centennial with a series of special events throughout 2025, including a lifetime-pass giveaway.

Restaurants

Communion

When it comes to beautiful views, San Diego's Communion is the latest sensation. The restaurant sits high above the Mission Hills neighborhood, affording panoramic skyline views. And with two concepts and multiple spaces, the place can accommodate a wide range of events.

Crack Shack

Chef Richard Blais rose to stardom on Top Chef and Top Chef All-Stars, and when he chose to start his restaurant empire, he wanted the Pacific Ocean as his backyard. After debuting with Juniper & Ivy in 2014, he opened the Crack Shack, a hugely successful fast-casual eatery devoted to chicken and egg dishes such as a two-hands-needed fried chicken sandwich. Since then, Crack Shack has expanded to Encinitas, Orange County, L.A. and Las Vegas. And this year brings the restaurant's fifth San Diego location, near Crystal Pier in Pacific Beach.

Roma Norte

Roma Norte is a new cocktail bar concept adjacent to Puesto at the Headquarters. Led by Vice President of Bar and Spirits Beau du Bois, the bar offers a curated selection of 10-12 immersive cocktails inspired by Mexico City's Roma Norte district. Guests can enjoy unique flavor combinations and herbal fusions paired with small plates and late-night bites by Chef Erik Aronow. Roma Norte has been named a James Beard Award finalist.

Valle

Chef Roberto Alcocer, whose much-buzzed restaurant near the Oceanside Pier earned a coveted Michelin star in 2023, can now add a James Beard Award nomination to his accolades, in the category Best Chef: California. Valle pays tribute to Baja California's vineyard-studded Guadalupe Valley, "which furnishes the restaurant’s wine list and serves as inspiration for Chef Alcocer’s refined, modern expression of Mexican cuisine," Michelin inspectors have said.

Animae

Also a James Beard Award finalist in the Best Chef: California is the celebrated San Diego chef Tara Monsod. Her cooking at the Asian fusion restaurant Animae has earned great acclaim, and has previously made her a Beard finalist. 

Le Coq

Chef Tara Monsod continues to spread her wings with this new restaurant, a collaboration with Food Network Chef Brian Malarkey and Chris Puffer of Puffer Malarkey Group. Le Coq, a French steakhouse, is situated in downtown La Jolla and has a menu grounded in the precision of traditional French culinary technique.

Nobu and Veranda at the Hotel del Coronado

Great dining goes next-level at the Hotel del Coronado with the openings of two new restaurants. Nobu, the latest location for the worldwide favorite founded by Nobu Matsuhisa and Robert De Niro, brings exquisite Japanese cuisine to the historic hotel. And Veranda pairs spectacular ocean views with elevated American favorites inspired by the Del’s SoCal roots and the wraparound deck where hotel guests mingled in Victorian times.