We had a great week in San Diego for spring break! San Diego is one of our favorite places to go and honestly sometimes my saving grace for living in Tucson. It’s only a six hour drive to go from desert to beach! Fortunately for us the hub’s parents are a part of a timeshare with plenty of options in that area so we can get away for relatively cheap!
We decided at the beginning of the year that we wanted to make this year full of beachy getaways whenever possible so we booked several different trips out. Spring break was our second trip of the year and this time we got to take my sister and her family! I was so excited to share all of our favorite spots with them and thought it would be fun to share with you guys too! So here it is! A list of our favorite spots that we always go to when visiting San Diego and a new favorite spot that we found last week as well!!
Activities and places:
Seaport Village
The first place I always want to go is Seaport Village! It is a cute outdoor shopping center downtown, right on the water front. We love to wander around in and out of the shops and enjoy the fresh breeze coming from the ocean. Some of our favorite shops to visit are the toy shop and the kite shop. There are some cute restaurants nearby as well but our favorite is to walk just a little further near the Midway Museum and have lunch at The Fish Market- I’ll tell you more about it further down.
San Diego Zoo
By far this is the best zoo I have ever been to. It is honestly just beautiful! Every where I turned I wanted to take pictures, but not of the animals- of the gardens! It is very large but definitely possible to do in one day. In order to get it all in and not be running from place to place we took advantage of the bus tour and other small shuttles that come free with your entry ticket. This saved us a lot of time and saved us from trekking up a few of the more treacherous hills. I also love this zoo because the animal enclosures feel very realistic. They also have some of the more rare animals that you wouldn’t typically see, like pandas and koalas! I could visit this zoo every time we go to San Diego and I don’t think it would ever get old!
La Jolla Cove
We love to stop by La Jolla Cove to check out the sea lions! You can walk down to the rocks that they like to hang out on and get pretty close for a pic. We also like to go here around sunset because it is just beautiful!
Harbor or Whale Watching Tour
We have done both types of boat tours and love just being able to be out on the ocean. The Harbor tour is much shorter and doesn’t go out onto the ocean like the whale watching tours do. The whale watching tour is great but can get a little long- if you have younger kids they might get restless toward the end. We have done to whale tours recently and only saw dolphins our first tour. The second tour we saw a group of grey whales and got to follow them for quite some time. You can find really great deals on Groupon for tickets to these.
Old Town San Diego
Another fun place to go for shopping and a few activities mixed in is Old Town. It is where San Diego began and has some really neat historical buildings that you can walk through. They have a candle making shop where you can watch them make specialty candles and even dip some candles of your own. They also have some great Mexican restaurants!
Places to eat:
The Fish Market
The Fish Market is a great restaurant right on the water near downtown. It is right next to the Midway Museum and a short walk from Seaport Village. You can sit and eat while you look out over the water. Everything we have had there has been great! I love the fish ‘n chips and the clam chowder is amazing.
Blue Water Seafood Market & Grill
If you are looking for fish that was just caught that morning then this is the place to go! It is a small place and there is always a line but it is worth it! They serve some of the freshest fish we have ever had, it was amazing.
Cafe Coyote Y Cantina
This is a pretty big place in Old Town San Diego. They have a lot of options and are great for larger groups. I have not had anything here that I haven’t liked but at the same time wouldn’t give it claim to the best Mexican food I have ever had. (I’m from Tucson remember.)
Beach Break Cafe
If you are in the Oceanside area and are looking for breakfast you must go here!! It is a fun atmosphere, everything is very beachy surfer and the food is amazing! They have banana crunch fresh toast that is amazing, huge omelets and coffee cake that is a must.
Extraordinary Desserts
Who doesn’t love dessert?! This place has the most incredible, delicious, and beautiful desserts! You just have to go!
Great Maple
We just found this place last week and it was amazing! Any place that you can start your brunch with a donut appetizer is a number one in my book! The bacon maple glazed donuts were the best! They came out warm with a crisp outside and fluffy inside, I’m drooling just thinking about them! (Not really but….. maybe.) And then the food was amazing too! I would definitely suggest sharing because the portions were huge but we got two different things so we could try each other’s. So good!
I hope this gives you a lot of ideas of places to go, see, and eat! We love San Diego and I think it will hold a special place in the hearts of our family for years to come! We have made so many great memories there! Where do you like to go to getaway? Let me know in the comments!
