Many times I have made a point to refer to our family vacations as a “family trip.” The term vacation is something I reserve to describe a getaway where I get to sit back, relax, and have some fun (and maybe a glass of wine). Our Christmas surprise trip to Southern California was surprisingly awarded the “vacation” title after an amazing and relaxing weekend… even with kids in tow! We woke up early (like 3:30 am early) to catch a flight down to San Diego for a weekend at the Sheraton Carlsbad Resort and Spa, and it was one for the memory books!
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The San Diego area is always my destination of choice, but this was our first time traveling down there during the holidays. Let me just tell you, off-season travel is the best! Our car rental was upgraded from the cheapest option to a sports convertible for $10… yep, just $10 extra for the whole weekend, and my husband was in sports car heaven (while I put on a hooded sweatshirt and pulled it tight, since hair blowing in the wind with the top down isn’t exactly how Hollywood portrays it).
Carlsbad is about a 40-minute drive North along the California Coastline. The Sheraton Carlsbad is located on top of a hill with an ocean view and palm trees lining the streets of the property (giving this the ultimate California vacation feel). Since our last visit in October of 2017, the hotel has expanded into a whole new area and is now two sister hotels (Westin Carlsbad), along with a group of timeshare condos as well.
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As soon as the car parked, the boys were out and digging into their duffle bags for their swimsuits. The new heated pool was calling their names, and when it’s sunny and 70 degrees in Southern California, I jumped right in with them! A fun feature of the hotel is that guests can utilize all the pools and amenities between the different hotel properties. The pool at the Sheraton was the most kid-friendly with beach entry, a slide, and only 4 feet at it’s deepest point. I was able to play in the pool, sit in the spa, and lay out on the lounge chairs while reading a book that afternoon, it was heavenly!
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Probably the most family fun feature at the Sheraton is their private entrance to Legoland. The hotel property borders Legoland and has its own entrance into the back of the theme park. When the park opened at 10 am that next morning, we had that whole area of the park to ourselves for the first hour! Being the off-season, Legoland was not crowded in general, and we were able to ride every ride in the park and enjoy all their holiday events too. Tickets for Legoland do need to be purchased prior to going through the back entrance. Sheraton also offers a complimentary shuttle service if you wish to enter through the main gate.
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With the complimentary shuttle service offered by the hotel, we utilized it for a quick drive to eat dinner at a local restaurant, where we could enjoy a glass of wine and not have to worry about driving ourselves back. The kids took another go at the pool when we returned, and then walked back to Legoland for the after-dark experience with the holiday lights.
Part of the new Sheraton hotel addition are family suites, designed with kids in mind. These suites offer an additional room with 2 twin beds and a TV set up for logging into your own Netflix or Hulu account, or local television. The boys dumped their new Lego sets all over the floor and built them together while my husband and I could watch our own show in the master bedroom and not have to step on a single brick!
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While the trip was a quick weekend getaway, we felt refreshed and ready to tackle the rest of a busy holiday season after our stay at the Sheraton Carlsbad Resort and Spa. Follow them on social media to get the insider information about special offers and discounts they offer. We can’t wait to get back down there and have another family “vacation”!
*Macaroni Kid Lodi was offered a media rate at the Sheraton Carlsbad Resort and Spa, but as always, the review and opinions expressed are 100% my own.
