Choice Highlights

• Choose between two carefully selected activities
• San Diego: Commissioned eight days after WWII, Midway was the longest service aircraft carrier in the 20th century. Explore the decks and listen to tales from her pilots. Venture below deck to learn all about life in the galley and engine rooms.
• San Diego: The view of both San Diego’s skyline and waters whilst on a harbor cruise is spectacular and brings the city’s history to life. Look out for the Navy ships that are usually dotted around on the water, highlighting the city’s naval presence.

Authentic Dining

• Newport Beach: Join your fellow travelers for a savory 3-course welcome dinner with wine.
• San Diego: San Diego’s culinary scene is burgeoning these days. Known for its emphasis on great seafood, local wines, craft breweries and incredible southwest flavors, thanks to its proximity to Mexico.
• Palm Springs: Dine at a local restaurant in Downtown Palm Springs. The affluent and diverse population here has attracted dozens of locally owned restaurants, featuring everything from iconic steakhouses to authentic Mexican cuisine.
• Dining Summary: 3 Dinner with Wine (DW), 6 Breakfast (B), and 1 Lunch (L)

Top Rated Highlights

• Balboa Island: Explore this quaint harborside community with your Travel Director. A man-made treasure, Balboa Island is home to some of the most expensive homes in California. A walk along the pier offers glorious views of the hillside, town and ocean.
• Huntington Beach: Huntingdon Beach is known as “Surf City USA’ and every year hosts the “U.S. Open of Surfing”, the world’s largest surfing competition. This fascinating museum is dedicated to Hawaiian legend Duke Kahanamoku, who popularized the sport. Browse a fascinating collection of memorabilia, including some of surfing history’s most significant artifacts.
• Crystal Cove: Crystal Cove offers sand, surf, rocky reefs, ridges and canyons, with over three miles of beach and 2,400 acres of backcountry wilderness. Be sure to wander around the intriguing historic district dotted with 46 rustic coastal cottages that date back to the 1930s.
• San Diego: The views of the ocean are simply breathtaking as you travel south to San Diego. Sit back, relax and immerse yourself in the natural beauty of Southern California.
• San Diego: The location of the first European settlement in California, Old Town San Diego is full of historic sites and reconstructed buildings. Be sure to visit the 1825 Casa de Estudillo, one of the finest haciendas in the state. Or drop into the Wells Fargo Museum to admire a rare original stagecoach.
• San Diego: Join your Travel Director and learn about the Gaslamp Quarter, dating back to 1850. Visit the vast Balboa Park which houses no less than 16 museums, numerous gardens, the Old Globe outdoor Theatre, and San Diego Zoo. Finish with a trip over the Coronado Bridge and a walk through the legendary Hotel Del Coronado.
• Julian: Be transported back in history in the charming town of Julian. A vibrant example of a California frontier town, with pioneer store fronts, historic sites and mines, Julian first became a mining camp when gold was discovered there in 1869. The entire township is now a Designated Historical District.
• Borrego Springs: Get a close look at the works of artist and welder Ricardo Breceda, who has curated a fascinating collection of rust metal sculptures in the town of Borrego Springs. This amazing site is home to nearly 200 pieces with Elephants, sloths, camels, raptors, horses, and tortoise sculptures all represented.
• Anza Borrego State Park: Located within the Colorado Desert, California’s largest state park includes dramatic badlands, cool palm oases, twisting slot canyons and cactus-studded slopes. Start your visit at the fascinating Visitor's Center, built underground for cooling efficiency.
• Anza Borrego State Park: Enjoy a tasty picnic lunch before you take a moderate hike along the Borrego Palm Canyon Trail. A you walk through the palm tree groves and waterfalls, keep an eye out for bighorn sheep and migrating birds. Some 80 species use the canyon as a watering stop on their flight through the desert.
• Anza Borrego State Park: Stretching from the town of Borrego Springs to the Salton Sea, this desolate county road offers some of the most scenic views of Anza Borrego, including the stunning Borrego Badlands.
• Joshua Tree National Park: Named for the region’s twisted bristled Joshua trees, the park combines two distinct desert ecosystems, the Mojave and the Colorado. Home to a fascinating variety of plants and animals, the park is larger than the state of Rhode Island. Lose yourself in rich cultural history, surreal geological features and unique vegetation.
• Palm Springs: Join your Travel Director for a sightseeing tour featuring the city's residential mid-century architecture. Architects such as Donald Wexler built homes featuring Southern California Modernism (a lot of steel, a lot of glass) that were popular with the likes of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Marilyn Monroe.

Insight Choice

• San Diego: Commissioned eight days after WWII, Midway was the longest service aircraft carrier in the 20th century. Explore the decks and listen to tales from her pilots. Venture below deck to learn all about life in the galley and engine rooms.
• San Diego: The view of both San Diego’s skyline and waters whilst on a harbor cruise is spectacular and brings the city’s history to life. Look out for the Navy ships that are usually dotted around on the water, highlighting the city’s naval presence.

Make Travel Matter

• Thermal: Meet Saralyn Delk, (to date) the only female date ranch owner/farmer in America. Regulus Date Ranch is a biodynamic and organic boutique date farm producing arguably the finest Medjool dates in the state. Take a journey through the groves as Saralyn treats you to some dates straight off the tree. Learn how roosters and abandoned feral cats work in tandem to rid the grounds of bugs, gophers, rats, and other pests that would normally destroy the crops.