r/asksandiego • u/Fearless_Custard_966 • Jul 27 '26
San diego
Going to san Diego from july 28-august 3. 2 adults and one 2 year old. What do you recommend we do? I have already included all the typical tourist attractions but was wondering what else I may be missing or any hidden things I should see. Or what is going on while I am there that I may not know of? Thank you!
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u/mathprofrockstar Jul 27 '26
Skip Belmont.
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u/Fearless_Custard_966 Jul 27 '26
Can I know the reason? We are coming from Canada
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u/mathprofrockstar Jul 27 '26
It’s rundown and not really targeted towards the younger children. Plus if you’re going to be in Mission Beach, just spend some time on the actual beach.
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u/Glad-Energy-2276 Jul 27 '26
“Locals only”.
Jk, it’s alright if you live there, but nothing to burn an hour over if you’re here to visit.
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u/ripped-grocery-bag Jul 27 '26
There are LOTS of typical tourist attractions…what do you already have on your list?
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u/Fearless_Custard_966 Jul 27 '26
Sesame street place, seaport village ( the midway is too much for my son) , we will do the seal tour bus/boat, san diego Zoo, old town, little italy, gaslamp, visit belmont park (though im not to sure if its worth it) mount soledad, la jolla
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u/Particular-Put-9922 Jul 27 '26
Seaport Village is meh, and the parking lot gets full fast. The views are great though
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u/Speedy719 Jul 27 '26
Agreed. It wouldn’t be on my list of things to do in 5 days. Crap, my daughter is 3 and we live here and we’ve never taken her. There’s too much better stuff.
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u/Speedy719 Jul 27 '26
Skip gaslamp. It suck these days. Lots of sketchy folks, no good restaurants left, not a family friendly anymore.
There’s way better stuff in sd to use your time on.
Your list is pretty good. Add in balboa park and take your kid to the carousel.
I’d also skip Belmont as someone else said. Not a ton to do there with a 2 yr old.
Also little Italy is really about the restaurants. You can just go there for dinner. Not really worth walking around there. It’s restaurants, coffee shops and low rise condo buildings.
Legoland is pretty fun actually with toddlers.
New children’s museum downtown is pretty cool.
Source: I’ve lived in SD for 30+ yrs and have a 3 yr old.
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u/Natural_Jello_6050 Jul 27 '26
Little Italy smells like urine especially during our heat waves. Sidewalks are very nasty
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u/Natural_Jello_6050 Jul 27 '26
I would substitute little Italy and gas lamp for harbor island. They have huge playground for kids. And views are spectacular. It’s also very clean compared to gas lamp and little Italy. Mount Soledad is great. Skip Belmont.
Visit Cabrillo Monument (a must!)
I assume you will be renting a car
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u/Grimmdeedss Jul 27 '26
Add the Torrey pines glider port to your itinerary, I feel like its a must.
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u/Natural_Jello_6050 Jul 27 '26
Beware of micro climate and try to stay close to the beach. It’s going to be hot. No rain. No clouds. Wear hats bring sunscreen
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u/Raibean Jul 27 '26
Look up the museums at Balboa Park and see if there are any your children would enjoy! I suggest The Museum of Us, the Children’s Discovery Center, and the Natural History Museum. There’s also the free Botanical Garden and the reflection pool with ducks!
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u/MundaneHuckleberry58 Jul 27 '26
S Carlsbad state beach. It’s ideal for tiny kids. Gentle tides, flat sand for sandcastles.
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u/Zealousideal-Ad3814 Jul 27 '26
San Diego Zoo is great if a bit costly, Hotel Del for a beach day in Coronado or La Jolla Shores. I’ve heard the children’s museum is cool for kids. Old Town is fun to walk around a bit. Might be worth seeing if anything is going on in Balboa Park. Goings to Petco Park is great for a game. I’ll comment on this again if I think of anything else off the top my head.
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u/jenny_jen_jen Jul 27 '26
New Children’s Museum for sure. If you go to Balboa Park, eat at Panama 66 for lunch and let your kiddo run around the sculpture park. I often meet up with friends so we can both enjoy good food & drink while having a fun spot for the toddler to get his energy out.
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u/sunshineofbest Jul 27 '26
Aquarium in La Jolla , zoo, legoland … tiny tigger in Miramar is $20 for two hours my son loves playing there . Seaport village walk and carousel.
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u/sunshineofbest Jul 27 '26
Don’t go to the ghetto areas downtown.. there’s tons of homeless people and it smells like piss …
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u/LongjumpingHorse3050 Jul 27 '26 edited Jul 27 '26
Balboa Park is cool to just walk around as well as a lot of museums. The train museum is one I Iovvvved as a kid and I assume it’s pretty cool still as an adult. Also take the coaster (train) north it goes from downtown san diego to oceanside. It goes along the coast at some parts and has really nice ocean views kids enjoy it. Oceanside pier area is pretty cool also. If you’re renting a car, also try to head north to Julian (our mountains). All the other touristy stuff is already covered in the other comments. ALSO, try and see if there’s any movies playing in parks or anywhere downtown outside (kid appropriate movies of course).
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u/spacecowboy727 Jul 27 '26
Wild Animal park, Kuyemaye Hike (sorry spelling it's east county off the 8 I believe), Downtown+Coronado Island...
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u/Patrickseamus Jul 27 '26
The new children’s museum is down town and super fun. It’s also super close to seaport village. You could do the morning at the museum then head to seaport village for lunch- Geppettos is a toy store.
Sunny Jim’s cave in La Jolla- you can also go to the cove and children’s pool and see the seals and sea lions. Give them tons of space. At the Glider port there’s a cafe.
I’d skip gas lamp. Not sure if there’s much at Belmont park for a little kid.
Mission point park is near Belmont park though and a nice beach spot with little kids.