In case you haven’t noticed . . . it’s June.
Which means summer – and if you’re lucky – summer vacations!!
We feel so fortunate to live in Carlsbad, CA – which is about 20 minutes north of San Diego.
And since we are living in a place that so many people love to come for vacation, I thought it would be fun to share a few free (or mostly free) activities to do around San Diego!!
It’s easy to find not-so-free things right? I mean, you have Sea World, the San Diego Zoo, and Wild Animal Park, and Legoland all within 45 minutes of each other. Oh and there’s that big park just an hour north of here that you might have heard of . . . Disneyland? And yeah. Not too much free there.
But San Diego has a ton of fun activities that won’t cost you much at all – so let’s check some of them out!
1. Let’s start with the obvious – THE BEACH!!
It doesn’t get much better than a day playing in the sand and waves.
Here are some ideas for different beaches – depending on what you’d like to do:
Best Beach for Kids – Coronado Beach
Little waves – lots of sand – plus you get to go across the fabulous Coronado Bridge to get there
Best Beach for Dogs – Ocean Beach
If you brought Fido you want to check this one out.
North County Beaches – Oceanside Pier
Playground & McDonald’s on the beach, plus the pier which is great for fishing and watching the waves!
My Biased Favorite – South Ponto Beach, Carlsbad
Not too crowded, even in summer. Great boogie boarding and surfing too.
And the added bonus there – you can ditch the sand and meet me for lunch instead!!
2. La Jolla Park/Seal Beach/Tide Pools
La Jolla Cove is a great place to spend the day. You will find a large grassy area for playing with barbeques and picnic tables, tide pools and just a short walk to Seal Beach where you can view seals playing in the water or sunning on the beach. They stink but they’re fun to watch. ;)
Those activities are free, but if you’re adventurous and want to spend some of your vacation dollars – you can also rent kayaks or go scuba diving!
3. Balboa Park
Located in the heart of San Diego – Balboa Park is the home to 15 museums, gardens, the San Diego Zoo, concerts and art exhibits.
Parking is free and there are walks and trails throughout. There are 8 gardens – most of which are free.
There are also lots of play and picnic areas.
For a small fee ($2) you can ride the Historic Carousel or the Miniature Train.
For larger fees :) you can visit the Museums or the Zoo!
Seaport Village is located right on the bay in downtown San Diego.
It is filled with shops, restaurants and entertainment, or you can just sit and watch the activity in the bay.
Parking is a small fee, especially if you make a purchase in one of the shops or restaurants.
If you hang around all day – the view in downtown San Diego is just gorgeous.
5. Summer Concerts in the Park
Several local parks offer free concert series throughout the summer.
Carlsbad hosts Jazz in the Park on Friday Nights.
In July and August at Moonlight Beach in Encinitas you can grab a spot on the beach and enjoy a live concert. Call 760.633.2756 for info.
Mondays in Balboa Park you can listen to a free Organ Concert!
6. Cabrillo National Monument Park
For a small National Park entrance fee ($5 per vehicle) you can explore beautiful Cabrillo Park in Point Loma.
Located just minutes from downtown San Diego – Cabrillo Park is the home of the Point Loma Lighthouse, trails, tide pools and amazing views!
If you’re going to check out the rocks and tide pools, where some decent shoes – the rocks are sandy and slippery.
They have a Junior Ranger program for kids too – check the Visitor Center for info.
7. Farmer’s Markets
San Diego county is FULL of Farmer’s Markets – hosted in different cities around town every day.
Some markets sell only food, some also have craft items as well.
Check the SD Farm Bureau site for times and locations.
8. Mt. Soledad, La Jolla
Take a quick scenic drive up to Mt. Soledad, a beautiful Veterans Memorial set high on a hill in La Jolla.
It has a breathtaking view of San Diego.
9. Coronado Island
Not only are the beaches and bridge fabulous, but Coronado is home to shopping, restaurants and the gorgeous Hotel Del Coronado.
The hotel was built in 1888 and the buildings and grounds are very pretty.
10. Old Town San Diego
Old Town is full of historic buildings, restaurants, shops and entertainment!
You can take tours of the museums, visit the haunted house or just listen to the mariachi’s and sip a margarita!
Hopefully you’ve found some things here to do in San Diego that are fun easy on the budget!
If I’ve missed any of your favorite freebies around here, leave them in the comments!!
So what about you – any big summer plans?
Your post couldn’t have come at a better time… we’re planning a trip to San Diego with friends this summer (first time visit for all of us)! Thank you for all the great tips… I’m off to send this link to our friends we’re traveling with. Seeing all the pictures gets me even more excited!
How fun!! Thanks for the mini tour and fun ideas, Bev! I’m getting into vaca mode and trying to figure out where to go. We’ll probably stick to the east coast for now (or the gulf), but I would love to bring the boys to San Diego one day. Pinning this for future reference! :)
Isn’t San Diego just so pretty? I was there a year ago for my son’s wedding. That was my first time back there in 49 yrs since I lived there as a baby. I also stood on Coronado Beach. There was lots of seaweed that day but the water was still so blue, and pretty. And La Jolla…..wow! Amazing place. My first day that I was taken to Balboa Park. Beautiful place also. I enjoyed walking around with my son, daughter in law, and sis in law, taking in all the beauty and seeing flowers that we do not have in Nashville, TN. Thanks for sharing the pics and bringing back memories.
