Unwind In Casual Coastal Comfort

Kona Kai Resort & Spa is a waterfront resort on the tip of Shelter Island in San Diego’s Point Loma, set on 11 acres of tropical gardens along San Diego Bay. It has 170 rooms and suites with California-contemporary design, following a 2013 to 2015 transformation and a 2018 expansion that added 41 suites. U.S. News named it the #11 Best San Diego Resort for 2025, and Travel + Leisure included it among its Top 500 Hotels in the World in 2023. The property keeps a private beach with nightly bonfires, two pools, and
a marina, so the pace stays calm with the bay a few steps away.

Kona Kai is at 1551 Shelter Island Drive in San Diego’s Point Loma neighborhood. Shelter Island is a man-made peninsula reaching into San Diego Bay, so it is a marina district rather than a true island, and the resort sits at the tip of it on 11 acres of tropical gardens. The airport is less than 10 minutes away, and the San Diego Zoo, SeaWorld, Balboa Park and downtown are all a short drive. There is no resort shuttle, though the front desk arranges taxis, and Uber and Lyft are widely used here.

The resort has 170 rooms and suites in a California-contemporary style, with San Diego Bay or marina views and private balconies in select rooms. Suites add separate living areas, oversized soaking tubs and furnished balconies looking over the marina, and the Junior Suites are the newest of them. Connecting rooms are available, which is what most extended families need. Accessible rooms include roll-in showers or bathtubs with grab bars, lowered peepholes and closet rods, wall-mounted thermostats and visual alarms. A children’s tent can be set up in your room before you arrive.