California (CA)

Things to Do in San Diego

Things to Do in San Diego, CA - San Diego Attractions

Things to Do in San Diego

Ways to tour San Diego

Book these experiences for a close-up look at San Diego.

BEST SELLER
San Diego Whale Watching Cruise
389
Sailing
from $85.00 per adult
BEST SELLER
San Diego Harbor Cruise
544
Day Cruises
from $30.00 per adult
La Jolla Sea Caves Kayak Tour
322
Adventure Tours
from $32.50 per adult
San Diego Tour: Hop-on Hop-off Trolley
443
Trolley Tours
from $46.00 per adult
BEST SELLER
Skip the Line: USS Midway Museum Admission Ticket in San Diego
503
Skip-the-Line Tours
from $26.00 per adult
Intro to Mexico Walking Tour: Tijuana Day Trip from San Diego
77
Walking Tours
from $60.00 per adult
Brothels, Bites and Booze: A Culinary Tour of San Diego's Questionable Past
138
City Tours
from $75.00 per adult
San Diego Zoo 1-Day Pass Ticket, No Reservations Required!
696
Zoo Tickets & Passes
from $62.00 per adult
San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter Historic True Crime Tour
49
Walking Tours
from $17.00 per adult
Whale Watching Cruise from Mission Bay
592
Adventure Tours
from $51.21 per adult

Sightseeing Tickets & Passes

Top Attractions in San Diego

1. USS Midway Museum

Speciality Museums

Downtown

Admission tickets from $26.00

The ship is indeed a floating city where 5000 sailors and officers live for months at a time.

2. La Jolla Cove

Beaches • Parks

An underwater marine park and sanctuary, it has perhaps the highest concentration of Garibaldi on the planet.

3. San Diego Zoo

Zoos

Balboa Park

Admission tickets from $104.00

During the last one hundred years of its existence, the Zoo has reinvented itself many times and continues to evolve as…

4. Mt. Soledad National Veterans Memorial

Historic Sites • Points of Interest & Landmarks

Open now

This site is a National Veteran Memorial and the monument is ringed with walls covered in black plaques dedicated to…

5. Balboa Park

Parks • Gardens

Balboa Park

•

Open now

This is a street of magnificent Spanish buildings built to celebrate two major expositions: The 1915–16…

6. La Jolla Shores Park

Beaches • Parks

Open now

By lisavG7902AD

The little cluster of public buildings in this area comprises the community of The Shores.

7. Torrey Pines Gliderport

Educational sites

Open now

By joetennis619

They navigate the westerly winds that push off the 300 foot sandstone cliff, creating one of the most consistent lift…

8. Children's Pool

Beaches

The Children’s pool was originally endowed by/constructed by Ellen Browning Scripps to have a breakwater which created…

9. Sunset Cliffs Natural Park

Parks

Open now

Visualize a 180 view of the Pacific Ocean, surfers, and a rugged coastline with crashing surf.

10. Birch Aquarium at Scripps

Natural History Museums • Aquariums

Open now

It features many of the regions fishes and habitats, as well as information and exhibits on our changing world.

11. La Jolla Caves

Caverns & Caves

You will see the volcanic and ephemeral nature of sediment on a land/sea boundary.

12. Petco Park

Sports Complexes • Arenas & Stadiums

Downtown

Only seating 42,000, Petco is truly a ball park in the MLB.

13. Windansea Beach

Beaches

This beach is the site where a group of counter-culture surfers met in the early 1960's, and inspired Wolfe's short…

14. San Diego Factory Outlet Center

Shopping Malls

By nikkihamrick

The center is located on the NO-KIDDING last exit in the USA.

15. Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve

State Parks • Nature & Wildlife Areas

Open now

The Reserve was set aside to protect the rarest pine in North America.

16. Cabrillo National Monument

Monuments & Statues

Open now

An Historic site it provides history lessons about the discovery of California.

17. San Diego California Temple - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Religious Sites

Open now

The LDS temple is a sacred, religious building owned by the LDS church.

18. Coronado Bridge

Bridges

Open now

Opening on August 3, 1969, on the 200 anniversary of the founding of San Diego, the bridge ushered in an award winning…

19. Ellen Browning Scripps Park

Parks

By SanDiegoGuy1

This park is part of the legacy of the late Ellen Browning Scripps who gave this land, and other significant parcels…

20. Salk Institute

Points of Interest & Landmarks • Architectural Buildings

Temporarily closed

By mellowcellist

Overlooking the Pacific Ocean, this famous group of buildings is a temple celebrating the triumph of science and…

21. Point Loma

Historic Walking Areas • Geologic Formations

Historic point of land guarding San Diego Bay with a heavy military presence throughout the years (and still today).

22. Little Italy

Neighborhoods

Little Italy

•

Open now

This is a revived part of downtown, undergoing rebuilding and populated with cafes and fun eateries and new apartments.

23. University of California, San Diego

Educational sites

Founded in 1960, the university has many structures that bear the uninspired architectural look of that era.

24. Old Town San Diego

Points of Interest & Landmarks

Old Town

It traces the historical roots of San Diego in its earliest of beginnings, complete with renovated buildings from the…

25. Girard Avenue and Prospect Street

Neighborhoods • Points of Interest & Landmarks

By IslandloverCP

The shopping on Gerard and Prospect is spread out between restaurants, vacant spaces, banks, and offices.

26. Mission Beach

Beaches

Pacific Beach

•

Open now

It has the oldest wooden roller coaster on the west coast.

27. Maritime Museum of San Diego

Speciality Museums • Ships

Admission tickets from $20.00

Located on San Diego Bay this outdoor museum host a half a dozen ships an submarines.

28. Shell Beach Tide Pools

Nature & Wildlife Areas

By DressageDiner

One of the last unspoiled shoreline areas where mico-marine environments can be found in small tidal pools in the rock.

29. Pacific Beach

Beaches

Pacific Beach

Explore Mission Bay on a bike, many miles of beauty.

30. Ho Chi Minh Trail

Hiking Trails

By TravelBoomerang

The trailhead is nestled between two homes and opens to a sweeping vista.

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Sailing

4WD Tours

Water Sports

Self-guided Tours & Rentals

Cultural Tours

Walking & Biking Tours

Food, Wine & Nightlife

*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.

Frequently Asked Questions about San Diego

The top attractions to visit in San Diego are:

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The best day trips from San Diego according to Tripadvisor travelers are:

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