What to do in San Diego

[anjoliza]

I hope to spend a few days in San Diego prior to cruising to Hawaii and am wonder what special sites I should see?

 

I was just there this past November and did the main ones - Zoo, Old Towne, Gaslamp District, etc.

 

One tour I did take that was exceptional was a tour to La Jolla with Tour Guide Tim - it was fantastic!! I would highly recommend that to anyone with some time to spend in San Diego. He is very informative and spends time talking with you and pointing out all of the sites. He is the nicest guy, very personable.

 

Anyway, that is the type of tour or excursion I am looking for, something different and interesting that isn't your typical tourist thing. Any suggestions?

[Splinter]

Depending on your interests, and access to transportation, here are some additional things to do:

 

Visit Julian & Cuyamaca State Park (60 miles east)

Visit Anza Borrego State Park (about 80 miles east) for spring desert wildflowers

San Diego Botanical Garden (formerly Quail Gardens, about 30 miles north)

The San Diego Zoo Safari Park (formerly the Wild Animal Park, about 30 miles north east)

 

Closer to San Diego:

 

The San Diego Maritime Museum (several historic boats to tour)

Harbor Cruise, or a sail on a former America's Cup boat

The USS Midway Museum (aircraft carrier)

The Hotel del Coronado (a nice tour)

The Birch Aquarium (part of UCSD and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography)

The San Diego Natural History Museum (Balboa Park)

The Museum of Man (Balboa Park)

The Mingei Museum (Balboa Park)

The Marston House (Balboa Park)

The San Diego Museum of Art (Balboa Park)

The Timkin Gallery of Art (Balboa Park)

The Museum of Photographic Arts (Balboa Park)

The San Diego Aerospace Museum (Balboa Park)

The Reuben H. Fleet Science Center & iMax Theater (Balboa Park)

Cabrillo National Monument (Point Loma)

Ft. Rosecrans National (Veterans) Cemetary

Drive the 59 Mile Scenic Drive

The Mission San Diego de Alcala (Mission Valley)

Sculpture Walk/Tour at UCSD campus

 

There are also Segway tours available (and lots of fun) for Coronado, the Gaslamp, La Jolla, and Balboa Park areas.

[Kartgv]

It's hard to come up with any that 'Splinter' didn't cover, but there are a couple. If you're near the Midway, walk a little further toward the Fish Market Restaurant on the bay to see the very unique sculpture tribute to the Bob Hope USO tours. Also you might want to do the ferry across to Coronado, have lunch (try Peohe, right near the ferry landing), maybe rent a couple of bicycles to tour around the island. I'd personally recommend that you spend a day in Balboa Park where you can easily cover several of the museums in a day.