ATA Airlines Flights from Baltimore (BWI) to San Diego (SAN)
Orbitz is pleased to offer airline tickets on ATA Airlines, which operates 3 non-stop flights from Baltimore (BWI) to San Diego (SAN) departing between 10:15am and 6:20pm on select days of the week. Usually a Boeing 737-700 is flown for this route. The average travel time from Baltimore, MD to San Diego, CA is 5 hours and 50 minutes.*
* Some flights must connect with additional service on this airline.
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During your San Diego vacation, don't miss these great establishments and attractions:
SeaWorld San Diego
One of California's most heavily marketed attractions, SeaWorld is a big draw for a number of visitors coming to San Diego. The aquatic theme park celebrated its 40th year of operation in 2004. With each passing year the educational pretext increasingly takes a back seat to slick shows and rides, but the park -- owned by the Anheuser-Busch Corporation -- is perhaps still the country's premiere showplace for marine life, made politically correct with a nominally informative atmosphere. At its heart, SeaWorld is a shoreside family entertainment center where the performers are dolphins, otters, sea lions, orcas, and seals. The 20-minute shows run several times each throughout the day, with visitors rotating through the various open-air amphitheaters and aquarium features.Several successive 4-ton black-and-white killer whales have functioned as the park's mascot, and the Shamu Adventure is SeaWorld's most popular show. Performed in a 5,500-seat stadium, the stage is a 7-million-gallon pool lined with plexiglass walls that magnify the huge performers. But think twice before you sit in the seats down front -- a high point of the act is multiple drenchings in the first 12 or so rows of spectators. Most days, the venue fills before the two or three performances even start, so arrive early to get the seat you want. The slapstick Fools with Tools (sea lions and otters), the fast-paced Dolphin Discovery, and Pet's Rule are other performing animal routines, each in arenas seating more than 2,000. There are also shows focusing on humans: a "4-D" movie; R.L. Stine's Haunted Lighthouse, starring a roster of multisensory effects; and in summer, Cirque de la Mer, which features acrobatic acts.The collection of rides is led by Journey to Atlantis, a 2004 arrival which combines a roller coaster and log flume with Atlantis mythology and a simulated earthquake. Shipwreck Rapids is a splashy adventure on raftlike inner tubes through caverns, waterfalls, and wild rivers; and Wild Arctic is a motion simulator helicopter trip to the frozen north. The Skytower and Skyride each cost an additional $3 to ride.Guests disembarking Wild Arctic (or those using the ride bypass) find themselves in the midst of one of SeaWorld's real specialties: simulated marine environments. In this case it's an arctic research station, surrounded by beautiful beluga whales, walruses, and polar bears. Other animal environments worth seeing are Manatee Rescue, Shark Encounter, and the Penguin Encounter. Each of these attractions exits into a gift shop selling theme merchandise. The 2-acre hands-on area called Shamu's Happy Harbor is designed for kids, and features everything from a pretend pirate ship, with plenty of netted towers, to tube crawls, slides, and chances to get wet.The Dolphin Interaction Program creates an opportunity for people to meet bottlenose dolphins. Although the program stops short of allowing you to swim with the dolphins, it does offer the opportunity to wade waist-deep, and plenty of time to stroke the mammals and to try giving training commands. This 1-hour program includes some classroom time before you wriggle into a wet suit and climb into the water for 20 minutes with the dolphins. It costs $140 per person (not including park admission); participants must be age 6 or older. One step further is the Trainer for a Day program, which is a 7-hour work shift with an animal trainer. Food preparation, feeding, a training session with a dolphin, and lunch is included; the price is $395 per person. This program is limited to three participants daily, and the minimum age is 13. Advance reservations are required for both programs (tel. 877/436-5746).Although SeaWorld is best known as the home to pirouetting dolphins and fluke-flinging killer whales, the facility also plays a role in rescuing and rehabilitating beached animals found along the West Coast -- including an average of 200 seals, sea lions, marine birds, and dolphins annually, almost 65% of which are rehabilitated and returned to the wild.
