Basic Info
San Diego is a vacationer's paradise, complete with idyllic year-round temperatures and 70 mi of pristine coastline. Recognized as one of the nation's leading family destinations, with SeaWorld, LEGOLAND, and the Zoo, San Diego is equally attractive to those in search of art, culture, world-class shopping, and culinary exploration. San Diego's many neighborhoods offer diverse adventures: from the tony boutiques in La Jolla to the culinary delights in the northern suburb of Del Mar; from the authentic European charm of Little Italy to the nouveau-chic of the downtown Gaslamp Quarter, each community adds flavor and flair to San Diego's personality. Approximately two and a half hours south of Los Angeles, San Diego County is nestled between Mexico to the south, wine country to the north, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. One of the city's many highlights is the 1,200-acre Balboa Park, the country's largest urban cultural park, home to 15 museums, the Globe Theater, and the San Diego Zoo. Nature abounds throughout the city: Bougainvilleas cover hillsides in La Jolla, spreading magenta blankets over whitewashed adobe walls. Downtown is a vision in purple when the jacaranda trees that line the streets bloom in spring, spreading vivid, shady canopies. While public transportation is available, most tourists prefer to use private or rental cars to traverse the excellent freeway system that crisscrosses the county. Interstate 5 runs a direct north-south route through the coastal communities from Orange County in the north to the Mexican border. If you have time, the parallel Pacific Coast Highway offers a more leisurely route along San Diego's breathtaking coastline. Interstates 805 and 15 are the main inland arteries. Interstate 8 is the main east-west route. Routes 163, 52, and 94 serve as connectors. A 59-mi scenic drive over much of central San Diego begins at the foot of Broadway. Signs with a white seagull on a yellow-and-blue background direct the way through the Embarcadero to Harbor and Shelter Islands, Point Loma, Cabrillo Monument, Mission Bay, Old Town, Balboa Park, Mount Soledad, and La Jolla. Public transportation has improved a great deal in the past decade: the San Diego Trolley, which runs as far south as San Ysidro, has expanded in the north from Old Town to beyond Mission San Diego and San Diego State University. Commuter Coaster trains run frequently between downtown San Diego and Oceanside, with convenient stops in Del Mar, Encinitas, Carlsbad, and other charming coastal towns. In 2008 the Sprinter commuter train began operating the East-West route between Escondido and Oceanside along Highway 78. The bus system covers almost all of the county, with Fashion Valley shopping center, Old Town, and downtown as the three major bus transfer points. Old Town Trolley Tours has a hop-on, hop-off route of popular spots around the city, taking two and a half hours if you ride continuously and five hours if you plan to explore.
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Downtown is San Diego's Lazarus. Written off as moribund by the 1970s, downtown is now one of the city's prime draws. The turnaround began in the late 1970s with the revitalization of the Gaslamp Quarter Historic District and massive redevelopment that gave rise to the Horton Plaza shopping center and the San Diego Convention Center. Although many consider downtown to be the 16½ block Gaslamp Quarter, it's actually comprised of eight neighborhoods, also including East Village, Little Italy, and Embarcadero. Considered the liveliest of the bunch, Gaslamp's 4th and 5th avenues are riddled with trendy nightclubs, swanky lounge bars, chic restaurants, and boisterous sports pubs, something of a French Quarter West (but without Bourbon Street's less savory distractions). Nearby, the most ambitious of the downtown projects is East Village, encompassing 130 blocks between the railroad tracks up to J Street, and from 6th Avenue east to around 10th Street. Sparking the rebirth of this former warehouse district was the 2004 construction of the San Diego Padres' baseball stadium, PETCO Park. As the city's largest downtown neighborhood, East Village is continually broadening its boundaries with its urban design of redbrick cafés, spacious galleries, rooftop bars, sleek hotels, and warehouse restaurants. Holding true to its European roots is the charming neighborhood of Little Italy, inhabited by native Italians and talented artists. After an afternoon of gelati and espressos in this village enclave you may just forget that you're in Southern California. Running along the San Diego harbor is downtown's Embarcadero, home to the USS Midway, the Maritime Museum, and Seaport Village, with 50-plus shops, 17 restaurants, and outdoor entertainment. The Martin Luther King Jr. Promenade project put 14 acres of greenery, a pedestrian walkway, and artwork along Harbor Drive from Seaport Village to the San Diego Convention Center. Downtown's natural attributes were easily evident to its original booster, wealthy San Francisco businessman William Heath Davis, who along with several business partners attempted the first settlement by the Bay in 1850.When Alonzo Horton arrived in San Diego in 1867, he bought 960 acres for $4,265 and gave away the land to those who would build churches. Today the William Heath Davis Historic House Museum celebrates the lives of these two San Diegopioneers. There are reasonably priced ($4-$7 per day) parking lots along Harbor Drive, Pacific Highway, and lower Broadway and Market Street. Most restaurants offer valet parking at night, but beware of fees of $15 and up.
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