Norfolk to Coronado and Return

Author Message   John R Garrison Senior Member Username: Majorg Post Number: 2664 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 208.81.157.86 Posted on Sunday, May 30, 2010 - 01:48 pm:    Richard: Great report with excellent details! Thanks for taking the time to write it up and share it with us. Happy travels, John   Roger Johnson Advanced Member Username: Rwjohn6 Post Number: 334 Registered: 05-2008 Posted From: 205.188.116.208 Posted on Sunday, May 30, 2010 - 12:33 pm:    Richard why did you not get the car at Hertz on base. Good report we love that area as well. Roger in Fl   Richard Seriani New member Username: Richard_seriani Post Number: 3 Registered: 05-2009 Posted From: 70.161.198.85 Posted on Saturday, May 29, 2010 - 08:46 pm:    This was our first space-a travel. and this will not be our last trip on military flights. Overall, it was a great experience. Signup was easy using http://www.takeahop.com/signup/ . See John D’s site (http://www.spacea.net/) and especially his Space-a FAQ. My wife and I departed Norfolk for North Island on 19 May and returned 27 May. Flew a C-40 both ways. Better seating (more leg room) than any commercial flight I have been on in the past 25 years. Departed Norfolk: 1800 local Arrived North Island: 2015 local (2315 eastern) There were 121 seats leaving NGU and only 21 SPATs. The flight crew opened only the first 9 rows (54 seats), but that still left plenty of room to spread out. Snacks (soda, water, candy, chips, etc) were sold enroute for the princely sum of 50 cents each. Coffee was free. Flight time was 5:15. The terminal at Norfolk is a long way from anywhere. We drove in from Chesapeake, so it wasn't a problem to go for food at the food court near the main gate or to McDonalds near the carrier piers. I also heard announcements for a shuttle, but didn't get specifics about destinations or return times. Taxi from North Island to 32nd Street was about $20 (reservations at Navy Gateway Inns & Suites (NGIS)). We elected to get out at the gate rather than wait for the taxi to be inspected. Walked about a half mile to check-in, then back a little over half that to our room. These were decent accommodations and a very comfortable bed. The cost was $37/night. 20 May: We took the trolley (close outside the gate) to Little Italy to pick up a rental car at Avis (near Kettner and Cedar). I had booked online using the senior-discount code (in Ground Transportation Forum, 'Car rental codes and tips', http://www.pepperd.com/spacea/messages/989/697800.html?1271733479). Trolley fare was $2.50 or $1.25 for seniors. (Do buy the tickets. The transit police checked at one stop and escorted one person off the trolley.) We had reservations at Camp Pendleton, Ward Lodging (http://www.mccscp.com/home/Lodging.aspx), for 20-24 May, so we headed north. Rooms are $65-$80 and include a continental breakfast and free newspaper (Union-Tribune?). Camp Pendleton is about mid-way between San Diego and Los Angeles, so it was convenient for the sightseeing we had in mind (Disneyland/California Adventure and Universal Studios). I wouldn't recommend the hamburger at Johnny Rocket (across from Ward Lodging). They advertise that their ground meat is always fresh, never frozen, but it certainly didn't taste like ground beef. Reminded me more of ground mutton. We checked out of Ward on 24 May and visited a couple of missions before heading south. Just a few miles from the San Luis Rey gate at Camp Pendleton we visited the San Luis Rey mission. We then headed north to San Juan Capistrano. While the first mission was very nice and we got a lot of info about the missions in general, the mission at San Juan Capistrano was beautiful. San Juan Capistrano mission also had an audio tour, which was very well done. Checked into NGIS at NAB Coronado. Our room was on the 7th floor on the west side of building 505, so we had a view of the Pacific. Got to watch some of the air traffic going into North Island and see a beautiful sunset. We didn't notice the construction right outside our window until they started at about 0630. No big deal for this early riser, but my wife likes to sleep in. We stayed on that side for one more night, and then switched to the East side (nearly across the hall from out first room) for the final night. Nice view of the bay. On-base food is limited to McDonalds, Subway, and Rice King (smelled ‘vinegary’, so we didn’t try it). In town, we highly recommend Clayton’s. They have great food, reasonable prices, and friendly staff. May 25 and 26 we visited the San Diego zoo (we had done the wild animal park about 12 years ago) and Sea World, and just walked the beach at North Island the morning of the 27th. We took the rental car back on Thursday afternoon and the lady at Avis called a taxi for us. She specified that we needed to get to the Air Terminal aboard NAS North Island. Unfortunately, Yellow Cab sent a driver that did not have the proper credentials to get aboard the base. The taxi company seemed less than concerned when I called. It is a good thing we enjoy walking so we hiked the approximate 1.5 miles to the Air Terminal from the gate. I'd recommend you don't call 444-4444 for a taxi. Try another company and be very specific when you call. When the driver arrives, ask to see their Contractor CAC before you get in the car. Ah, lessons learned. The flight from North Island had originally been listed as going to Oceana, but was changed to Norfolk. Since we had left our vehicle at Norfolk, this worked out much better. Departed North Island: 1810 Arrived El Centro: 1835 Had 16 SPATs leaving North Island. Picked up about 100 sailors and refueled in El Centro. My wife got a kick out of waiting in the hanger and seeing some military aircraft up close. The noise level was higher on the return flight. Language was ‘rough’ and loud, so if you or your family is sensitive to that, you may want to consider other options. It was a quick trip (about 4:30) from El Centro to Norfolk. Departed El Centro: 1945 Arrived Norfolk: 0315 Arrived home: 0400 Now, I need to figure out how I can completely retire. We are looking forward to flying space-a a lot more frequently.