Hey friends, I just got back from a four day trip to San Diego with my 7 and 5 year old. My brother and his girlfriend have been living there for two years and we finally got to come for a visit! Money has been a bit tight lately, so I was scrambling for things to do and places to eat that didn’t have California-sized price tags. We skipped all the big and pricey attractions like Legoland, Sea World and even their world-famous zoo. (I was disappointed about that last one because I’d really wanted to go, but my kids were not into it.) Here is the best of what I found:
Where to stay:
Springhill Suites Downtown/Bayside– 900 Bayfront Court San Diego, California 92101
Walking into this hotel, I was surprised by how beautifully appointed it was. In our room there were floor to ceiling windows with views of the bay, a super comfortable king-sized bed and a sleeper sofa and an over-sized desk separating the two sleeping areas. There was also a small fridge and microwave. They offered a complimentary breakfast buffet with eggs, waffle bar, oatmeal, fruit, etc. They also served coffee, water and fruit all day. The pool was small, but it was on the fifth floor with a gorgeous view of the downtown skyline. My favorite thing about it was the location. It was within walking distance to many attractions including: Seaport Village, USS Midway Museum, Maritime Museum, Gaslamp District and Little Italy.
Cost: It varies depending on the season and day of the week, but the price was very reasonable and in an outstanding location.
Where to eat:
Free hotel breakfast buffet-You can’t do better than free, and this buffet had plenty of choices and good coffee.
Landini’s Pizzeria-1827 India Street, San Diego, CA, 92101
Hours: Sunday-Wednesday 11 am-11 pm, Thursdays open until 1 am and Friday and Saturday ’til 2 am
This place sells pizza by the slice, pasta, calzones and paninis, and also has a great local beer selection. You order at a counter in the front and then you can sit inside or on their covered back patio. We stopped there for dinner right after we arrived and the owner was so kind and accommodating to my travel-weary, bitchy kids that he has made us customers for life. It didn’t hurt that the spaghetti bolognese V and I shared was some of the best I’ve ever had.
Cost: $30.00 for dinner for 4
Papalecco-1602 State Street, San Diego, CA 92101
Hours: Monday-Thursday 7 am-10:15 pm Friday: 7am–11:00pm, Saturday: 7:30am–11:00pm, Sunday: 7:30am–10:15pm (Winner of most interesting hours award.)
Their gelato was amazing!! I don’t use the word amazeballs because I think I’m too old for the word, but if I did, I would use it to describe this gelato. The man who served us was so sweet and let my kids try as many flavors as they wanted. They make it with only five ingredients and it is creamy and delicious. They also sell amazing looking pastries, coffee drinks and my favorite dessert affogatto, which if you’re not familiar is a cup of espresso with a scoop of gelato inside. Molto Buono!
Cost: About $18.00 for four cups
Rubios-We went to this one: 10460 Friars Road San Diego CA, 92120, but there are many locations all over California.
Hours: 10-9 pm daily
This is a local chain that offers tacos, including fish and shrimp, salads, rice bowls and a great salsa bar. The feel inside is similar to a Chipotle, but their seafood is fresh and their prices are good.
Cost: $27.00 for dinner for 3
Little Italy Mercato-West Cedar Street from Kettner Boulevard to Front Street.
Hours: Every Saturday 8 am-2 pm year-round
We LOVED this farmer’s market! It’s about 4 or 5 blocks long and has everything you can think of. The vendors were so nice to my kids and made them feel welcome everywhere they went. They sampled olive oil, 5 different kinds of honey, cheesecake, ginger tea, cake pops, green smoothies, and the most delicious vegan cheddar garlic croutons. Vegan croutons, really? Yes, really, you weren’t there, and they were amazing!!
Cost: Free to sample. We spent around $30 on iced coffee for me, flowers and pastries for my brother and his girlfriend and honey bears for the kids.
What to do:
USS Midway Museum– 910 N Harbor Dr, San Diego, CA 92101
Hours: 10-5 daily
The kids and I had a great time going aboard and exploring this gigantic ship and all of its different quarters. The ship is one of the world’s longest serving aircraft carriers. When you walk in, each person is given an audio tour device. We went on the family-friendly self-guided tour and took part in their junior pilot’s program where the kids answered questions based on the tour. After they answered all the questions they brought their paper back to the info center and were each awarded junior pilot’s wings. They even had a short ceremony declaring them to be junior pilots. We were there for hours and the museum really held the kids’ attention. Kids under 6 are free and we found kid tickets for only $6 and adult tickets for only $16 online using the Viator app. We saved $4/ticket compared to buying them at the museum.
