Best Hotels for a San Diego Cruise by Brand
(This post contains affiliate links at no cost to you. The thoughts and opinion are strictly our own thoughts)
I have another cruise next month- I went on my first Disney cruise (actually my first cruise ever!) and loved it so much, we recruited a few family members to join us in January for a Disney Cruise on the Wonder.
We highly recommend either driving or flying to San Diego the day before your cruise, just in case of delays so you won’t be stressed. And you can then get an early embark time and relax on the ship before it sails!
What’s included in a Disney Cruise
This meant we needed to book a hotel for one night . when searching we wanted to stay close to the port, have good reviews, and be able to use credit card points to pay for at least MOST of the price. Here is what my top choices are broken down by brand and then drumroll, I’ll tell you what I ended up choosing and how I paid for it.
Hyatt
click here for Hyatt hotels in San Diego.
Our go to hotel brand for using credit card points (thank you Chase!), Hyatt are consistently the best brand for value using points. These Hyatt hotels are all within a few miles of the cruise port, so an easy uber from the airport and to the cruise terminal.
Use chase points from your chase sapphire or Hyatt points to pay for your hotel stay. Massive bonus- you don’t pay for resort fees when staying on points.
Marriott
Click here for all San Diego Marriott Hotels.
Both got great reviews, and the courtyard gets bonus points for being under a 35K free night certificate. Marriott’s are getting harder and harder to find under that threshold. Use Marriot points and free night certificates from Co branded cards with Marriott (Chase and Amex both have co branded cards with Marriott). Not a good use of Chase Sapphire points when transferred to Marriott, unless you just need a few thousand to get a free night. Sometimes these hotels also show up on Chase and Amex travel portals, and the US Grant is in the Amex hotel and resort collection, which is eligible for a $200 statement credit on a Amex platinum card. I would check prices on portals and on the Marriott app, as prices seem to vary a lot between the two!
IHG
If you stay are loyal to IHG group hotels, these would be excellent choices and less than a mile away from your cruise. Click here for more info on their loyalty program.
So which did I chose???
In a plot twist, I didn’t pick a Hyatt! (insert shock face) I used my $200 Amex platinum card statement credit for the “fine hotels and resort” collection and booked the US Grant as a splurge. On the Marriott app it is listed as $520, but on the Amex travel portal it was $349. So after my $200 credit, I’m staying in a fantastic hotel for $149!!!
Which hotel program are you loyal to?
