The coastal town of Carlsbad located just 30 north of downtown San Diego offers residents and visitors many things. Trip Advisor and its users recently named Carlsbad as one of its Top Ten Best Family Destinations.
Weather is one factor that bring people to Carlsbad. The average temperature throughout the year ranges from 64 to 74. With an average 10 inches of rain a year, many people enjoy the outdoor lifestyle of Carlsbad with its number of walking, biking, and hiking trails to its many miles of beaches on 2 state parks. One even includes the popular South Carlsbad State Beach open year round which is located on bluffs overlooking the beach and ocean.
Two lagoons border Carlsbad. Buena Vista lagoon sits on the north of Carlsbad and Batiquitos is on the south side. Because of this, Carlsbad is a major way station for migrating birds traveling up and down the coast and people come from all over to watch the wildlife. Buena Vista lagoon is 260 acres and Batiquitos is 600 acres. Both are home to 65 species of fish, 185 species of birds and other wildlife including some endangered species like the least tern, snowy plover and the clapper rail. The lagoons include mud flats, salt marshes, a saltwater lagoon and sometimes, dry barren salt flats. There are facilities for boating, and skiing in the Batiquitos Lagoons’ saltwater lagoon, Agua Hedionda.
Though many may enjoy Carlsbad for its beaches, there are also many shopping centers, restaurants, bars, and the amusement park Legoland. There are two main large shopping centers in Carlsbad. The Westfield Plaza Camino Mall, and the Carlsbad Premium Outlet. The Mall houses over 125 stores with Sears and Macy’s as its anchor. The outlet has 90 stores of many of the top name brand designers. The outlet is an outside type shopping center and sits near the base of the famous Carlsbad Flower Fields. The fields are nearly 50 acres of Giant Tecolote Ranunculus flowers on a hill that bloom 6 to 8 weeks a year during the months of March to May.
Carlsbad is also home to world famous resorts and spas. Park Hyatt Resort Aviara is part of the Four Seasons chain of luxury hotels. It has been rated a top resort and spa by Zagat and Conde Nast Traveler. Another hotel in Carlsbad is La Costa Resort and Spa. It is not only a favorite getaway for many but it also hosts some of the finest golf and tennis tournaments. Some past golf events held at the resort were the Mercedes Championships and WGC Accenture Match Play Championship. The resort also hosted the LPGA. Yearly, the Southern California Open is held at La Costa Resort and Spa. This women’s professional tennis tournament is usually in July or August.
Carlsbad is home to major golf equipment companies such as Taylor Made, Callaway, and Titleist. Carlsbad also is the headquarters to high technical, pharmaceutical and biotechnical companies like Life Technologies, Novartis, and Emerson Network Power. Another major employer in the area is the Gemological Institute of America or GIA. It researches and educates those in the field of gemology and jewelry arts.
These companies have probably helped in making Carlsbad one of the highest-income places in the United States. According to the 2007 Census, the median income in for a house in the city was $79, 444 and the median income for a family was $100,932.
Dining in Carlsbad is popular because of the variety of restaurants to be found. Chinese, Japanese, Armenian, and Italian are just a few of the choices. Carlsbad is less than 1 hour north of Baja, Mexico. Mexican food and influence is strong in the area as is sea food.
Carlsbad Unified School district is top employer for residents employing nearly 1, 000 people. The school district is award winning contributing to the high standard of living in the area. There are 3 other school districts which also serve those communities on the border of neighboring cities. Two large public high schools serve the Carlsbad community, Carlsbad High School and La Costa Canyon High School. Among private schools, Army and Navy Academy is near downtown Carlsbad. Its boarding school teaches more than 300 young men from around the world.
Whether visiting or looking for a place to live, Carlsbad, CA has something for everyone.
