Attractions

Gaslamp Quarter

In the city's early days, this colorful downtown neighborhood was home to San Diego's most profitable businesses - saloons, gambling joints, bordellos and opium dens. By the 1960s, it had declined to a skid row of flophouses and bars, whose seedy ambiance made it so unattractive to investors that many of its old buildings survived by default. When developers finally moved in, locals and the Gaslamp Quarter Council saved the area from demolition, and a 16 block area was designated a National Historic District.

Now, restaurants, bars and galleries occupy restored buildings dating back to the 1870s, and wrought iron street lamps in the style of 19th century gas lamps give the area its historic flavor. The most enjoyable time to visit is on a warm evening, when people throng the streets and crowd the sidewalk tables. Guided walking tours are offered by the local council.

Embarcadero

San Diego's original dockside, just west of downtown, is a remarkably clean and attractive area. It never developed as a major commercial port but retains plenty of nautical ambiance thanks to the old ships moored at the Maritime Museum, the kitschy re-created turn of the century seafront architecture of Seaport Village and the San Diego Convention Center, whose design is said to have been inspired by an ocean liner. There's a public fishing pier and an open-air amphitheater where free concerts are held during summer in the Embarcadero Marina Park.

Balboa Park

This huge park on the northeastern edge of downtown San Diego is a major civic asset, boasting extensive areas of greenery, museums, theaters, a zoo and an abundance of sports facilities, including tennis courts, a swimming pool and golf courses. Many of the park's buildings sport a Spanish Colonial theme, thanks largely to the 1915-16 Panama-California Exposition held here. The exposition's temporary stucco buildings consciously pursued a romantic Spanish-Mexican theme; they proved so popular that many were retained or rebuilt in more durable concrete after the show.

The park is home to the ornate San Diego Museum of Art, which houses a modest collection of European paintings, American landscapes and Asian artifacts. The small but impressive Timkin Museum of Art has a better collection of famous European art work and some smashing Russian icons. The Centro Cultural de la Raza exhibits potent Mexican and Native American art inside a converted water tank. A more traditional setting for viewing art work is the Spanish Village, a collection of small tiled cottages said to be 'an authentic reproduction of an ancient village in Spain.' The cottages are rented out as artists' studios, and you can watch potters, jewelers, painters and sculptors churn out pricey decorative kitsch.

The Casa be Balboa houses four museums, dedicated to San Diego's history, local sports stars, model railways and photographic arts. One of the park's most hyped venues is the Rueben H Fleet Space Theater & Science Center, a hands-on science museum with a huge-screen Omnimax theater. The Museum of Man specializes in Indian artifacts from the American Southwest and has an excellent collection of baskets and pottery from the San Diego area. If you feel the need to set a record for museum visits, there's also the well-presented San Diego Automotive Museum, the extensive displays in the Aerospace Museum and a Natural History Museum.

San Diego Zoo

One of San Diego's biggest attractions, this superb zoo has a worldwide reputation, a colorful history and an enlightened zoo management program. It hosts more than 3000 animals in beautifully landscaped grounds in the northern part of Balboa Park, northeast of downtown San Diego, and also runs a free-range 1800 acre (720ha) Wild Animal Park, 32 miles (50km) north of the city in Escondido. The zoo and associated park breed endangered species in captivity for re-introduction into their natural habitats. Its successes include the Arabian oryx, Bali starling and Californian condor.

Highlights of the zoo include the Tiger River bioclimatic exhibit, which realistically re-creates an Asian rainforest environment, and Gorilla Tropics, which does the same with an African rainforest. Other gems are the Sun Bear Forest, where Asian bears frolic, and the African Rock Kopje, where klipspringers display their tremendous rock climbing abilities. Kids can touch small animals at the children's zoo, and you can peek at the zoo's latest arrivals in the nursery. This is a wonderful institution; anyone remotely interested in the natural world should set aside a full day to explore it.

Old Town

This area was the site of the first civilian Spanish settlement in California, known as the Pueblo de San Diego. A plaza was laid out here in the 1820s, and within 10 years it was surrounded by huts and whitewashed villas. It remained the center of San Diego until 1872, when the city's focus moved to the current downtown area. In 1968, Old Town became a State Historic Park, archaeological work was undertaken, the few surviving original buildings were restored and ruined structures were rebuilt.

The area is now a touristy pedestrian precinct, but the open plaza with its shady trees is a pleasant place for a stroll, as long as you don't take it too seriously as a historical site. You'll get a good idea of San Diego's metamorphosis by visiting the 1820s Casa de Carrillo, the oldest house in San Diego, located just north of Old Town: it's now the pro shop for the Presidio Hills Golf Course. Old Town is 2.5 miles (4km) northwest of downtown.

Hotel del Coronado

This much-loved San Diego institution, commonly known as Hotel Del, is in the oh-so respectable seaside suburb of Coronado, just across the bay from downtown San Diego. It's a quirky timber building with a facade replete with conical towers, cupolas, turrets, balconies and dormer windows. Its cavernous public spaces reflect the architects' experience designing railway depots, though the acres of polished wood give the interior a warm old-fashioned ambiance. Opened in 1888, the hotel was where Edward (then Prince of Wales) first met Mrs Simpson and where parts of the 1959 Marilyn Monroe movie Some Like It Hot were filmed. Guided tours are available.

Coronado is joined to the mainland by a spectacular 2 mile (3km) bridge and also by a long narrow sand spit that runs south to Imperial Beach. A ferry runs to Coronado from San Diego's Broadway Pier.

SeaWorld

Undoubtedly one of San Diego's best known and most popular attractions, SeaWorld opened in Mission Bay in 1964, and Shamu, its resident killer whale, has become an unofficial symbol of the city. SeaWorld is very commercial, very entertaining and slightly educational. There are plenty of whales, sharks, dolphins and penguins on display and, if you like your marine life choreographed, various special animal performances. Note that SeaWorld has steep entry prices and long queues for some shows and exhibits at peak times. The marine park is 5 miles (8km) northwest of downtown.

La Jolla

This status-conscious seaside suburb, 12 miles (20km) northwest of downtown San Diego, is known for the three 'R's - restaurants, rugs and real estate. Pronounced 'la hoya,' it's blessed with a consistent unadorned Mediterranean style of architecture, comprising arches, colonnades, red-tile roofs and pale stucco, and has a rugged, invigorating coastline, with pretty coves and excellent surf beaches.

Highlights of this swanky neighborhood include the Museum of Contemporary Art, the superb displays in the Stephen Birch Aquarium-Museum and the nearby Torrey Pines State Reserve, home to the last mainland stands of the Torrey pine and some superb viewpoints out over the ocean. For a worthwhile 360° view of the suburb, drive to the top of modest Soledad Mountain, east of La Jolla.

previous

next

Disclaimer: We've tried to make the information on this web site as accurate as possible, but it is provided 'as is' and we accept no responsibility for any loss, injury or inconvenience sustained by anyone resulting from this information. You should verify critical information like visas, health and safety, customs, and transportation) with the relevant authorities before you travel.