When our family took a vacation to the San Deaigo area 5 years ago (wow, I dosent feel that long ago…) we did the La Jolla kyaking. It was awesome. Our mom took our brother to the aquerium while our dad, me and my sister kayaked.
Love this! My hubby is headed to San Diego on Sunday for the week, I will have to have him hit some of these up! Any restaurant recommendations?
We’re heading down there this July!
We’ll be staying in Riverside, and yes, hitting up Disneyland :) but that’s the only real expense we plan on having for the trip, so we want lots of other free things to fill the rest of the days.
btw, any chance you’d want to try to meet up somewhere? I actually thought I might put up a post on my own blog, just asking if anyone local wants to meet for a smoothie or something (going to snap hopefully has made me a little less scared to ask :)
We leave for there this Saturday thanks for the info!
San Diego has been a city I have always wanted to visit, now even more so!
Thanks for the great post! I wish I wasn’t so far from California! And although Kentucky isn’t as far as you can get, it’s pretty darn close, haha! All we have to do here is the lake. Boring. I’m going to t pin this and hopefully one day can make it out there! It’s beautiful!!
Have a great day, Bev!
Bev, You did it again, in my opinion. Having grown up in Long Beach, San Diego was only a 90mile trip. If I had ever had my choice it definitely would be a city I would love to live in.
You definitely showed everyone the absolute best places. Makes me homesick, I haven’t been back in years. This is a good reminder to me, to think about it as a vacation spot. You forget the places you haven’t seen in a long tme.
From freezing, rainy, windy, central Oregon forest. We are beautiful up here though. But we are all waiting for some sun.
Thanks for a trip down memory lane.
Best wishes and keep up the good work.
You are still the best in my book.
Cathe
Doggone it now you went and made me so darned homesick for San Diego. We lived out in Santee mostly but I sure do miss all the gorgeous places and beaches. So much to do all the time. I can remember going to Pacific Beach on New Years day. I used to take a truck load of kids/friends to beach when they were young teenagers. It was really fun and they were all really good, polite. Seeing all those gorgeous pictures sure brought the memories back. We moved to MT in 92 on a 35 mile long lake (Canyon Ferry) so it was a pretty good trade. We had 20 acres.
I miss alot but one of favorite things was the sand castle contests. They had one at Pacific Beach one year that was so incredible. I still have pictures of all of it. Haven’t been to S.D. for lots of years. Our oldest son moved back from KY 1 1/2 yrs. ago now and lives in El Cajon. He’s so happy to be back and have all his old friends around, alot of them kids he grew up with in Santee.
Oh, I miss San Diego so much. I lived in Normal Heights and you’re so right that it’s a great place for just taking off and exploring. Just wanted to add that SD has the best thrift stores I’ve ever been to. Sigh…
I got to go back “home” to San Diego ( after 15 or so years) last year for vacay! I would love to be able to go every year! Mt. Helix in Spring Valley is a neat free place to go too. I have awesome pictures of Cabrillo/Pt. Loma and Pacific Beach. Oh Sigh! Next time I’m comin to see you too! :) California Dreamin’
These comments make me shiver! How I love San Diego! Wait for this summer. :)
Love this list! And awesome pictures to go along with it.
Sent you an email about featuring you on our site! :)
-Shondra
Hello! We are so excited to make our first visit to San Diego area in early June! My son has always dreamed of visiting this zoo! We are staying in Carlsbad – thanks for the beach recommendation I plan to visit it for sure! Do you have some good local restaurant recommendations also for Carlsbad. I have searched and not had a lot of luck!
Thanks for your help!
I completely adore San Diego! I wish I had a summerhouse on Mission beach! x
http://debsbug.blogspot.gr/
Wow. I am going there in July 2015 (we are from Australia) and we can’t wait. It’s looks amazing and so pretty.
And hiking adventures! Tons of trails, hills, and mountains to hike on, also mostly free other than gas and a small fee for Palomar Observatory and Torrey Pines. Also tossed in a few bonus places.
– Lake Hodges
– Lake Miramar
– Torrey Pines State Reserve
– Laguna Mountain
– Palomar Mountain
– Mission Trails
– Lake Wolford
– Bates Nut Farm
– 3 Sisters Falls
– Cedar Creek Falls
– The town of Julian
– Penasquitos Canyon and waterfall (one of the largest urban parks in the nation)
– San Dieguito Park
– Blue Sky Reserve
– Cuymaca Lake
– Lake Poway
– Mount Woodson
– Iron Mountain
– Cowles Mountain
– Sycamore Canyon
and many many more.
Best Regards,
Adam Young
San Diego Real Estate Agent
The Giving Realty