Besides an idyllic climate San Diego offers a wealth of attractions and amusements.
San Diego Zoo
Balboa Park is without a doubt one of the highlights of downtown San Diego. Here you find THE attraction the world famous San Diego Zoo, (619-234-3153, www.sandiegozoo.org). For a good orientation of the zoo take either the 40-minute bus tour or the aerial tramway. Most of the more than 3,000 animals live within natural-style enclosures with very few cages. The Children’s Zoo is especially fun, with a nursery for newborn animals and a petting zoo. But Balboa Park offers much more than its splendid zoo. There are fascinating museums and exhibits within the 1,400-acre park the Museum of Man, the Aerospace Museum, the San Diego Museum of Art, the Timken Art Gallery, the Natural History Museum, the Reuben H. Fleet Space Theater and Science Center, the Hall of Champions, the Museum of Photographic Arts, and the beautiful wooden Botanical Building. Most of the museums are housed in picturesque Spanish-style buildings. (619-239-0512, www.balboapark.org)
San Diego Ferry
While in San Diego take the bridge or the ferry over to Coronado, an island-like bulb of land tipping a thin isthmus that stretches south almost to the Mexican border. Here you find not only a long stretch of beautiful beach, but also the Del Coronado Hotel, a Victorian fantasy of gingerbread turrets and gables. The Del Coronado, locally referred to as “The Del,” is a sightseeing attraction in its own right and makes an excellent choice for a luncheon stop.
The Embarcadero is the downtown port area located along Harbor Drive. From here you can take a harbor cruise or visit one of the floating museums tied up to the quay, part of the San Diego Maritime Museum. These include the Star of India, built in 1863, a dramatic tall-masted ship that carried passengers and cargo around the world. (619-234-9153, www.sdmaritime.com)
Old Town is where San Diego originated. The area has been designated as a city park and several square blocks are accessible to pedestrians only. Make the Historical Museum your first stop and orient yourself by viewing a scale model of San Diego in its early days. Old Town is most interesting to visit as many of the buildings are open as small museums, such as the Machado-Stewart Adobe, the Old School House, and the Seeley Stables (an 1860s stage depot with a good display of horse-drawn carriages). If you are in Old Town at mealtime, you can choose from many attractive restaurants. Just southeast of the intersection of Hwys 5 and 8, parking is well signposted.
Seaport Village
Old Town San Diego
Adjacent to the Embarcadero is Seaport Village, a very popular tourist attraction and fun for adults and children alike. Situated right on the waterfront, it has little paths that meander through this 23 acre village of shops and restaurants built in a colorful variety of styles from Early Spanish to Victorian. Street artists display their talents to laughing audiences.
San Diego’s marine display is in Mission Bay Park. Set in a 150-acre park which includes a 1-acre children’s playland, Sea World features one of California’s famous personalities, Shamu, the performing killer whale who delights everyone with her wit and aquatic abilities. Penguin Encounter is a particularly fun exhibit where you watch comical penguins waddling about in their polar environment, while Shark Encounter presents one of the largest displays of sharks in the world and provides the terrifying thrill of being surrounded by these efficient killing machines as you walk through an acrylic tube. (800-380-3203, www.seaworld.com)
Sea World San Diego
We love to visit San Diego while staying just up the coast in La Jolla at Scripps Inn or The Bed & Breakfast Inn at La Jolla.