Cost: 1 adult and 1 child ticket-$22.00
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- Strike a pose!
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- Sibling love
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- Oh shit, B’s steering the ship!
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- Pushing ALL the buttons!
Old Town Sheriff’s Museum-2384 San Diego Ave, San Diego, CA 92110
Hours:Wednesday-Sunday 11-5 pm, closed Monday and Tuesday
Kids are free at this place and adult tickets are only $5. That’s what I’m talking about! Also, all of the proceeds from the museum and their gift shop go to the San Diego Sheriff’s department. It’s a pretty small museum, but the kids had a great time climbing on motorcyles, cruisers and even a helicopter. They tried on judges robes and sat on the bench and even got their mug shots taken. I had to practically drag them out of there when it was time to eat. A special thank you to the friendly and kind man working there who saw us outside the museum, waiting in the sun for our Lyft later in the day, and brought us three bottles of water.
Cost: 1 adult ticket-$5.00
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- A hardened criminal if I’ve ever seen one
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- Ben seems surprised to be here.
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- They threw me in their cruiser without a second thought!
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- God help us!
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- She looks at home up there!
La Jolla Children’s Pool/Seal Beach– 850 Coast Blvd, La Jolla, CA 920377
Hours: The Children’s Pool Beach is closed to public access during harbor seal pupping season, Dec. 15 through May 15, yearly.
My brother brought us to see the seals in La Jolla and the kids loved how close they could get to them. My brother and I loved snarkily hoping the seals would chase or (gently) bite the young hipsters who were invading their space a bit too much in the hopes of a great photo op.
Cost: Free
Cabrillo National Monument-1800 Cabrillo Memorial Dr, San Diego, CA 92106
Hours: 9-5 daily
This is my brother’s favorite place in San Diego. It’s a beautiful and peaceful spot with great views of the ocean and the Coronado Islands of Mexico. We played in the tide pools at low tide and saw lots of crabs and beautiful shells. The kids were too tired to make it up to the visitor center or historic lighthouse, but I’m told they’re quite lovely.
Cost: $10.00 entrance fee per car
Waterfront Park-1600 Pacific Highway, San Diego, CA 92101
Hours: 6 am-10 pm daily
My kids loved this playground overlooking the bay. It was a five minute walk from our hotel, so we visited four times during our stay. In addition to some really cool playground equipment and funky design, the park has a large fountain that kids can run and splash in.
Cost: Free
Unconditional Surrender Statue-55 Tuna Ln, San Diego, CA 92132
This is a very cool, giant statue right near the water and the Midway Museum . It’s a 3D rendering of the photo taken by Alfred Eisenstaedt in 1945 of a sailor so overcome by US victory in WW II that he just had to kiss the nurse standing next to him. The history was lost on my kids, but they had fun sliding on the giant stone bannisters nearby.
Cost: Free
Belmont Park-3146 Mission Blvd, San Diego, CA 92109
Hours: M-Th 11-9 pm and Fri & Sat 11-10 pm
This amusement park just outside Mission Beach reminded me of Coney Island. They have a historic roller coaster, carousel, about 10 other carnival rides, laser tag, mini golf, a ropes course, a climbing wall and lots of carnival food and games. Basically it’s a kid’s dream world. Unfortunately this is where V fell off a railing and fractured her elbow, so we didn’t get to enjoy most of the attractions, but we definitely plan on returning the next time we visit. This place wasn’t cheap, but it was a lot better than Sea World’s $65 tickets for everyone over 2.
Cost: $20/child for an unlimited ride wristband and $8/person for laser tag
Pre-accident photo op
B loved the rides and I loved the expressions on the face of the kid next to him!
In Case of Emergency:
Rady Children’s Hospital-ER- Rose Pavilion, 1st Floor, 3020 Children’s Way, San Diego, CA 92123
I hope you don’t need to visit this place on your vacation, but, after their excellent job taking care of V, I couldn’t leave them out. Their emergency room is specifically for kids. They also have several urgent care facilities in the city. They treated V very kindly, but they didn’t talk down to her. She got to watch the movie Brave during her time there and got stickers each time she had to get x-rays taken:three times to be exact.
Cost: Shit, don’t ask!
Here is V unfazed by her elbow fracture and mesmerized by the glowing light of the television.
Though we never made it to the beach because of all the time in the ER, we still had a great time in San Diego, ate great food and made lots of memories, all without blowing our monthly budget.
I for one, am glad that I’m done traveling with my kids for awhile. I think we’re all ready to get back in a routine. I hope you’ve all had fun this summer and were able to make some great travel memories. Please share your travel adventures in the comments!
🙂 Erin
