Hellobee

As I mentioned in my first post, I am lucky to live in San Diego where the sun shines pretty much 355/365 days a year and the weather stays between 60-90 degrees during the day time. One of the things that I love about San Diego is that the year-round good weather makes it a great place to get outside everyday and there are so many different environments to explore and discover. We often take the kids to the park after work and on the weekends we can visit Downtown, the Safari Park or browse around one of the many local Farmer’s Markets.

Below are some of my favorite places to bring kids in the San Diego area. Most of these places are open year-round and are usually no more than a 30-minute freeway drive from where we live.

– Waterfront Park in Downtown – This park is great for kids of all ages; be sure to pack their swim clothes, sunscreen, and towel because they are going to get WET! There’s a grassy area nearby where people can relax and picnic and there’s a playground to dry off at too. Not to mention you have a breathtaking view of San Diego’s bay in front of you. Afterward you can grab some gelato in any one of the many cafes in nearby Little Italy!

– La Jolla Cove – We went here on a whim in the morning and parking was already difficult to find, but we eventually found some right next to the cove! This place is great because the water is calm and there are a lot of families with children playing in the waves. Oftentimes scuba divers will come here to see the marine life in the deeper parts of the cove. There is also a nearby cave for kid adventurers to explore.

– San Diego Zoo or Safari Park – Now that the kids are older they love going to the zoo and seeing all the animals. While the zoo definitely has more animals to visit, the Safari Park is just as great because the animals are given more space to roam around freely. We love riding the Africa Tram where we get to see a number of animals running free in their natural habitat from the comfort of a tram. What’s even better is that for the month of October, children 11 and under are free with a paid adult ticket!

– Birch Aquarium – We come here almost every first of the month for Bank of America’s Museum’s on Us special. This is by no means a large aquarium, but the kids love coming here and playing at the water table, watching the sharks and stingrays get fed and looking at the large tank with the bright orange Garibaldi and eels.

Checking out the big fish and eels inside the kelp tank!

– Balboa Park – Balboa Park is San Diego’s version of NYC’s Central Park. You can expect to run into some kind of event at the park every week and on Tuesdays some of the museums in the park offer free admission for San Diego residents. The kids especially love visiting the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center and the San Diego Model Railroad Museum. During the winter we visit the park during December Nights when all of the International Cottages sell food from their respective countries and there are carnival rides, crafts for sale, various vendors and a variety of cultural performances.

– Poway Farmer’s Market – This market is every Saturday and is located in a town Northeast of San Diego. If your child loves trains as much as StarCakes does, then this market is a must! We usually skip breakfast and grab some grub at the market from any of the various vendors. Then after eating we go on a train ride at the Poway Midland Railroad, which is located right next to the Farmer’s Market. Rides are $3.50 for adults and $1.00 for children. The ride takes a good amount of time and the kids love it!

– San Diego’s Children’s Museums: There are two children’s museums in San Diego: the San Diego Children’s Discovery Museum and the New Children’s Museum. The first is located in Escondido and the second in Downtown San Diego. We have been to both, but are more partial to the Escondido one because it is closer to home. However, I do think that the New Children’s museum is better for kids 5-10 years old and the Discovery Museum is better for kids 5 years and under. Either way the Cheesecake kids had fun at both museums; running around to the different activity stations and trying out all the cool interactive exhibits. You can definitely spend the whole morning here and then leave with children ready for a nap!

Riding Rody, dropping balls and driving cars at the New Children’s Museum in Downtown San Diego.

There are so many more places to visit in San Diego, but these are definitely our most favorite. What places do you love to explore in your hometown during a staycation?