San Diego - Tiajuana day trip; best method?
 

I will be in San Diego over the weekend and I was thinking of going to Tiajuana on Saturday. I see that there are tours available and I'm not sure that's exactly what I need, but it might be just as easy as anything else. I've also heard that there is a trolley, but I'm not sure if that would take me to where I would want to go and I'm not sure where people board in SD. So what's the best method for me, assuming that I don't want to rent a car (which I don't)? I will be staying at a hotel in downtown San Diego. (Should I just chill and ask at the hotel because such things are so widely available?)

There is a bus/trolley to border - that is all you need - but I do not recall name or where you pick it up.

We did a day trip to Tijuana 2 years ago - what a waste of time. It was a fairly depressing place, but if you want to buy t-shirts, any prescription drug on the planet without a prescription, alcohol - it is the place to go. Others have posted here about restaurants or bars that were OK.

Bring a filled water bottle, wear sunblock, do not plan on using the public restrooms because they are terrifyingly dirty. Bring your passport since there was a huge line to get out of Mexico, but only a half-huge line for those with passports after line split near Immigration/Customs desk.

I totally agree with gail's glowing description of Tijuana. Note that although you can buy all types of medication without a prescription, you can't bring any of them back to the US without having a prescription.

If you are really determined to go, your hotel will point you to the closest Trolley stop.

If you are staying Downtown, there are several Trolley stops in that area.

You want to take the BLUE line all the way to the end- San Ysidro. You then walk across the border, which is located across from the Trolley stop. As in, across the street.

There is a station at 5th Avenue and C Street, right in the heart of Downtown.

The tourist area of Tijuana is compact and walkable. Don't bother changing money- all stores take US Dollars.

I wouldn't drive it on a holiday weekend, that's for sure. Aside from paying for insurance, you are stuck in a horrendous line coming back while small children are allowed to perform juggling acts and look for dropped balls under moving cars for money. We were down there a few weeks ago, coming back from a trip to Rosarito and Ensenada, and in the afternoon, we probably spent a little over an hour in line, yelling at guys to STOP trying to wash the windshield of our car.

By the way, the prices in TJ are now NOT worth going over the border. There was a specific Talvera pottery (Hernandez) that I picked up in Ensenada that was selling in TJ for more than twice the price paid in Ensenada.

I would catch the light rail train in downtown San Diego (get a round trip ticket) and then take a short walk over the border and then catch a taxi to Revolution street. (There will be hundreds of them waiting for you.)

I agree with the above posters. I'm not sure what you're hoping to do in TJ, but the prices are not that great and all the stuff starts looking the same after a while. The children begging and trying to sell you trinkets adds to the depressing atmosphere.

Also, it is no longer a "short walk" over the border. The customs/immigration lines are hours long on weekends at the San Ysidro crossing.

My advice would be to see if any of those tours you mention venture farther south into Rosarito or Puerto Nuevo. This would be a marginally better experience.

Also crossing the border at Otay Mesa is definitely more advisable than crossing at San Ysidro, especially on weekends.

We drove to the last parking lot in the US and walked across the border.
There are scores of taxis just beyond and if you speak any Spanish, you can negotiate fares to Rosarito or Ensenada or in between for about 1/2 the initially quoted fares.
We took the buses back and it took forever to cross back into the US (with US passports and MX FM3 visas).
M

Thanks for the tips. I'm rapidly talking myself out of the TJ idea!

we are going to San Diego next weekend and I thought of going to TJ for a day.. after reading this, I have been convinced not to..
thanks for the information !

frugal, these posts were all from 2005. The reason not to go to Tijuana in 2009 is because it's NOT SAFE!! (so be glad you already made a wise decision)

sf is so right!!
In 4 years things have gotten WAY worse..we used to go and play golf and have lobster and drink beers but I won't set foot in Mex unless I am on a flight to Cabo or Cancun..
It's very sad the conditions along the border towns.
Also, it takes about 1-2 hours each way to cross over.
Go to Old Town in SD..

Possibly substitute a trip to Old Town ... also accessible by the Trolley (Blue line/Northbound)... a San Diego version of Mexico ...