The richest and most desirable part of San Diego, La Jolla sits along the coast northwest of the city proper, gazing out over azure coves to the endless Pacific. Besides the gorgeous scenery, great surfing (head to Windansea for the best waves), beachcombing, and skin diving, a big draw here is the recently renovated Museum of Contemporary Art (daily; $4; 858/454-3541), overlooking the ocean at 700 Prospect Avenue. Tons of good cafés and restaurants have long made La Jolla an all-around great day out, suiting all budgets—especially those with no upper limit.
Start the day off right at La Jolla’s Cottage (858/454-8409), at 7702 Fay Avenue, where delicious food (including a divine buttermilk coffee cake) is served up on a sunny patio. For a memorable lunch or dinner, the very plush Tapenade (858/551-7500) at 7612 Fay Avenue is one of the best restaurants in Southern California, offering a deluxe mix of Mediterranean dishes. To continue the swaddled-in-luxury SoCal experience, stay the night at the elegant, Craftsman-style Lodge at Torrey Pines ($199 and up; 858/453-4420), a modern re-creation of California’s turn-of-the-20th-century Golden Age located at 1148 N. Torrey Pines Road.
San Diego is also the beginning of our cross-country Southern Pacific route, along US-80, which runs east across Arizona all the way to Tybee Island, Georgia.
