Carlsbad California is a charming, chic community on the ocean just north of California's most beautiful city, San Diego. It offers something for everyone, from luxury resorts to unspoiled coastal lagoons. Runners from all over the world participate in the annual marathon that winds through this picturesque beach town along the Pacific coastline.

The North County San Diego communities include Del Mar, Solana Beach and Encinitas. Each neighborhood boasts splendid views, sunsets and cooling ocean breezes.

Batiquitos Lagoon is a coastal wetland north of San Diego. It is one of the few remaining tidal wetlands on the southern California coast of the United States. The area is run by the California Department of Fish and Game as a nature reserve.

The coast runs six miles and is home to two popular beaches: The State Beach and South Ponto Beach. The beaches are wide and sandy in many places. The shoreline is interrupted only by a few water inlets. The beaches are mostly hidden below ocean bluffs, away from busy Highway 101 and residential areas, offering a peaceful atmosphere.

The Flower Fields are famous for their beauty. Tour them from March to early May where for a small fee you can walk through acres and acres of brightly colored fields of flowers on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It's a sight to behold. At the Flower Fields, Giant Tecolote Ranunculus have been refined for generations to produce exceptionally large blooms and lots of them. Available in a rainbow of lavish hues, each flower is packed with hundreds of silky petals. You'd be hard pressed to find a fuller, more lush blossom anywhere.

Hotels and inns consist of all the big chains including Motel 6, Days Inn, Holiday Inn, Courtyard by Marriott. There are delightful Bed and Breakfasts.

Many vacation time-share condos serve as Carlsbad vacation rentals. These more upscale accommodations are luxurious and can be quite expensive. A famous Carlsbad resort is the La Costa Resort and Spa. As soon as guests enter the gates of La Costa, they're impressed with the beauty and relaxing charm of this one-of-a-kind Southern California resort. La Costa is rated among the best resorts in the United States by Cond Nast because it offers a world class spa, an extraordinary championship golf course, sophistication and unequalled personalized service.

Of all the Carlsbad Hotels the only one that is (1) cute, (2) romantic with (3) views of the ocean for (4) under $170 a night is the Inn at Moonlight Beach.