Slow and go in San Diego

What’s a vacationer to do in these times of high prices for fuel, food and fun -- the fundamentals of travel?

Strategize.

It may pay to choose a hotel loaded with lots of extras that make the cost seem less painful. Otherwise, a budget vacation can seem like ordering a decaf, nonfat, soy latte. If I want deprivation, I’ll stay home.

That logic may be why the freshly renovated Hilton San Diego Resort & Spa on Mission Bay has been sold out most weekends this summer, even with rates that range from about $219 to $849 a night, with most in peak season at $300 and up.

With its multifaceted appeal, the resort is a crash pad for sightseeing tourists and also a self-contained haven for the lethargy-loving.

The sprawling, Mission-style resort has finished a second phase of renovations that makes staying on the property a more attractive option. The hotel’s management company, Noble House Hotels & Resorts, oversaw $8 million in improvements to the lobby, pool area, gift shop and Acqua restaurant and added the Aroma coffee bar.

Last summer, the resort finished a classy $13-million rehab that tidied up public areas and turned the 357 guest rooms and suites into convincing imitations of pricier boutique hotel rooms. Essence, the resort’s new $5-million spa, features residential, not clinical, decor throughout the nine treatment rooms and lounge.

But first impressions during my visit on a sold-out weekend in mid-July primed me to expect the worst. After driving nearly three hours from downtown Los Angeles, I had to flag down valets and bellmen at check-in. I had booked, weeks earlier, the least expensive room available ($351 for a total of $417 with tax and $22 for parking), but my sister, Leslie, and I didn’t get our promised two queen beds and “villa garden view.”

Instead, we were booked into the hotel’s high-rise overlooking the noisy freeway -- a cheaper room, with no offer to reduce the rate. After a 45-minute dispute, during which we refused a room with a rollaway bed and witnessed other unhappy guests with the same problem, we were upgraded to a much larger studio room in the villas with the appropriate beds and view. (I never mentioned that I was a reviewer.) We were even happier when the front-desk manager sent a bottle of chilled chardonnay to slake our annoyance.

Lesson: Always carry printouts of your confirmed reservations, study the property map and be sure you’re getting what you paid for.

Both the high-rise and studio rooms felt comfortable and featured sophisticated ruby and espresso tones on bedding and furniture, faux-stone bathroom tile. But TVs were CRT, and the storage space was skimpy.

The bathroom was well-illuminated and the beds cozy with lightweight comforters and quilted bed throws. Internet connection ($11.95 a day) is not wireless and may anchor you to an ill-proportioned writing desk and chair.

If you’re driving to the resort, you may want to load a cooler with snacks and drinks to save money and hassle. There are no longer mini bars in the rooms because, the desk clerks told me, too many guests disputed charges. But the yard-tall refrigerators are still there, and if you’re willing to pay a $2.50 delivery charge, 18% tip, 7.5% sales tax, the hotel will stock it before your arrival from a menu that includes $3.75 sodas and $7.50 bottles of imported water.

Though this hotel doesn’t charge a daily resort fee, its room rates tilt toward luxury prices, without luxury service or amenities. A pre-ordered room-service breakfast arrived on a black plastic tray with mismatching, chipped plates and limp toast.

The Acqua restaurant features wonderful views, fire pits, patios and a large, well-priced wine list, yet the food was only a little better than average, though entree prices hovered around $30.

The lack of affordable food options on site and the abundance of nearby entertainment may be why the fully booked resort rarely felt crowded. Yet if you and the kids never ventured to nearby SeaWorld, the San Diego Zoo or Balboa Park, everyone would still have plenty of diversions to enjoy here.

In just two days, I couldn’t sample every recreational option at the hotel, which is on 18 acres spanning a peaceful stretch of Mission Bay. This resort fits the definition of the word, with two pools, two hot tubs, five tennis courts, a spa, a new Kids Kamp, Ping-Pong, volleyball, an outdoor bar and a private dock where guests can rent kayaks, speedboats, paddle boats and bicycles.

At the new spa, visitors have only a steam room, a tiny dressing area and a mid-size relaxation room to sample before treatments ($130 for an hour of deep-tissue massage). If I could have rolled the heated massage table and its silky microfiber sheets into my room, I would have gladly slept on them.

Wander the grounds and you might spot the baby ducks by the koi pond, roast marshmallows at a fire pit (the gift shop sells s’more sets) and, during the summer, get a free look at SeaWorld’s nightly fireworks. During the week, the resort gives free popcorn with its poolside Dive-In Movies. You might also find a DJ at the pool or a jazz combo on the restaurant patio.

Cough up some money at the pool, and kids can get beads and thread wrapped into their hair ($2 an inch) while adults enjoy a rented cabana with cable TV, lemonade, fruit and more for $120 a day ($75 Mondays through Thursdays). The poolside bar and grill offers tropical drinks, salads and sandwiches and attentive service. Forgot the sunscreen and pool toys? A kiosk sells them.

Though the gift shop sells chips, sodas and booze and the coffee bar offers Starbucks brews and cakes, non-junk-food options are available only at the restaurant. The Acqua kids’ menu, however, goes beyond the usual fried finger foods by offering chicken, fish and pastas for $10 and under.

With a foot-deep wading pool, a nearby toddler-scaled public playground and ample sidewalks for strollers, the Hilton is wonderfully set up for infants and preschoolers. Given my experiences at other hotels with a theme-park clientele, I expected the Hilton to feel like a human zoo with herds of unruly kids. (You might even encounter children at the spa, where they can have mani-pedis, or the $50 “My First Massage” -- a bad idea, on so many levels.)

Yet even two stressed-out sisters could find peace and quiet all across the resort, which attracts plenty of conventioneers and Bridezillas. It wasn’t the cheapest vacation, but it beat camping in the backyard.

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valli.herman@latimes.com

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

HILTON SAN DIEGO RESORT & SPA

* * *

New and noteworthy: A two-phase, $26-million renovation refreshed guest rooms, the lobby, pool area, restaurant and lounge and added a $5-million spa.

The stay: The resort’s prime location inspires athletes and the not-so-fit to get moving; the spa, pool cabanas and pleasant patios with fire pits encourage leisure.

The scene: Scores of families with little kids head for area attractions, leaving the often heavily booked resort pleasantly peaceful.

Deal maker: Lots of diversions and amenities on the property and also plenty within half an hour’s drive so travelers have many choices.

Deal breaker: If you don’t spend a lot of time at the hotel, you’re paying a premium for amenities you probably won’t use.

Stats: 1775 E. Mission Bay Drive, San Diego; (619) 276-4010, www.sandiegohilton.com.

Rooms: Traditional rooms range from $219 to $499, and premium bay-view rooms are $569 to $849 in peak season.

Rating is based on the room, service, ambience and overall experience with price taken into account in relation to quality.

* * * * * Outstanding on every level

* * * * Excellent

* * * Very good

* * Good

* Satisfactory

No Star: Poor

On travel.latimes.com

For more photos of the Mission Bay hotel, go to latimes.com/hiltonsandiego.