San Diego One Day Itinerary
 

At my parents' request, I'm "planning" a last-minute brief day visit to San Diego for tomorrow, Monday Dec 29. We'll be driving from Orange County, and my parents realize we won't be seeing it all. Since it's an easy drive and they haven't been, they'd simply like to get away for a day and get a little overview of a few areas. They are not interested in seeing the Zoo or Sea World. My dad isn't a big museum guy, so we'll probably save any in-depth museum visiting for when my mom and I go back and have more time. Also, they both love beautiful outdoor scenery, but also live near the beach, so seeing multiple beaches isn't a big draw either. Based on those parameters, this is what I was thinking, but would love any suggestions, corrections, or general feedback:

- Leave Orange County by 8 a.m. / Arrive San Diego around 10 a.m.
- Park at Balboa Park and spend morning there (mainly walking around, probably seeing at least one of the gardens)
- Have lunch in Gaslamp or Old Town (park and walk the area a bit while there)
- Drive bridge to Coronado and visit the Hotel Del Coronado
- Drive north and stop at Torrey Pines State Reserve
- Head back to Orange County (maybe stop somewhere for dinner on drive back? I think my mom would prefer to leave San Diego before it gets too late.)

So any thoughts on whether this itinerary makes sense? I wasn't sure if Torrey Pines would be better first thing (could switch it with Balboa Park), or if I should even include it. Would it be better to spend more time in the downtown area? I know it's a quiet Sunday, but hoping there are some Fodorites around to offer advice. Thanks!

- I would leave OC a little later. You don't want to be in rush hour traffic.

- Balboa Park is good.

- I would drive the couple of minutes to Little Italy and eat there. All the menus are posted outside and they aren't all Italian. LI has become the best place to eat over Gaslamp by far. More locals eat there. Old Town caters to non repeat visitors and the food isn't very good. You can still visit / drive thru both Gaslamp & Old Town but I wouldn't eat there with a few exceptions in the Gaslamp.

- Coronado is good.

- Torrey Pines State Park closes at 5:30

- I would eat dinner in La Jolla and get back on the freeway no earlier than 7:00. Otherwise, you'll likely to be in traffic.

You could stop at Torrey Pines on your way down and then go to Balboa Park. It makes more sense. The only thing there is really to 'see' in downtown is along the Bay. It's a nice place to walk and see the USS Midway, Maritime Museum, old tall ships. You could take a 1 hr harbor cruise. I prefer the North cruise as the South is only shipyards and boats in drydock. North is scenic.

Google "Scenic San Francisco 59-Mile Drive" in sandiego.org. Some of our favorites on the 25-item list are Ocean Beach, Pacific Beach, La Jolla Cove Park, Mission Beach, Old Town State Historic Park (fun Mexican restaurant). Hotel del Coronado is interesting. On our last visit we found the coffee shop and had a refreshment outside soaking in the ambience. That was fun.

HTtY

I'll keep it brief.

Leave Orange county as you have planned. You can't get there earlier by leaving later. Einstein will back me up.

When you get there, consider parking in Old Town and taking the hop on-hop off Old Town Trolley tour for the day. It will take you everywhere you mentioned. My wife and I have done so in the past with good results. We are from an LA suburb.

http://www.trolleytours.com/san-diego/

You may not get back to this tonight but it sounds like a good plan to me. Have a good time, you know already to bring warm clothes. It's been really chilly.

Leaving Orange County at 8:00 can, indeed, mean getting there later if there is traffic. I know having lived in OC for 30+ yrs and driving to SD. Sometimes leaving 1/2 hr later can mean that you do actually get to SD earlier. Some may not want to believe it but is more often than not true.

Same for the return to OC. Have dinner in SD, La Jolla would be good, and then leave after dinner around 7:00 and you should hopefully sail thru back to OC. It's what I've been doing for years.

leaving 1/2 hr later can mean that you do actually get to SD earlier.

Well, no, it means you can get there faster, but not earlier :-)

OK, already :)

THE POINT is that leaving a little bit later is almost always better so as to avoid rush hour traffic and / or any residual traffic if there had been any accidents.

I wouldn't leave at 8:00 am.

And I totally agree :-)

Years ago, we were traveling north to a soccer tournament. The smarties (me :-) left home at 2 p.m. and it took us about 3 hours. The silly ones left home at 8 p.m. and it took them an hour.