San Diego: Better to stay in Mission Valley than Gaslamp with teens?

[Lucky'sMom]

I am trying to use my hotel associate discount for our 3 days (after Disney and LA) in San Diego. I found a great rate in the Gaslamp District, but am wondering if that's a bad choice for a family with teen daughters. Would we be more comfortable in Mission Valley? My concerns are that there won't be anything for us to do in the evening there (is it mostly bars?), our hotel there doesn't have a pool (so the girls can't do that in the evening). I liked that it was on the Old Town Trolley route, which I plan to do one day. If we stay in Mission Valley, is it difficult to find parking along the Trolley route? The MV hotel would have free breakfast and lower priced parking.

 

[Purrkins]

Although Mission Valley is mostly shopping malls and hotels, it would be my pick provided I had a car. Parking is easy along the trolley route but it would be easier to drive to where you are headed. Our public transportation is lacking... The Gaslamp is fine for teenagers. There is a large concentration of bars but there is also Seaport Village, The Headquarters, The Maritime Museum, fun shops and depending on where you stay Little Italy. It's a lot more "happening" than MV. Not sure how important having a pool is...

 

[Lucky'sMom]

Thanks so much for replying...I was losing hope on an answer!

 

[Supplanter]

Mission and old town would be fine, there is a fair amount to do, there is some really good dining there too. There's a free tour of the pioneer heritage of San Diego at the Mormon battalion visitors center too, its fun for kids. The trolley is good but if you have a car take it, parking is not usually a problem anywhere in San Diego outside of gaslamp and relying on public transport isn't always great

 

[SMD]

It depends when you're trying to park on the trolley route. If it's during work hours or at night or on a weekend when there's an event like a concert or sports you won't find parking between Mission Valley and downtown. If you're ok going all the way to Fashion Valley or possibly Qualcomm you should be ok. Depending on where you stay in the Gaslamp area there is Horton Plaza, movie theaters, and Seaport Village. But I would look into what's happening in the area during your stay. There's the All-Star game and Comic Con this summer, you might need to plan around those.