My boyfriend and I spent a week in southern California, and we had a great time! We stayed close to San Diego, so we wanted to take a day trip to explore the city centre. San Diego is a very spread-out city with many different areas and lots of things to do. You can easily reach San Diego via the Coaster train or the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner train. I hope you enjoy this guide for a day trip to San Diego!
Spruce Street Suspension Bridge
I couldn’t believe it – there is a hidden suspension bridge in a random residential area of San Diego! This was our first stop on our day trip. It is quite out of the way from most attractions but if you have the opportunity to stop by, it is a pretty cool bridge.
Seaport Village
Next up, we took an Uber to Seaport Village, my favourite area of San Diego that we visited. Seaport Village is an adorable waterfront shopping and dining complex. There are ponds, beautiful trees, and so many cute stores – I took a photo everywhere I turned!
Waterfront/Marina
After wandering through Seaport Village, walk along the downtown waterfront.
There are plenty of impressive boats and ships in the marina, but one will stand out – the USS Midway. The USS Midway was an aircraft carrier of the United States Navy. Commissioned in 1945, it was the largest ship in the world until 1955, and she operated for 47 years. The USS Midway is now a museum and you can climb aboard the ship. We really wanted to visit but the price was too steep for us.
Since we visited on a Saturday, we got lucky and caught the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market (8am-1pm). We grabbed a sandwich with fresh fish from that morning and watched the fishermen feed the seals!
Coronado
My boyfriend’s mom suggested that we take the ferry to Coronado island to see the Hotel del Coronado, and I am so glad that we did! From the ferry, you will have a great view of San Diego and the Marina from the water.
Once you arrive at Coronado, you can take a bus directly to the Hotel del Coronado. This iconic hotel is one of the few surviving examples of an American wooden Victorian beach resort. It is the second largest wooden structure in America! When it opened in 1888, it was the largest resort hotel in the world. Presidents, royalty, and celebrities have all stayed at the hotel and it has been featured in movies and books, such as Some Like It Hot with Marilyn Monroe. Make sure to spend time wandering around the hotel and checking out the lobby – you will feel as if you’ve stepped back in time!
The best view of the hotel (and my favourite part of this day trip) is from the beautiful Coronado beach. Here you can also see the famous sandcastles built by Bill Pavlacka, “The Sandcastle Man.”
For lunch, we had an amazing lobster roll at Lobster West before we headed back to the ferry.
Gaslamp Quarter
From the waterfront, we walked to San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter. Here you will find gas lamps lining the picturesque streets, tons of restaurants, and lively nightlife.
We had discounted cocktails and appetizers at The Butcher’s Cut Steakhouse during “happy hour” (a big thing in California). Super cute restaurant!
Little Italy
We then took an Uber to Little Italy to end up there for dinner. Little Italy is a lovely area in San Diego, and we had an amazing Italian dinner at Buon Appetito. It was a great way to end our perfect day trip to San Diego!
Some additional things to do in San Diego:
- Old Town San Diego State Historic Park
- San Diego Zoo
- Balboa Park
- Mission Beach
- Belmont Park
- SeaWorld San Diego
- Sunset Cliffs
- La Jolla
- Torrey Pines State Reserve
I hope that this guide for a day trip to San Diego helps you on your future trips to the city!
To read my blog post, “5 Amazing Places on the Southern California Coast,” click here.
