Pacific Surfliner and Coasters

[Seeking advice]

I have a trip coming up in San Diego in a few weeks I read somewhere about coaster trains, are these amtrak trains? If not do they use the same tracks? We are staying at a hotel on Hotel circle drive (old town I think) I would like to visit different beach areas using public transportation. Will these coaster/pacific surfliners trains suffice? Or should we plan on renting a car?

 

[zephyr17]

I have a trip coming up in San Diego in a few weeks I read somewhere about coaster trains, are these amtrak trains? If not do they use the same tracks? We are staying at a hotel on Hotel circle drive (old town I think) I would like to visit different beach areas using public transportation. Will these coaster/pacific surfliners trains suffice? Or should we plan on renting a car?

Coasters are not Amtrak, they are local commuter trains. Pacific Surfliners is the Amtrak service on the route. They do run on the same tracks (the commuter agency actually owns the tracks, Amtrak is a tenant). Coasters are cheaper, and they make more stops, so you have more flexibility on those.

 

[MrFSS]

Coaster info is HERE.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

The Surfliner cars aren't much better than the Coaster ones so just take the Coaster. Remember it only goes to Oceanside, but you can change to Metrolink from there to get to LAX.

 

[amtkstn]

Where are boarding? The trip I did last year was on the Metrolink to Oceanside and then Coaster the rest of the way. Comming back to Los Angelos I rode Amtrak back. The big diffrence is Amtrak has better seats and has some 90 MPH running. If on Amtrak you can get business class it is even better.

 

[rtabern]

Yes, you can reach beaches by public transit. Your best option, in my opinion, is to head up to Solana Beach... the station is about 2 blocks away from a really beautiful beach and lookout point. I try and head out there anytime I am in SAN or LAX. I have never done the Coaster... just Pacific Surfliner... for the AGR points and the limited stops.

 

[Trogdor]

The Surfliner cars aren't much better than the Coaster ones so just take the Coaster. Remember it only goes to Oceanside, but you can change to Metrolink from there to get to LAX.

Surfliner cars have better seat cushions, more legroom, and they recline. Surfliner trains also have cafe cars, which Metrolink/Coaster do not.

If you're only going San Diego to Solana Beach or Oceanside, you can survive with a Coaster trip. Coaster also serves several intermediate stops not served by the Surfliners. Assuming the fare difference doesn't bother you, just take whatever train has the most convenient schedule.

If you're going past Oceanside, the Surfliner is the better bet. You can transfer to Metrolink, but the trains aren't always timed for good connections, and the Metrolink service to Oceanside is particularly limited (even moreso if you're traveling on a weekend).

 

[bombcar]

Other San Diego beaches are available via the bus and trolley:

http://www.sdmts.com/trolley/trolley.asp

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

The Surfliner cars aren't much better than the Coaster ones so just take the Coaster. Remember it only goes to Oceanside, but you can change to Metrolink from there to get to LAX.

Surfliner cars have better seat cushions, more legroom, and they recline. Surfliner trains also have cafe cars, which Metrolink/Coaster do not.

Well, yeah, but for me the difference there is too little to justify the increased prices of the PacSurf. If I were going to Santa Barbara or San Luis Obispo than I would take the PacSurf.

Edit: another error

 

[pldenc44]

Take the Coaster to the Encinitas station and walk 1 block to Moonlight Beach (at the end of Encinitas Blvd). It's a great family place and not as crowded as the downtown beaches in San Diego. Very convenient from the Coaster. For Amtrak's Surfliner the Solana Beach station is just a couple miles away.

 

[hmy1]

Which beaches do you wish to visit? You can get to most beaches in San Diego with MTS buses and a little patience. The quickest way to visit beaches in the north county is to take the Coaster or Surfliner and transfer to the NCTD 101 bus from there. A few notes:

- The Coaster is a commuter train and runs primarily during the commute hours and favors the commute direction

- The Surfliner only stops in Solana Beach and Oceanside in the north county. The Coaster stops at all stations

- All Coasters stop in Old Town. Not all Surfliners stop in Old Town

Also, while Hotel Circle is close to Old Town, it is a little bit of a hike. You can get to/from Old Town and Fashion Valley via the 88 bus, but note that it only runs every 30 minutes, ends around 9:00pm, and doesn't have service on Sundays. You may want to book a hotel in a different location if the 88 bus is too restrictive.

 

[johnny.menhennet]

I have watched this thread for a while and not said anything to see what everyone else would offer before I gave my opinion.

