For those familiar with the San Diego area, we need advice on planning our vacation plans. Could you please help me in arranging these sites to be able to do the majority. Our arrival is Tues 8/16 1:06 PM and departure Tues 8/23 11:36 AM so we have 6 full days. This is what we would like to see: Gaslamp District – Seaport Village – Old Town – Coronado – Pt Loma – Cabrillo Natl Monument – Balboa Park (not a lot of museums) – Zoo – Ocean Beach - LaJolla – Torrey Pines State Reserve – Laguana Beach –
Day Trip to Catalina – Wild Animal Park.

Would day trips to Temecula or Julian or Anza-Borrego Desert State Park be possible.

What would you cut out, if this is way too much? We are females, three 50+ and two 20-year olds that love to sightsee. Thank you for any help you can give us.

I thought Seaport Village was over rated- mostly a bunch of little touristy shops and some restaurants -I'd suggest more time in one of the beach towns - I think the girls would like Mission/Pacific Beach area- lots of action there. There is a boardwalk that goes for miles with walkers/bikers/roller bladders etc

We went to SeaWorld and did the dolphin encounter - it was wonderful - got to get in the pool with the dolphins and trainer and swim and play with the dolpins- my daughter was in her 20's and she loved it!!

you don't mention any relaxing on the beach or by a pool. most people i know try to put way to much in their schedules for san diego. almost everyone i know says "next time, we're not planning just relax and enjoy the beautiful city"
but, here some suggestions:
tuesday check into hotel and head down to seaport village (i too think it's overrated) and stay downtown to do dinner etc at the gaslamp
wednesday - take the old town trolley - this could take all day and you jump on and off at any stops you want. it will hit old town, coronado, balboa park
thursday - torry pines state park and la jolla (nice beaches around here). drive to laguna beach along the coast road, enjoy dinner and the sunset up there.
friday - zoo, then old town for dinner
then you have 3 1/2 days to visit ocean beach (see what you want to see there and hit sunset cliffs for the sunset), cabrillo, etc. and people could go back to what they enjoyed or just relax. you could jam in catalina or the wild animal park but that is way too rushed for my liking.

Thanks for the suggestions. We are from the east coast so do the beach yearly there, also pool in our backyard. Is Torrey Pines as awesome as Muir Woods? Have never been to Catalina Island so hate to not do that. Is Wild Animal Park worth the trip?

Torrey Pines is NOT like Muir woods. It's very dry and has mostly low scrubby vegetation. The coastline is fabulous though and there are plenty of hiking paths so you could do a short walk or a longer one. Bring sunscreen!

The Wild Animal Park is worth a visit -note that in Aug it will be very hot out there. I would recommend taking the Photo Caravan. You ride in the back of a keeper's truck right into the animal exhibits. You get to feed giraffes, rhinos and other animals. You need to book ahead. It gives you a safari experience but a lot cheaper than going to Africa.

Day trips to Julian, Temecula and Anza Borrego are possible. Temecula has some nice wineries and an Old Town section. Julian is a lot of fun - be sure to get some apple pie and apple cider. Somehow, it tastes better up there.

I too think that Seaport Village (but I go every year!). BUt it is at the heart of San Diego Harbor with all sorts of things to see and do if you like ships. The Star of India is interesting. In the past year they have docked a retired aircraft carrier.

We always do the harbor on the same day we do Old Town (also overrated I thnk, but again, we go every year) and take the San Diego Trolley between the two spots.

You might want to pass on the desert in August. It will be deathly hot.
Julian is OK but the least interesting of your options, in my opinion.
Temecula is only worth spending a whole day if you want to visit the wineries, but they are not on par with those around Napa Valley.
Catalina would be a long but enjoyable day trip. YOu would have to get up very early to drive up to get a morning ferry over. Once there, you can rent two golf carts to see some of the island or take a guided tour.

I haven't been to all the places you're planning and you don't tell us where you're staying, but I think the idea of taking the Old Town trolley is a good one. I think it's ~$25/person and it would be a good idea to use it for transportation one day (although I assume you'll rent a car cause you'll need it to get around). Here are some thoughts to help give you persepctive.

>The Gaslamp District as far as I can tell is merely a downtown area that's been rehabbed with lots of restaurants. It doesn't seem to me to be an "attraction" other than a place to go maybe in the evening. It reminded me a little of Times Square frankly, but I could be wrong. Was only there once at night.
>Seaport Village, as others have said, is a touristy area with restaurants and shops. It does make a nice spot for lunch or dinner as the restaurants sit on the water. Do a search here for name(s) of the good one(s).
>I haven't been to Old Town, but again I think this is more a dining destination with a bunch of good restaurants (esp. Mexican) and bars
>Coronado is an island just over a bridge (or a ferry ride) from downtown SD. It's absolutley beautiful with a wonderful beach, a boardwalk, some great homes, it's own downtown area with shops and restaurants and the famous Hotel Del Coronado used in the movie "Some Like It Hot." You can go to lunch at the Hotel Del. There are some other hotels there too. If you haven't decided where to stay, this would be my pick in August.
>Balboa Park is awesome. The museums are really terrific (the gift stores in the museums are terrific!), the buildings are beautiful, the gardens are a delight, the Prado restaurant is very good and the ZOO is AT the park. The zoo is open late in the summer, and that's probably the best time to go as it's evidently when the animals are more active since it's too hot for them during the day. So I'd plan on an entire day at Balboa. Do the museums and gardens and either lunch or dinner and then the zoo at night. I think there's one day during the week when the museums are free.
>La Jolla is just beautiful and is the other place I'd consider staying. It's got a real downtown area with nice shops and restaurants, a beach, hotels etc. You could easily spend a day shopping and eating there.
Torrey Pines State Reserve-is scrubby but the area is nice and just beyond La Jolla. If you want some place upscale for a meal, treat yourself to a visit to The Lodge at Torrey Pines. It's an awesome hotel. It's got a nice outdoor terrace overlooking the pool (and the famous golf course next door) that's nice for lunch and not too pricey with things like burgers and salads as well as fancier food. The restaurant inside the hotel, AR Valarian (or something similar) is supposed to be really terrific (and pricey).

Brockton Villa in La Jolla is a funky place across from the water that's open for 3 meals a day. Their french toast is famous. It's a great place to start a day there and then walk along the beach and see the caves.

Old town is more than just restaurants,
and I think you would enjoy it. There are historic buildings- homes, stores, stables, etc. to walk through. It's not that big though.

As mscarls has suggested - skip the desert in the summer. I made the mistake of driving through Anza-Borrego in the summer time because someone mentioned "flowers". Well, there are NO flowers in the summertime and the place is one of the most desolate desert areas that I've ever driven through and I've driven through quite a lot of desert in the US. Parts of it were quite ugly too.

It'll be more fun for you to drive along the coast through towns like Escondido and San Clemente. If you go as far north as Irvine, there's the Irvine Center or the South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa where you can grab a quick bite or dine in comfort and then head back to San Diego.

Thanks to all the posters for the great tips!

There is a free walking tour in the Old Town square - I think it starts at 11 at the visitor's center. I'm sure you can find the exact information on the web. The tour lasts about an hour and is really informative.

I have to agree with Mclaurie on the Gaslamp quarter. I made the mistake of spending the last day of our vacation there. Might be more interesting at night.