Southern California Anaheim & Disneyland
The original Disney theme park, its newer neighbour and a second classic park down the road — with Orange County’s surf beaches 30 minutes away.
Things to see in San Diego
Seven sights that cover the city, the bay and the coast.
1. Balboa Park
A 490-hectare (1,200-acre) park just north of downtown, laid out for expositions in 1915 and 1935. Ornate Spanish Colonial Revival buildings along El Prado house more than a dozen museums, with gardens, the Botanical Building and the California Tower between them.
2. San Diego Zoo
Inside Balboa Park, with thousands of animals in landscaped, largely open-air habitats. A guided bus tour and an aerial tram help with the steep site. The separate Safari Park is about 50 km (30 miles) north near Escondido.
3. La Jolla
An upmarket seaside district 20 minutes north of downtown. Sea lions and harbour seals rest on the rocks at La Jolla Cove and the Children’s Pool; keep your distance and obey any seasonal closures. Nearby are La Jolla Shores beach and the clifftop trails of Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve.
4. USS Midway Museum
The aircraft carrier Midway served from 1945 to 1992 and is now a museum on the Embarcadero. Explore the hangar and flight decks, the bridge and the crew quarters; many of the volunteer guides are veterans.
5. Gaslamp Quarter
Sixteen blocks of restored Victorian commercial buildings downtown, now the city’s main restaurant and nightlife district. Petco Park, home of the Padres baseball team, is at its eastern edge.
6. Coronado
A peninsula across the bay reached by the curving Coronado Bridge or by passenger ferry. Its wide, flat beach fronts the red-roofed Hotel del Coronado of 1888, one of America’s great wooden resort hotels.
7. Old Town San Diego
The site of the first Spanish settlement in California, preserved as a state historic park of adobe and timber buildings from the Mexican and early American periods, with museums, shops and many Mexican restaurants.
Destinations
Combine it with
Southern California 
Southern California Los Angeles
Film studios, beach towns and hilltop views spread across a vast, sunny basin — a city you plan by neighbourhood, not by map.
Deserts Palm Springs & Joshua Tree
A mid-century desert resort beneath 3,000-metre peaks, and an hour away a national park of giant boulders and spiky Joshua trees.
Plan your trip
Book tours in San Diego
Compare real-time prices and availability on GetYourGuide. Most tours can be cancelled free of charge up to 24 hours ahead.