Things To Do in Oceanside

Though people come to Brickhouse Cardio Club for the heart-pumping workouts, they stay for the irresistible international rhythms. Zumba tends to have that effect, ensnaring exercisers with its Latin choreography and dance-party vibe. The floors at the Oceanside club pulse with 11 Zumba sessions every week, along with energetic Brickhouse Burn toning and sculpting classes and invigorating yoga sessions. The club also hosts Bokwa sessions, embracing the new workout system that finds students tracing the shapes of numbers and letters during dance-like sessions set to booty-shaking beats. Since its inception, Brickhouse has blossomed into a franchise, expanding into 25 locations with new sites recently opened in the United Kingdom, where it hopes to supplant aerobic chimney sweeping. No matter the location, each club hosts its signature workouts in pared-down studios with the franchise’s familiar electric-blue and neon-green walls surrounding a stage.

Arcadian Ascents helps students to master the art of open-air rock climbing with guided excursions and onsite lessons for all experience levels. The maximum student-to-instructor ratio for each class is 4:1, and all guides and instructors have earned certifications as single pitch instructors from the American Mountain Guides Association and as wilderness first responders from the Wilderness Medicine Institute. Private and group courses cover material from basic rock movement to custom-designed courses on speed climbing, self-rescue, and advanced rope technique. Arcadian Ascents provides all equipment for most courses, including climbing shoes, helmets, ropes, and mountain-goat bribes.

Rock-ascending buffs can also expand their experience and strive for new personal achievements on guided trips to Mexico or Spain. Veteran climber and guide Josh Wieberg leads his charges with experience climbing from Canada to Italy and wields his BA in history and philosophy to teach in public schools when not scaling their brick walls.

Each arena at The Paintball Park brings in fresh equipment every season to keep paintballers on their toes. Barricades, bunkers, trenches, and tall trees provide ample cover for firing off shots at opponents, ducking from overhead fire, or meeting to discuss how to get the pizza-delivery man into the fortress unharmed. Games of elimination battles give players a chance to take out the other team while sprinting between the wreckage of tanks and helicopters.

Each of the Paintball Park's paintball fields has a distinct feel. Running beneath dinosaur sculptures lends to a carefree sensation, and trying to find an entrance in endless, gray castle walls evokes the sense that one is an ancient warrior who left his keys somewhere.

The staff at Unified Team Diving can transform someone who's never scuba dived before into a professional diver with their expansive menu of classes and courses. In their onsite heated swimming pool, instructors orient students to the world of breathing and exploring underwater. Combined with classroom sessions, they can award their students various certifications such as recreational diver, technical diver, diving instructor, and overhead diver, which includes cave diving. They conduct their training dives at the nearby La Jolla shores, which offer shallow wrecks, walls, and kelp for students to explore.

Gymboree offers a bounty of baby-engaging classes in which parents and wee ones work together to build the tot's creativity and encourage development through play. Weekly classes are available for the freshly born sapling to the 5-years-young wise wanderer. This deal includes rhythm-building music classes, imagination-expanding art classes, and Gymboree's most popular class, Play & Learn. The one-month membership allows you to take one class per week, with makeups available if you miss a class. This deal also includes unlimited attendance at Gymboree's open-gym sessions (contact location for schedule). Additionally, Groupon buyers also get $50 discount toward a children's birthday party at the Solana Beach location.

Founded in 1993, Witch Creek Winery has racked up a multitude of awards for its handcrafted wines, especially its 12 red varietals. Soak up the sun at the original Carlsbad location near the beach, or take in the picturesque scenery of the mountain-nestled Julian storefront while you sample five to seven wines during a tasting ($5). A courteous staff member will tell you about the grapes you're gobbling, guide you through the flavors, and remind you to floss. Then you'll be free to grab grapey goodness such as the 2006 Reserve Cabernet Franc ($30), which blends hints of cherries and rhubarb, or the 2007 Lodi Zinfandel ($32), which emits soothing aromas of pepper, cinnamon, and eternity. Or, pick up Witch Creek’s 2008 CB Viognier ($20), which wakens senses with peach and floral flavors.