Why "There's No Place Like Home" at the Hotel Del Coronado

It is one of the most visited places in San Diego, the Hotel del Coronado. While not technically in the city of San Diego, it is as much a part of our city as anything.

And as San Diego Magazine put it recently, “Like that neighbor of yours who is aging suspiciously well, the Hotel del Coronado has been somewhat quietly getting a makeover.”

It has been undergoing a $550-million dollar renovation since 2018.

The “Del” is 137 years old. Built in 1888 they said it would be the talk of the Western World. And it pretty much has lived up to that dream.

In the early 1900’s Wizard of Oz author Frank L. Baum, who was a frequent visitor, was inspired by the hotel’s design for his vision of the Emerald City.

My wife and I were lucky enough to be invited to the Hotel Del’s 100th birthday party in 1988, when the hotel was turned into a land of Oz, with even the little people actors who played the roles of the munchkins in the film there to celebrate.

For millions of people from here to everywhere, a visit to the Hotel del Coronado is something you never forget.

(Photo KOGO News)