Ok, was my teaser post a bit misleading? I meant Vacation Village which was a resort in San Diego, not a village, village.

This was a tough post to put together and it’s mainly because my memory is not quite what it use to be. I remember tiny bits and pieces of vacationing here with my family, but I don’t remember a whole lot. When doing my research online, I couldn’t find much information that could be used to confirm or refresh my memory.

One of the things that does stick in my mind was the 70 foot tall wood and metal observation tower that was the main landmark on the property. It had a very unusual design to it, with all of the ornamental iron work at the top of the tower. The tower was situated in the middle of the resort and once you climb to the top of the tower, you were treated to a 360 degree view of the resort, Mission Bay and San Diego area.

Biking was another thing I remember doing there. You could rent bicycles and ride them all around the resort area. I don’t know if they allowed you to ride outside the resort.

We also ate at the only restaurant that was available in the resort. It’s really weird, but I remember having scrambled eggs for breakfast one morning, really! I don’t know why in the world I remember that one detail, but I do.

Okay, I feel compelled to admit something on this blog to all of my readers worldwide (I’m actually just trying to fill this post with words). I’ve never spoken of this to even my closest friends (see what the power of the written word does for me), I don’t even think my wife knows this story. Anyway, being the adventurous/curious type, I went off on my own (I told my parents) to explore the resort and find the beach. I remember walking between a pair of beach cottages (these were rooms right on the beach) and seeing the sand and the water. I was kicking around and walking up and down the beach for several minutes, then I decided to head back to our room. Well, I walked back between the cottages again, but something didn’t look quite the same, I didn’t recognize where I was. I walked back to the beach and noticed that all along the beach were these cottages and they all looked the same to me!

Well, after some time of me walking (running) up and down the beach, jutting in and out between different cottages, I saw my family, because they were out looking for me. Needless to say, I didn’t go wandering off again during that trip.

The original Vacation Village that I remember is gone, but after researching for this post, I found out that Vacation Village is still alive and well in the same location under a new name, Paradise Point Resort (http://www.paradisepoint.com/).

A lot has changed in the past 48 years, the resort has gone from 150 guestrooms and one restaurant to 462 luxurious guest cottages and two unique restaurants, 5 tennis courts, 5 swimming pools, spa and beauty salon and more.

I haven’t been back since the mid ’60s, but I may vacation there again one day just to climb the tower, soak in the memories, walk along the beach and see if I can find my way back to my room.

Has anyone stayed at Vacation Village back in the ’60s? If you have any more details to offer, please leave me a comment.

If you are interested in reading about the history of Vacation Village, visit the link below:
http://www.paradisepoint.com/mission-bay-resort-history.php