SAN DIEGO’S ESSENTIAL ATTRACTIONS
Feed giraffes and rhinos at the San Diego Safari Park.
Unlike some towns where the marketing hype is due mainly to the overactive imagination of the Chamber of Commerce, San Diego actually lives up to its reputation.
Don't believe me? Does your city have a zoo that's so big that they keep the hippos in a giant aquarium? Does it have a 1,200 acre park in the middle of the city filled with everything from classic art to electric trains? When was the last time you got to pet a penguin or see actual dolphins and whales swimming free in the ocean and seals laying on the beach? 'm not bragging, it's just that San Diego rocks!
Here’s your shortcut to the best things to do in San Diego. Every one of these are vacation worthy adventures so buckle up and let’s go!
San Diego’s Top 10 Attractions
The San Diego Zoo
Get ready for the best zoo experience in the world!
Set in Balboa Park, the San Diego Zoo occupies over 100 acres of hilly terrain, landscaped with lush tropical plants and featuring over 12,000 animals, most in open air, cageless exhibits. Considered by may as the best zoo in the world, most people will spend at least 6 hours exploring - wear comfy shoes. From late May until early August the zoo is open in the evenings, a wonderful "only in San Diego" sort of experience.
Got kids? New Wildlife Explorers Basecamp is a kids paradise with a huge splash pad and waterfalls - bring a swimsuit (and patience, the kids will never leave).
WALLY TIP: The food is average and expensive so bring in your own, it’s totally fine. No alcoholic beverages allowed but are available for purchase.
Balboa Park
Museums, restaurants, nature, so much to experience!
In 1915 Balboa Park was created for our first World’s Fair, called the Panama-California Exposition. Temporary buildings built in a Spanish Colonial Revival style were erected along the "Prado" and today the same buildings are still standing, home to just about every type of museum you can think of and surrounded by lush gardens and beautiful landscaping.
It’s immense, it’s diverse, it’s immersive - you’ll find everything from fine art to a Comic-Con museum, dinosaurs and mummy’s, electric trains and classic cars - there’s 16 museums in all spread out over 1,200 acres.
You’ll want to get a Museum Pass so you can pop in and explore them all versus staring at the door and wondering if it’s worth it. Give yourself a full day to visit the park at your leisure and at least a half day if you are on a time crunch.
WALLY TIP: Normally a picnic at the park is a fine idea but Balboa Park has a number of great dining options that are surprisingly non-touristy. For ultra casual eats go to The Craft Taco inside the Natural History Museum for incredible tacos and burritos that don’t embarrass San Diego. For a cold beer and inspired pub food there’s Panama 66 and for a sit down experience go to long time local favorite The Prado featuring a vacation perfect outdoor patio. Artifact at Mingei is a new addition, a more elevated dining experience inside the Mengei Museum.
BALBOA PARK | MUSEUM PASS | Free admission to the park
USS Midway Museum
Tour an actual aircraft carrier!
If your VHS tape of Top Gun is shredded, if you still dream that Tom "Maverick" Cruise will someday walk into a bar and sing to you, if your iTunes still has Kenny Loggins' "Danger Zone" as a favorite, then you need to come visit the USS Midway to see the real thing.
Docked near Seaport Village in the San Diego Bay, the USS Midway is one of the longest serving aircraft carriers in military history. At 1,001 feet it's longer than three football fields, larger than the Titanic, it's impressively huge. Once home to 4,500 men, the USS Midway is now a floating museum, giving visitors a real feel for what living and serving on a carrier was like.
Donning headset, the tour provides audio backdrops and stories to take you right where the action is. The sights and smells - what is that smell? - give a fascinating glimpse to life in the military. Wear comfortable shoes as you'll be walking up and down tiny stairs, bumping your head on metal beams, tripping on doorjambs, squishing sideways to fit through narrow hallways. Climb to the top to see the fighter jets and take in a flight simulator that takes you on a real mission.