San Diego Wild Animal Park
Located 35 miles north of San Diego, outside of Escondido, this terrific "zoo of the future" will transport you to the African plains and other faraway landscapes. Originally established as a breeding facility for the San Diego Zoo (the Zoological Society oversees both operations), the 1,800-acre Wild Animal Park now holds around 3,500 animals representing 429 different species -- many of them endangered. Approximately 650 animals are born every year in the park. What makes the Wild Animal Park unique is that many of the animals roam freely in vast enclosures, allowing giraffes to interact with antelopes, much as they would in Africa. You'll find the largest crash of rhinos at any zoological facility in the world; an exhibit for the critically endangered California condor; and a mature landscape of exotic vegetation from many corners of the globe. You can stroll through an epiphyllum house, a bonsai pavilion and protea garden, and then purchase the unusual species to take home from the Plant Trader shop. Although the San Diego Zoo may be world famous, it is the Wild Animal Park that many visitors celebrate as their favorite. To me, they are both essential components of the San Diego experience; to maximize your enjoyment see the zoo first, then make the trek to the Wild Animal Park a few days later. If you have a good zoo at home and have only 1 day for animals in San Diego, go for the Wild Animal Park, an experience which is all but unduplicated anywhere else.The central focus of the park is the 5-mile Wgasa Bush Line Railway, a 60-minute monorail ride that's included in the price of admission. Trains leave every 10 minutes or so from the station, and lines build up by late morning -- make this your first or last attraction of the day (the animals are more active anyway), and for the best views, sit on the right-hand side. The monorail passes through areas designated as East Africa, South Africa, Asian Plains, and the Asian Waterhole, through swaying grasses and along rocky outcrops. A pair of binoculars is handy to have along since many of the animals can be hundreds of feet away, but the monorail is meant to give you an experience of the open plains and wildlife diversity, not the up-close experience of a traditional zoo.The monorail is the signature attraction of the park, but you'll find other rewarding exhibits. There are several excellent, self-guided walking tours: the 1 3/4-mile Kilimanjaro Safari Walk, which visits the Australian rainforest and the fringe of East Africa; the 1/4-mile round-trip hike to Condor Ridge, which ascends past 13 rare or endangered North American species, including the fabulously ugly California condor; and the Heart of Africa, a 3/4-mile trail that winds through a 32-acre wilderness with varied habitats (dense forest, flourishing wetlands, sprawling savannas, and open plains) to a cheetah overlook and a giraffe-feeding station. A new, 1-acre habitat for lions will debut here in 2005, with glass windows that bring you nose-to-nose with the massive felines.Nairobi Village is the commercial hub of the park, but even here are interesting animal exhibits, including the nursery area, where irresistible young 'uns can be seen frolicking, being bottle-fed, and sleeping; a petting station; the lowland gorillas; and the South American Aviary. There are amphitheaters for a bird show and another featuring elephants, scheduled two or three times daily. Within Nairobi Village are souvenir stores, and several spots for mediocre dining. Visitors should be prepared for sunny, often downright hot, weather. It's not unusual for temperatures to be 5 to 10 degrees warmer here than in San Diego -- sunscreen, a hat, and light clothing are usually a good idea.If you really want to get up close and personal with the animals, take one of the park's Photo Caravans, which shuttles groups of eight in flatbed trucks out into the open areas that are not accessible to the general public. In my experience, the photos are secondary to the sheer enjoyment of crossing the fence to meet the rhinos, ostriches, zebras, and deer on their home turf, even getting nose-to-nose with giraffes along the way -- it's not quite as dramatic as a real African safari, but it ranks pretty high. There are two different itineraries available, each 1 3/4 hours long, or you can take both trips -- you'll want to make reservations in advance by calling tel. 619/718-3050. The price is $90 per person for one caravan, or $130 for both (not including park admission); children must be at least 8 years old, and ages 8 to 17 must be accompanied by an adult.
