Opened in February 1888, Hotel del Coronado debuted as an architectural masterpiece, acclaimed for its spectacular seaside setting and world-famous weather. One of the most recognizable features of the hotel is the exterior, which is painted white, with red roofing and accents - including it’s single red-roofed turret.

With its one-of-a-kind sweeping silhouette, the Southern California beach resort continues to be one of the most recognizable resorts in the world.

Even now, 135 years later, the Hotel Del is a must visit when you’re in southern California.

Relive the hotel’s glamorous past on the large outdoor patio with uninterrupted views of the California sunsets and Coronado beach.

From upscale bistros to beachfront lounges with incomparable ocean views, the Del offers Coronado’s finest restaurants and bars.

The Sun Deck is the ultimate destination for craft cocktails and coastal favorites. Relax by cozy fire pits and savor delectable bites and drinks. With a gorgeous front row view of the most spectacular sunsets on the West Coast, dining on the Sun Deck is an experience like no other.

the del beach

The Del has been fulfilling dreams of California surf, sand, and sun for over a century. Plush beach daybeds, lounge chairs & umbrellas are available with food and drink service right on the sand.

Named one of the Top 10 Beaches in America, Coronado Beach is the perfect San Diego seaside venue for a fun group outing, beach party or reception. Located on the powdery sands in front of the Victorian Building, Coronado Beach offers a stunning view of the resort with soothing waves crashing in the background.  As part of The Del's private beach, the venue offers full food and beverage service as well as the opportunity for extras like fireworks, skydiving shows and more.

Holiday Spirit at the Del

During the holiday season, the Hotel del Coronado hosts Skating by the Sea: San Diego’s only beachfront ice skating rink.

Not only does the Del’s iconic exterior, adorned with thousands of white lights and holiday music drifting through the air, provide a magical backdrop for skaters, but you also have the opportunity to skate next to the ocean.

San Diego Real Estate Boom

In the mid-1880s, the San Diego region was experiencing one of its first real estate booms. At that time, it was common for a California developer to build a grand hotel as a draw to an otherwise barren landscape; examples include The Hollywood Hotel, the Raymond Hotel (Pasadena, CA), the Hotel Del Monte (Monterey, CA), and the Hotel Redondo (Redondo Beach, CA).

The Coronado Beach Company - est. 1885

In November 1885, a group of investors bought the Coronado peninsula and the North Island, about 4,000 acres, for $110,000. Among those investors were Elisha Babcock & Hampton Story.

In April 1886, they created the Coronado Beach Company. In order to raise capital for all the planned investments, private home lots were created to be sold at auction.

The official map of Coronado is recorded in San Diego and the first lot sale on November 13th attracts 6,000 prospective buyers. Bidding starts at $500 and goes as high as $1,600. Lot sales help fund the building of the Hotel del Coronado. The Coronado Beach Company also created additional enterprises to support the development and prosperity of Coronado.

• The Coronado Ferry Company - Provided ferryboat service between Coronado and San Diego

• The Coronado Water Company - Piped fresh water under San Diego Bay from the San Diego River

• The Coronado Railroad Company - Provided rail lines in Coronado, and eventually a "Belt Line" connecting Coronado to San Diego via the Silver Strand peninsula.

• The Coronado Power Plant - Hotel del Coronado boasted one of the largest electrical power plants in the state, providing service to the entire community of Coronado until the 1920s.

Construction Begins

In March 1887, construction of the Hotel Del Coronado began on a sand bar populated by jack rabbits and coyotes. Labor was largely provided by Chinese immigrants from the San Francisco Bay area.

At the time of its construction, it was the largest resort hotel in the world. Even today, it’s still the second-largest wooden structure in the United States, after the Tillamook Air Museum (Tillamook, Oregon).

When the 399-room hotel opened for business in February 1888, 440 San Diegans traveled across the bay.

The original grounds had many amenities, including an Olympic-sized salt water pool, tennis courts, and a yacht club with architecture resembling the hotel's grand tower.

A Japanese tea garden, an ostrich farm, billiards, bowling alleys, hunting expeditions, and deep sea fishing were some of the many features offered to its guests.

The Crown Room was the hotel’s masterpiece. Its wooden ceiling was installed with pegs and glue. Not a single nail was used.

California Land Boom Collapses

Just as the hotel was nearing completion in late 1888, the Southern California land boom collapsed. Many people were deserting San Diego and hotel revenue was less than expected.

Babcock and Story needed additional funds so they turned to sugar magnate John D. Spreckels, who lent them $100,000 to finish the hotel. Soon after, Spreckles capitalized the Coronado Beach Company with an additional three million dollars.

By 1890, Spreckels bought out both Babcock and Story and the Spreckels family retained ownership of the hotel until 1948.

the ghost of Kate Morgan

Hotel del Coronado is rumored to be "haunted" due to the mysterious death of hotel Kate Morgan, a guest who died under suspect circumstances shortly after the hotel opened.

Arriving on November 24, she checked in under the name "Mrs. Lottie A. Bernard, Detroit." The staff reported that she seemed ladylike, beautiful, reserved and well-dressed, but troubled and very melancholy.

On November 29, 1892, she was found dead on the hotel’s exterior staircase. She had a gunshot wound to her head, which the San Diego County coroner determined was self-inflicted. Over the years, skeptics point out the fact that the gun they assumed she used did not match the bullet she was shot with.

To this day, Kate Morgan is thought by locals to haunt the hotel, and Room 502, the room Kate Morgan stayed in, is the most requested room at Hotel del Coronado (later renamed Rm 3327).

First Outdoor electrically-Lighted christmas Tree

In 1904, the Hotel del Coronado introduced the world's first electrically lighted, outdoor living Christmas tree.

The tree selected is one of the three splendid Norfolk Island pines on the grassy area in front of the hotel. It has attained a height of fifty feet and its branches stand proudly to this day.

Author L. Frank Baum - 1904

Wizard of Oz author L. Frank Baum traveled to Coronado Island repeatedly between 1904 and 1910, where he usually resided at Hotel del Coronado for months at a time. He wrote at least three books in the Oz series during that period. Some say his inspiration for ‘The Emerald City’ was based on the architecture design of the Hotel del Coronado.

• Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz - 1908

• The Road to Oz - 1909

• The Emerald City - 1910

He also designed the ornate crown chandeliers in the famous Crown Room.

Dignitaries / Celebrities

The popularity of the hotel was established before the 1920s. It already had hosted Presidents Harrison, McKinley, Taft, and Wilson. By the 1920s, Hollywood's stars and starlets discovered that 'the Del' was the 'in place' to stay and many celebrities made their way south to party during the 1920s and 1930s, specifically during the era of Prohibition.

Douglas Fairbanks, Charlie Chaplin, Rudolph Valentino, Clark Gable, Errol Flynn, Mae West, Joan Crawford, Katharine Hepburn, Bette Davis and Ginger Rogers were a few of the many great actors who stayed at the hotel.

Some Like It Hot (1959), starring Marilyn Monroe, Jack Lemmon, and Tony Curtis.

Hollywood Films & Movies

The hotel was first featured in a film when it was used as a backdrop for The Married Virgin (1918). Since then, it has been featured in at least 13 other films, including:

• $ (1971) starring Goldie Hawn & Warren Beatty.

• Wicked, Wicked (1973), which was completely filmed on location.

• The Stunt Man(1980), starring Peter O'Toole.

• The Girl, the Gold Watch & Everything (1980), starring Pam Dawber.

• My Blue Heaven (1990), starring Steve Martin & Rick Moranis.