WALLY TIP: On Saturdays walk towards Seaport Village and you’ll find the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market from 8am to 1:00. Boats with fresh fish line for sale line the pier with fresh fish and chips, ceviche and poke for sale. And while Seaport Village is a bit of a tourist trap you’re already there so take a look - an hour will suffice to see it all.
San Diego Zoo Safari Park
Amazing experience for animal lovers!
Located 35 miles north of downtown San Diego is an 1,800 acre wildlife sanctuary where animals roam freely in a natural environment. A tram takes you around the perimeter of the park where you’ll spy plenty of animals roaming the land - or perhaps none at all as this is less of a zoo and more of a habitat for the animals where they do whatever they want, including hiding out away from the trams.
Back on foot you’ll see more wildlife, from the new Elephant Valley where you’ll come face to face with the elephants and walk in their environment. Or visit the kangaroos where your path leads right through where they live - there’s nothing between you and the kangaroos. But if you really want to experience the park you need to go on a safari, a guided deep dive tour where you might actually get to hand feed giraffes and rhinos out in their habitat. It’s extra, but worth it.
WALLY TIP: It can get so hot during the Summer that you'll actually thank them for selling you a $7 Coke. Wear shorts and sunscreen, bring water and snacks, check the weather before you go and if it's triple digits get an early start.
Legoland California
If you have small kids there’s no getting around this!
I was admittedly a Legoland skeptic. After all, a park devoted to everything Lego seemed like a stretch to me. But that’s because I don’t have small kids and when I did visit with the (gasp) grand kids I realized how wrong I was and why Legoland has become one of San Diego’s top family attractions.
Perfect for kids from 2 to 10, the park has everything from kid friendly rides to kid sized roller coasters that will make the adults happy. Ninjago is the big ride here, an interactive 3D ride where you “fight” the bad guys (and a dragon) that leap at you from the screen. I was begging my grandson to go one more time. (Tip: Check here to see if any of the top rides are temporary closed the day you want to visit).
Of course you’ll want to bring your patience as kids will love just playing in the giant pirate playground or the rooms filled with Legos that are like honey to bees (“come on, you can do that at home!”). Parents: Study up on MiniFigs if you want to impress your kids - they trade them there with the employees.
WALLY TIP: Bring your own food as the options are pretty limited. If you must dine there the BBQ is actually pretty good though pricey and the Apple Fries are not bad at all.
Cabrillo National Monument
Hiking, tide pools and a seafood lunch sounds good to me!
By today’s standards Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, the first European to set foot on the west coast in 1542, is controversial, his actions towards indigenous people what you would expect from someone who was known as a conquistador. But visiting Cabrillo National Park is less about celebrating Cabrillo, though there is giant statue of him overlooking the ocean, and more about the stunning ocean views and variety of activities.
Start at the monument for a photo, then over to the lighthouse. From there decide if you want to take an ocean view hike or just drive straight to the tidepools where you can find little sea creatures living their fascinating sea lives. At low tide you’ll find starfish, sea anemones, crabs, and small fish thriving in their natural habitat, trapped in their pools and hoping you don’t see them. Winter and Fall are the best times for viewing since the low tides typically coincide with the park hours - check the tide table for your date you will be here. And even if it’s high tide when you arrive it’s still a beautiful stretch of coastline.
WALLY TIP: After exiting set your GPS to Point Loma Seafood, a San Diego institution that’s loved by tourists and locals alike. Want more of a hidden gem? Mitch’s Seafood is nearby and is much less touristy and often less crowded.
Old Town San Diego State Historic Park
The birthplace of California - is it a tourist trap?
Old Town San Diego is both authentic and cheesy. If you’re looking to understand what life was like back in the early California rancho days you’ll find it at the various restored original buildings and museums. On the other hand, if you can’t live without a Lucha Libre mask and plastic maracas you can also find it in Old Town.
