Grand Del Mar

Home to San Diego’s only Tom Fazio-designed championship golf course, the 249-room Grand Del Mar is a luxury San Diego resort with a breezy Mediterranean style.

Opened in October 2007, the Grand Del Mar is located in North San Diego County, about 20 miles from San Diego International Airport. In 2010, the resort received a coveted AAA Five Diamond Five Diamond rating from the Automobile Association of America (AAA) and a Mobil Five-Star ranking for its second consecutive year.

Set on the rolling green hills of Del Mar, the Grand Del Mar hotel is at once comfortable and exotic, paying homage to the Palm Beach style of 1920s architect Addison Mizner.

Here, you can walk across parquet floors while admiring rich wood-beamed ceilings, elegant rotundas, colorful and vibrant tilework and graceful arched doorways and columns. Outside, the elegance translates to the landscape, with lush tropical foliage, bubbling garden fountains, terraces filled with flowers and quiet meandering pathways. It's no wonder that a Grand Del Mar wedding is a much sought-after location for stylish San Diego brides.

Rooms in the Grand Del Mar have either a pool or golf course view, with a color palette of butter yellows, rich golds and ocean blue accents. Of the 249 guest rooms, 31 are suites which range from 2,840 to 1,010 square feet.

Each room offers luxurious touches, including 40-inch flat screen HD televisions, complimentary high speed Internet and WiFi, large in-room safes, mini bars and wet bar, and two-line telephones with voice mail. The pillow-top beds boast Italian Pratesi cotton linens and goose-down pillows. Each marble-accented bathroom boasts a dual vanity, soft bathrobes, designer candles, and European-style soaking tub with separate shower — complete with a 13-inch flat screen TV.

Your services also include twice daily housekeeping, 24-hour room service, daily laundry, valet parking, complimentary daily newspaper, complimentary shoe shines and a complimentary town car for transport within 14 miles.

With its mindful attention to indoor/outdoor living, the Grand Del Mar resort caters to the active traveler with a wealth of activities, including two outdoor tennis courts, several jogging trails and four heated swimming pools. Each Grand Del Mar pool is complemented by private cabanas and a delicious poolside menu that includes Tropical Cobb Salad with shrimp, chicken, papaya and pineapple; or poached salmon with crispy bacon and spinach greens. For adults, there is a private spa pool.

Grand Del Mar Golf

• The Grand Del Mar Golf Course is the star attraction here. Set among the scenic valley of Los Peñasquitos Canyon, this 18-hole course spans more than 380 acres set among trickling streams, sandy bunkers and a spectacular 18-foot waterfall. The 7,160-yard, par-72 course at Grand Del Mar is one of the area's most challenging — with a 5,000-square-foot practice tee, 4,200-square-foot putting green and newly renovated 50,000-square-foot Clubhouse.   Guests at the hotel also receive access to the Grand Del Mar Golf Club, a private membership club at the resort designated for owners at the residential Grand Del Mar Villas. Additionally, the golf course at Grand Del Mar includes a golf shop, locker area and Clubhouse Grill restaurant.

Grand Del Mar Spa

• While your significant other hits the links, be sure to check out the Grand Del Mar Spa. This 21,000-square-foot Renaissance retreat has 11 treatment rooms dedicated to facials, massages and hydrotherapy. Decorated in a soothing palette of soft blues, taupes and creams, the women's relaxation room is styled with imported Carrera marble, framed Hermés scarves and crystal glass tiles. Here, you can linger with some hot tea by the stone fireplaces, or enjoy the steam room, sauna and indoor Jacuzzi. There's also a European-style wet room. In the men's club-style locker room, you'll find a vintage landscapes of Venice, Italy and masculine sailboat prints. For couples spa treatments, the Spa at the Grand Del Mar boasts a couples suite and shared spa pool and outdoor Jacuzzi, so you can spend time together in between treatments. Rounding out the spa's services are a luxury spa boutique, full service hair and nail salon, fitness consultations and classes such as nature walks and hikes, or yoga and Pilates.

Grand Del Mar Restaurants

The Grand Del Mar is home to six restaurants catering to all styles and tastes. In addition to the Clubhouse Grill, which is open daily for breakfast and lunch, the resort presents afternoon tea Friday through Sunday in the Library, and offers live entertainment, cocktails and hors d'ouevres in the Lobby Lounge.

• At Cent' Anni gourmet shop, you can pick up to-go items like deli sandwiches and paninis, homemade gelato, artisan cheeses, breakfast pastries/sandwiches and fresh fruit. A signature item here is The Grand Frozen Espresso, topped with whipped cream and a housemade cookie.

• Addison, The Grand Del Mar: The resort's signature restaurant, Addison at the Grand Del Mar is open Tuesdays through Saturdays between 5:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. The Addison Grand Del Mar menu boasts such seasonal specialties as butter-baked salmon with savoy cabbage, or braised beef short rib with horseradish cremeux and port wine, prepared by Chef William Bradley. For dessert, the black fig brulee with cinnamon creme chantilly is something special. For Addison reservations, call (858) 314-1900 or visit them online at www.addisondelmar.com
  
• Amaya Grand Del Mar:  Open all day for breakfast, lunch, dinner, brunch and afternoon intermezzo, this Mediterranean-style restaurant offers indoor and outdoor seating with an upscale menu. Here, you can enjoy imported wines from Spain, France and Italy, while gazing out at the gorgeous spiral staircase and courtyard. The menu highlights seasonal cuisine, and may include such delights as poached eggs with crab, tomatoes, chipotle and avocado for breakfast; a rotisserie organic chicken cobb salad with maple-cured bacon for lunch; or grilled garlic prawns with crispy capers and pistachio Romesco for dinner. A three-course chef's tasting menu is available both with and without wine pairings. The children's menu, at $6, is affordable yet predictable, serving up hot dogs, burgers, chicken fingers and pizza. For Amaya at Grand Del Mar reservations, call 858-314-2727.
  

Nearby attractions

• Though there's plenty to keep you busy at the resort, there are several sights nearby worth checking out. You can enjoy horse racing at the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, or explore San Diego beaches and shopping in La Jolla, Del Mar and Rancho Santa Fe. Common activities on local beaches include boating, kayaking, surfing, fishing and cycling.
  
• The resort's 24-hour concierge can also arrange a ride in a hot air balloon or horseback riding. Other nearby San Diego attractions include the San Diego Zoo, San Diego Wild Animal Park, Legoland, Sea World and Temecula wine country.

Traveling with kids?

• The Grand Del Mar's Explorer’s Club offers sitting services for parents who want to enjoy the spa, golf or dining while kids and teens learn more about the local nature life. In fact, the resort's on-site naturalist is a wealth of information, taking kids on excursions through the Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve for bird watching, mountain biking and nature walks.

If you go: The Grand Del Mar Address is 5300 Grand Del Mar Court, San Diego, CA 92130. Call 858-314-2000 or 888-314-2030 or visit www.TheGrandDelMar.com

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