To answer the original poster's questions:

The Coasters are no Amtrak trains. They are meant primarily to facilitate the movement of commuters into Downtown San Diego in the morning and back home in the afternoon. However, the agency running it (NCTD) recently expanded its weekend operations, with 6 round trips on Saturdays and 4 on Sundays. You can find the schedule here. They do use the same tracks. The Coaster runs on the 41 miles from Downtown San Diego to Oceanside. The Pacific Surfliner trains are scheduled with more regular intervals than the Coaster, operating all day. They are more expensive, but they are meant for long distance (at least out of San Diego) service. To get to Hotel Circle, you can just take the Trolley two stops on the Green Line. This will be the train that comes in from the north, and heads back to the north. The San Diego beaches will be very crowded, and will be very hard to drag your family to without a car. Unfortunately, San Diego Bay itself does not really have any beaches. The suggestions on going to both of the Coaster stations at Solana Beach and Encinitas are good. Contrary to what was said two posts up, the Solana Beach train station is only two short blocks from nice, uncrowded beaches. Moonlight Beach at Encinitas is nice as well, and bigger, but will be more crowded. Another suggestion that only a San Diegan would really know would be to go to Coronado. You can take the Trolley to Downtown San Diego (in this case, Santa Fe Depot) with a switch from the Green to Blue Line at Old Town. You then walk two blocks and arrive at the bayfront. Once here, you are almost exactly at the ferry terminal. On the hour from Downtown and the 1/2 hour from Coronado, a ferry crosses the bay. It is a nice ride, and fun for the family. You can then either take a hike across Coronado to the big crowded beaches with waves, or else you could play at the smaller beaches on the east side right st the ferry terminal. There are lots of nice restaurants (Il Fornaio is highly recommended) and if you would like, renting a surrey to ride along the "boardwalk" is a great way to enjoy the Coronado breezes. No matter what you end up doing, have a good time. San Diego really is "America's Finest City."

 

[seeking advice]

Thanks Johnny, I was waiting for your reply, I knew you wouldn't let me down. See ya in a couple o weeks. Oh yea, If I want to visit La Jolla is there a good way without a car. We are coming in the last week of June and leaving on the 4th to overnite in LA at the Metro Plaza Hotel (thank's AU members)then leaving on friday's CS to PDX on to CHI

 

[johnny.menhennet]

Thanks Johnny, I was waiting for your reply, I knew you wouldn't let me down. See ya in a couple o weeks. Oh yea, If I want to visit La Jolla is there a good way without a car. We are coming in the last week of June and leaving on the 4th to overnite in LA at the Metro Plaza Hotel (thank's AU members)then leaving on friday's CS to PDX on to CHI

You can check MTS bus lines and schedules. I am not too familiar with MTS, but I looked it up for you and it looks like there is 1 bus line to get you there. The two beaches I would recommend in La Jolla would be either La Jolla Shores (voted best beach in county for families) or La Jolla Cove. La Jolla Cove has very cold water, but excellent snorkeling right off the sand. If you think you;re up to that, it's a good choice. The bus line is #30, as shown here on this map. This shows all of MTS's bus lines, which cover the southern more dense half of the county. Here is the schedule for that route. Upon closer examination, it looks like it only stops near the Cove, and the Shores is a LONG walk, not easy and not worth it. La Jolla Cove would be a good day, but I don't know how your family and kids would feel about spending all that time and all those transfers on a bus. The Trolley and/or Coaster are fun, and will not disappoint. I strongly recommend the Coronado suggestion, as it will REALLY be a great day. I;m not just saying it because I live here either, but Solana Beach is a very nice and laid back town. Plus we could use your tax dollars $ haha jk but seriously the North County beaches are just as good as any you'll find in the central city and less crowded.

 

[seeking advice]

Okay. Thanks for all your suggestions. With AGR's quadruple partner points and my AAA discount I will go ahead and rent a car, just to have, to get to the hard to get to places. Johnny, I will be sure and drop a few dollars in tax coffers while we enjoy your beaches and fine city. Thanks again

 

[hmy1]

I know this is a train forum, but a couple comments in case this thread comes up in a search:

SDMTS route 30 serves both La Jolla Village and La Jolla Shores. La Jolla cove is about three or four long blocks to the nearest stop. The nearest stop to La Jolla Shores beach is four short blocks at the south end (where the kayak/scuba/surf rental companies are located) or just one block at the north end. It is fairly common to see beach-goers with short boards or boogie boards on this and other coastal routes, especially during the summer.

I guess I just wanted to say that it is feasible to visit San Diego without a car, but it depends on where you're staying, what you'd like to do, and how much time you have. I have met plenty of tourists who didn't bother with a rental car. However, I want to make sure you spend as much as time as possible enjoying our city rather than riding on transit all day.

 

[NorthEncantoGirl]

First of all, welcome to our city! I know you will love it.

As a San Diego Native, let me just say--get a car if you can. There are many beaches, and as someone said, if you want to do more sightseeing than bus/trolley riding, a car is your best bet--and I say this as a booster of bus/light rail travel. From where you are--and it sounds like you're more in Hotel Circle than you are in Old Town, getting to the Green line trolley is funky. It's not that it can't be done, but it takes time. Also, if you want to go to the beaches closer to your hotel, rather than North County beaches, you could park your car at the Old Town station and take buses from there, but you'd still have your car--from where you will be, you will be close to funky Ocean Beach, young Mission and Pacific Beaches, and a short car ride from the Embarcadero and Coronado. From what I can glean from your post, you are farther away from the Old Town station than you might think...

Just for ease of use, I do hope you get a car. But if you do decide to take pub trans, see if your hotel has bus schedules; no matter where you go, you'll be starting your journey on the bus. If there's a bus close by that will get you to either Fashion Valley or to Old Town you'll be in a much better position.

In any case, have a great trip!