And while I normally eschew tourist traps there is something about Old Town that keeps me coming back. It’s got that vacation vibe of margaritas, chips and salsa and when that mariachi music starts up it somehow transcends the tourist trap label. Browse the shops, check out the haunted Whaley House, visit San Diego’s oldest cemetery and look for the grave markers in the street where people are still buried (“just pave them over!”), visit the old adobe house called La Casa de Estudillo for 6th grade field trip fun. Bored? There are margaritas everywhere here.
While I’ll agree that there’s better Mexican food elsewhere, I’m pretty happy with a plate of carnitas from Old Town Mexican Cafe or a margarita and appetizers at the bar at Casa de Reyes in the main Fiesta del Reyes courtyard.
WALLY TIP: Get a free fresh tortilla at a small booth at the right side of Case de Reyes. Look for a little pink facade with a sign that says “1 tortilla per person” and if you wait at the window like magic you’re handed a fresh, hot tortilla. Don’t forget to get a fresh churro from El Mercadito before leaving.
La Jolla
Seals on the beach, kayaks into caves, so much to do!
San Diego has miles of beaches but if you want to see the prettiest coastline you go to La Jolla. Start by seeing the seals on the beach at the Children’s Pool. These are wild animals so don’t be that tourist who harasses the seals just to get a selfie - just stand back and marvel at the magnificence of it all. Walk north to see La Jolla Cove and keep going to the Cave Store where you can walk down a flight through a secret tunnel to a sea cave. Walk up to the shops and restaurants for a bit of browsing and to grab a bite. Georges at the Cove’s Ocean Terrace is a worthy destination for ocean view dining.
But La Jolla is more than seals and restaurants. More adventurous types will want to check out going on a kayak tour into the Seven Caves or swim with leopard sharks - I’m not kidding! And if you just want to kick back at the beach, La Jolla Shores is one of our best.
WALLY TIP:
San Diego Trolley
See the city in a couple of hours!
Oh yeah, this is touristy. But it’s also a very good way to get the layout of the city and to hit up all of the key destinations in few hours. Or use it as your mode of transportation as it’s a hop on, hop on experience with trolleys arriving every 20 minutes.
Starting in Old Town the San Diego Trolley stops at 17 points of interest, from the Maritime Museum (the Star of India sailing ship) to the USS Midway and Seaport Village and the Gaslamp District then over to Coronado and back to Balboa Park, the zoo and Little Italy. It’s like a crash course in San Diego.
Hop off and stay as long as you would like at any of the destinations, then jump back on when you want to continue to the next. And it’s more than just transportation - you’ll also get the experience of a tour guide who will give you the stories and background of the places you’ll visit. And really, it’s fun riding this thing!
BEST FOR: First timers who want a quick overview of San Diego or anyone who wants to visit the key sights without driving.
Sea World San Diego
More rides, less Shamu
Sea World has had more ups and downs than some of their roller coasters as they have navigated the bad press of captured Orcas in the documentary Blackfish. They have since cancelled their Shamu show and stopped their breeding programs and focused more on education than entertainment. And they added roller coaster, lots of roller coasters.
That said, while Sea World has lost some of its luster it’s still one of San Diego’s top attractions and the move away from animal exploitation to conservation is welcome. There’s also over a dozen rides, though many of them are best for teens and older. No doubt that Sea World will continue to evolve and the improvements they’ve made for their animals is a welcome change. If you can get beyond their past history, well, it’s still a fun vacation experience.
Look, I’ll be honest here - I used to love going to Sea World but even then I wondered if allowing thousands of people to pet a dolphin stuck in a pool was a good idea for an animal that intelligent. I think they are changing, I do believe they do some good things, but I won’t blame you if you decide to skip it and go to the beach instead.
BEST FOR: Families with kids - the small ones will love the sea animals, the older kids will love the rides.
SEA WORLD SAN DIEGO | Discount Tickets - Also Included with City Pass