| |
San Diego’s inventory of attractions is huge and diverse
By Tom Adkinson
March 15, 2024
San Diego’s modern skyline is just one aspect of a city whose roots go back to Native Americans in pre-history and Spanish colonization starting in 1769. Image by Tom Adkinson
|
|
SAN DIEGO – The NFL’s Chargers may have abandoned San Diego – they decamped up the coast to Los Angeles in 2017 – but their departure didn’t really diminish the visitor appeal of this seaside city in the far southwest corner of the country.
Rhinos take a siesta while giraffes lope along behind a tour truck at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park about 30 miles from downtown San Diego. Image by Tom Adkinson
|
San Diego’s enduring appeal includes a world-famous zoo and a related safari park, one of the nation’s grandest city parks, reminders of Spanish colonization, ships of the U.S. Navy, an aquarium famous for seahorses and sea dragons, breeching whales, towering cliffs, suntanned surfers and much more.
Two questions face you when visiting San Diego – where to start each morning and how long your energy will last into the evening.
You can address the first question with San Diego native David Swanson’s ideas in his book, 100 Things To Do in San Diego Before You Die. Take his list as a challenge, but recognize from the start that you’ll need multiple visits to come anywhere close to checking off every item.
The book covers the core part of San Diego, where most attractions and activities are, but it also stretches into the outer reaches of San Diego County. The county’s 4,526 square miles make it almost four times the size of Rhode Island. In addition to 70 miles of Pacific Ocean coastline, it offers forested mountains, a bit of desert and a Mediterranean climate.
Most readers see Swanson’s book as an expert’s sampler and then pick a handful of appealing suggestions to check out. Combining the book with a San Diego CityPASS is an excellent way to explore America’s eighth largest city. The CityPASS provides admission to one of two theme parks (SeaWorld or Legoland) and your choice of three other attractions from a list of five. A variation delivers both theme parks.
(Fun fact: If you download the app for FRED, you can summon free rides in a significant part of the heart of the city. The six-passenger electric vehicles work somewhat like Uber or Lyft, but there is less certainty of getting a ride right away. Still, free is free.)
If you must narrow your choices to only a handful, consider these to lock in some solid San Diego memories:
One of San Diego’s biggest attractions – in size and attendance – is the USS Midway aircraft carrier, permanently moored along the Embarcadero. Image by Tom Adkinson
|
|
• Get out on the water – San Diego is a maritime city (it is home port of the Navy’s Pacific Fleet), and you can explore it on a traditional harbor cruise or get more directly involved gliding along in a sailboat or paddling a kayak. Some harbor cruises offer chances to see migrating whales.
San Diego has 70 miles of Pacific Ocean coastline and many places to surf, jog, swim or just enjoy the sun and wind on your face. Image by Tom Adkinson
|
Two delicate seahorses are oblivious to visitors at the Birch Aquarium at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Image by Tom Adkinson
|
• Meet some exotic animals – The San Diego Zoo and the San Diego Zoo Safari Park are minimum half-day activities. The safari park is 30 miles from downtown, but the drive and the wide-open destination are worth it. More exotics are at the Birch Aquarium, where seahorses and sea dragons are popular attractions.
The Museum of Us, where the focus is anthropology, is just one of 18 top-notch museums in Balboa Park. Image by Tom Adkinson
|
|
• Explore a great urban park – Balboa Park, a 1,200-acre natural treasure adjacent to downtown, contains the San Diego Zoo, plus a 400-acre enclave called the Balboa Park Cultural District with 18 top-notch museums. Subject matter includes anthropology, aviation, art, photography, city history, railroads, automobiles and even comics.
• Walk beside the ocean – Whether you stroll along the downtown Embarcadero, feel sand in between your toes at Oceanside or hike along Sunset Cliffs, don’t leave without feeling the wind off the ocean.
Trip-planning resources: SanDiego.org, CityPASS.com and ReedyPress.com (for Swanson’s book)
|