Cabrillo National Monument
Breathtaking views mingle with the early history of San Diego, which began when Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo arrived in 1542. His statue dominates the tip of Point Loma, 422 feet above sea level, which is also a vantage point for watching migrating Pacific gray whales en route from the Arctic Ocean to Baja California December through March. A self-guided tour of the restored lighthouse (1855) illuminates what life was like here more than a century ago (fog and low clouds made the lighthouse ineffective so another was built close to the water in 1891). National Park Service rangers lead walks at the monument, and there are tide pools to explore at the base of the peninsula. On the other side of the point is the Bayside Trail, a 3.2-mile round-trip down to a lookout over the bay. Free 30-minute videos and slide shows on Cabrillo, tide pools, and the whales are shown on the hour daily from 10am to 4pm. Note the view from the visitor center to the left (north); the blocky structure on the water is the navy's nuclear submarine base. The drive from downtown takes about a half-hour.
Motel 6 Hotel Circle
Yes, it's a Motel 6, so you know the drill: No mint on the pillow and you have to trundle down to the front desk to retrieve a cup of coffee in the morning. On the other hand, these budget hotels -- now part of the mammoth Accor chain, the world's third-largest hotel company -- know how to provide a consistent product at dependably inexpensive rates, and this one is very central to San Diego's sightseeing. The modern, four-story motel sits at the western end of Hotel Circle. Rooms are sparingly but adequately outfitted, with standard motel furnishings; bathrooms are perfunctory. Stay away from the loud freeway side -- rooms in the four-story structure in back overlook a scenic 18-hole golf course and river. The hotel doesn't have a restaurant, but a fair steakhouse is across the street.
Gaslamp Plaza Suites
You can't get closer to the center of the vibrant Gaslamp Quarter than this beautifully restored late Victorian. At 11 stories, it was San Diego's first skyscraper, built in 1913. Crafted (at great expense) of Australian gumwood, marble, brass, and exquisite etched glass, the splendid building originally housed San Diego Trust & Savings. Various other businesses (jewelers, lawyers, doctors, photographers) set up shop here until 1988, when the elegant structure was placed on the National Register of Historic Places and reopened as a boutique hotel.You'll be surprised at the timeless elegance, from the wide corridors to guest rooms furnished with European flair. Each bears the name of a writer (Emerson, Swift, Zola, Shelley, Fitzgerald, and so on). Most rooms are spacious and offer luxuries rare in this price range, like pillow-top mattresses and premium toiletries; microwaves and dinnerware; and impressive luxury bathrooms. Beware of the cheapest rooms on the back side -- they are uncomfortably small (although they do have regular-size bathrooms) and have no view. The higher floors boast splendid city and bay views, as do the rooftop patio and breakfast room. Despite the welcome addition of noise-muffling windows, don't be surprised to hear a hum from the street below, especially when the Quarter gets rockin' on the weekends.
La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club
You're supposed to pack your best tennis whites for a stint at La Jolla's private "B&T" (as it's locally known), where CEOs and MDs come to relax and recreate. The location is unbeatable -- right on the La Jolla Shores beach -- and the physical property is attractive, in a Spanish hacienda sort of way. However, standard guest rooms are unbelievably plain and outmoded (think late-1970s Holiday-Inn styling); most have full kitchens that are appropriate for families or longer stays. Beachfront rooms are tiny -- the showers are tight enough to give broad-shouldered types claustrophobia -- but they're brighter, and the wide ocean panorama at the foot of your bed is undeniably splendid (if totally un-private). A variety of suites are available. The beach is popular and staff stays busy shooing away non-guests, in between primping the comfy sand chairs and umbrellas, and keeping guests stocked with fluffy towels, beverages, and snacks. Kayaks and watersports equipment can be rented; there's even a sand croquet court. There's no room service, but the hotel's distinctive Marine Room restaurant is one of San Diego's very best, and waves literally smash against its broad windows, inches away from diners.This historic property was founded in the 1920s, when original plans included constructing a yacht harbor (egad!); today it's known primarily for tennis, and for the $40,000 down payment it takes to become a member. You get better room value for your money at the club's sister hotel next door, the Sea Lodge , but you don't stay here for the quality -- B&T guests are chasing exclusive, old-money atmosphere and fawning service.
Need help booking your trip?
Book online or call
1-800-504-3248(toll free)
Need help booking your trip?
Book online or call
1-800-504-3248(toll free)
Need help booking your trip?
Book online or call
1-800-504-3248(toll free)
Need help booking your trip?
Book online or call
1-800-504-3248(toll free)
Other direct flights to San Diego (SAN) on ATA Airlines