SeeCalifornia.com

We hope Prince Harry had as great a time as we had visiting Solana Beach and the local Belly Up tavern. Seen dancing, drinking tequila and hugging a beautiful blonde during a break in military training, he visited several months ago with a group of guys and was really well behaved, said locals, who thought he seemed to fit in with his flannel shirt, jeans and ball cap.

What’s not to fit into in Solana Beach? The north San Diego beach town with a name that means “sun” is a small slice of paradise, and a taste of the Big Easy.  Kind of a mix between a surf community, artist colony with Cedras Arts District, golf and sports mecca with Del Mar’s racetrack nearby, retirement community, and suburb providing an easy commute to San Diego thanks to the local train stops, Solana Beach really has everything anyone could want. A lively arts & entertainment scene next to the beach offers enough to do that locals don’t ever have to leave.

At Belly Up (bellyup.com),bands appear most nights of the week with plenty of tribute fare, original acts and well knowns. A Night With Taj Mahal, Walter Trout (winner of dozens of top blues artist awards,) and many  sell-out acts such as Hugh Laurie attract visitors to tiny Solana Beach with its modest population of less than 13,000 and 3.6 square miles of land.

If you’re looking for a sunny vacation that’s big on easy, you can do San Diego remotely, taking trips into town on the Coaster or other trains that stop at Solana Beach station.  Life can be so sweet, on the sunny side of the street!