Ideas for San Diego please

[Flatandhappy]

DH and I will be in San Diego for a week in May, he is at a conference so I will have some days by myself. Any ideas for sightseeing trips or things to do there? Last time we were in New Orleans and I did a creole cooking class and there were lots of day trip options but I can’t really see anything obvious for San Diego. I am too much of a wimp to hire a car and drive myself on American freeways 😊

A cruise of the harbour? Or maybe a Mexican cookery class? Tijuana day trip (I think you can do a group trip). Food tour. Whale watching.

Take a wander around Seaport Village, loads of cute shops and restaurants. There is also a really good segway tour of the city - a novel way to explore and maybe see some things you'd like to go back to. The zoo is awesome, as is the zoo safari park.

We just got back yesterday! Do the Old Town Trolley Tour to get your bearings. Seaport village is fun, Balboa Park is massive and hosts lots of museums. Go to Coronado Island for the day. La Jolla and Mission Beaches are lovely. Little Italy is a great spot to wander at night.

Lots of ideas, thank you. I am usually a super researcher before trips but this time I think my fear of yet another planned trip being scuppered by COVID (three last year) has made my brain shut down! We are in Aus so have only recently been able to leave the country again.

There's so many things to see and do in San Diego...the world famous zoo and safari park, beautiful beaches, balboa park, Coronado, Tijuana is 25 mins from downtown. Old Town, winieries, the list goes on. The hop on/off trolley tour is a great way to visit all the sites.

There are excellent ideas mentioned above. I’ve been there many times and it’s a lovely place! I would skip Tijuana though.

There's an aircraft carrier you can tour. Also the San Diego zoo is ranked the best in the USA. Wandering down by the water, grabbing cocktails and lunch at a restaurant overlooking the water, just generally enjoying the beach is also great.

Thank you. @LaurenKelsey I am curious why you say skip Tijuana. Tbh DH has said he doesn’t want to cross more borders than he has to so we are unlikely to go (he also mentioned kidnapping) but I quite fancied it.

USS Midway is interesting.

San Diego zoo and the Birch Aquarium at Scripps La Jolla.

Coronado Island.

Balboa Park - lots of museums there.

@Flatandhappy - I recommended skipping TJ because it doesn’t really have much to offer and crime over there is a concern. I’ve crossed the border a few times with friends who live in San Diego and afterward felt like it was a wasted trip. Also, crossing the border back to San Diego can be take several hours. Have a fun trip!

The TJ/San Diego border can be a complete nightmare, especially driving but even on foot you can queue for several hours to come back into the US. If you're going to cross the border skip Tj and keep going down to the beaches at Ensenada (you'd definitely need a car for that though, it's a long way!)

USS Midway is good, definitely do the trolley tour (I've done it about 3 times!) - you can either get the boat over to Coronado or just hop off the trolley tour and back on a later one.

I love San Diego, it is a great city to just wander around.

Thank you everyone, yes it sounds like border crossings are best avoided. We have a fabulous zoo in Sydney so I want to do some more research about the San Diego one to see what is there - love the idea of a trolley tour and it is nice to hear that it is a good place to wander and find nice food which are my favourite holiday pastimes!

Second Birch Acquarium. We really enjoyed that. Also, La Jolla is worth a visit (near Birch). Lovely town and there’s a spot where you walk down to see the seals basking on the rocks.

If not eating in hotel every night, thoroughly recommend the Marine Room restaurant right on the beach. The usp is (if timing with tide) having the waves wash right over the building.

We spent a week in San Diego in 2019 and we all loved it so much.

Our favourite place was Coronado Island too, we didn't hire the iconic day beds at the hotel (you don't need to be a hotel guest to hire them) but would do so if we ever go back.

The trolley tour was good too and fun way to see the city.

Old Town maybe bit touristy but there were lot to see and explore and it's a treat for the eyes. There was also an area where local independent artists had a workshops, I loved mooching through them.

USS Midway was bit meh for me but my DC really enjoyed it. I loved the retired service personnel there though, they charm the pants of you!!

Seals at LaJolla, bit of a pot luck if you see any but they are fun to watch and it's a very pretty place as it is.

Our local Air B&B host adviced against the trip to Tijuana, stating the same that the return journey will take hours. We decided not to go. We did visit the wall though as our DC wanted to see it. It's an easy drive and it's on a beautiful desolate location.

We had to choose between the zoo and the Balboa park and chose the park. It's a nice park but nothing to write home about . Should have gone to the zoo instead!

Hillcrest Farmers Market! Go if you have time. There is lot of street food and local artists, coffee producers and nicknack sellers. This was one of my favourite mornings.