944

For These Savvy Locals, Helping People Enjoy San Diego is All in a Day’s Work

They're the industries that are usually the first to hurt ” and hurt the most ” when the economy takes a nose dive: tourism and hospitality. But as San Diego pushes forward, with peak tourism months just ahead this summer, things are looking up. 944 caught up with four individuals who help people (both locals and visitors alike) enjoy San Diego and nearby tourist destinations for a living. And when things are looking up, there's arguably no better job one could have.

Derrik Chinn
Owner, Turista Libre (Rad Tijuana Tours)

944: How did your Tijuana day tour company begin?
DERRIK CHINN: I used to be a nightlife reporter and saw things going on in Tijuana that a lot of people didn't really know about. I started a blog as a way to document my experience as a foreigner living there. After about a year, I started thinking it wasn't the same as bringing people here and letting them do it themselves. The whole idea is to give foreigners ” especially San Diegans ” a chance to live Tijuana like a local.

944: Is it safe for San Diegans to visit Tijuana?
DC: No matter where you are in the world, you can't live your life in fear and keep wondering if anything bad is going to happen.

944: What do you love about your job?
DC: I love physically seeing peoples' opinions change, and their body language and the energy that they're giving off.

944: What kinds of people do you meet?
DC: There's a mix of people, but the one thing that everyone has in common is this yearning to know the city. They know there's something to it that's not really being shown in the news.

944: What's the craziest thing that's ever happened on a tour?
DC: When the poor bus driver accidentally got to the border line, and the cops were being assholes and wanted money to let him back out of line. I was in roller skating gear ” short shorts and tube socks ” and had to get off the bus and put pants on. The cops just stood there, looking at me.

turistalibre.com

Coco Tihanyi
President and Owner, Surf Diva Surf School

944: How did you get your start as a surf instructor/business owner?
COCO TIHANYI: My twin sister, Izzy, was a competitive surfer while we grew up here at La Jolla Shores. She started Surf Diva as the world's first all-women's surf school. I came on board (pun intended) and helped her to blow it up to one of the biggest surf schools in the U.S.

944: What do you love about your job?
CT: I love working at the beach and sharing the surfing lifestyle with people who aspire to live the dream.

944: What kind of people do you meet?
CT: We meet the most enthusiastic and fun people. Once in a while we get a few who are really stressed out, type-A tyrants when they arrive. By the time we are done teaching them to surf, they have a totally new attitude and are relaxed and smiling.

944: What's the craziest thing that's happened on the job?
CT: A guy was surfing during instructor tryouts and he lost his board shorts and kept on riding the whole way in. I think it was intentional since there were three of us Divas judging the tryouts. He didn't make the cut!

944: How do you enjoy San Diego on your downtime?
CT: I love to SUP [stand-up paddle] with my husband and my 6-year-old. Being a Surf Diva, I also love to shop. I'm also in a wine club ” I mean a book club ” with a group of cool bookworms!

surfdiva.com

Greg Strangman
Owner, The Pearl Hotel, Thin/Onyx Room, Live Work Play

944: What led you to the hospitality industry?
GREG STRANGMAN: Being a real estate developer, I thought it was an incredible opportunity to do a boutique hotel that would kind of mesh my interest and love for real estate with my interest and love for hospitality.

944: What do you love about your job?
GS: To me, it's pretty incredible when you hear about people's experiences of what a great time they had. Those are the types of things that go a long way for me.

944: What are the biggest challenges of running a hotel?
GS: Owning a hotel takes a lot of time and there's a lot of attention to detail. We take it very seriously. It becomes a responsibility that we take on to make sure that our guests really get the value of what they were seeking when they decided to come stay with us.

944: How do you enjoy San Diego on your downtime?
GS: I like to work out and ride my bike a lot. I'm a little bit more of a homebody as of late, working a lot of hours. But I love what I do, and it doesn't seem so much like work when you really, really love what you do.

thepearlsd.com | lwpgroup.com

Kathryn Wells
Director of Sales, Hornblower Cruises & Events

944: What sparked your interest in the tourism/hospitality industry?
KATHRYN WELLS: My dad owned a tiny airport in New York, then I was a tour guide at Niagara Falls in college. That got me hooked!

944: What do you love about your job?
KW: The hospitality industry is very business-oriented, which I have a strong interest in. But it also has the opportunity to sell and produce programs to make people feel good. They walk away with memories. It's a very fulfilling blend for me.

944: What kinds of people do you meet?
KW: All kinds of people. There's the couple visiting from the Midwest; there's big corporate groups coming in to do some serious client entertainment; and then there's everything in between, like weddings and people who live in town looking to enjoy a day on the bay. We've had celebrities onboard and we've done some free concerts ” I've met Jason Mraz and Collective Soul ” so that was really exciting. I also met my husband onboard one of our yachts!

944: How do you enjoy San Diego in your time off?
KW: That's one of the perks of being in this industry ” we have a lot of relationships and connections for things that are going on in the city. I enjoy a lot of really great restaurants and I'm very interested in seeing live music and discovering up-and-coming artists.

hornblower.com