My daughter the budding cartoonist really wants to go to ComicCon this year. The thing is, I’m not into comics at all, and three days at a comics convention isn’t my idea of how to spend a vacation. My husband’s willing to take her to the convention, but that means I have to come up with something to do on my own in San Diego. I don’t do zoos or marine parks as a matter of principal, so that rules out the San Diego Zoo, the Wild Animal Park and Seaworld. Surely in a city the size of San Diego there must be other fun things for a tourist to do (preferably either near the convention center or accessible via public transit, as I really hate to drive in a strange city…though I’m willing to drive, if there’s something really interesting). Thoughts?
Isn’t Monterey Bay near San Diego? I’ve always wanted to see the Monterey Aquarium. Unlike Seaworld, which is first and foremost a family entertainment centre, it is more directed towards conservation projects.
No…actually Santa Cruz, where I live, is on Monterey Bay (I’m about 40 minutes from the Aquarium, and it IS wonderful…if you’re ever here, you definitely want to go. It’s one of the best I’ve seen…the outer bay exhibit alone is worth the price of admission). San Diego is in Southern California, between L.A. and the Mexican border.
San Diego is definitely sounding promising, however! I knew there had to be interesting things to do and see there, but it’s hard to weed through touristy sites, and I figured some people here surely knew the city. I could easily spend a few days at Balboa Park and the Gaslamp District.
I love encouraging my daughter’s artistic interest, so I think we’ll start making plans.
I found myself in San Diego a few years ago, and like you, Redwolf, I had a couple days to entertain myself while my partner was at a professional meeting. We rented a room in a bed and breakfast near downtown. However, what the online information about the B & B failed to mention was that it was located directly under the flightpath for the San Diego airport. After we arrived, I was sitting on the patio thinking to myself that we had chosen a beautiful spot to spend a few days. The peace and tranquility didn’t last long, however, as the planes started to come in really low, one after the other and directly over our patio room.
I concur with the suggestion that Balboa Park is worth a visit. It is a wonderful place to walk and visit the museums. There is also an IMAX theater there. There is much to see in the area around San Diego, and I’m sure that you won’t be disappointed in that regard. We took a moonlight harbour cruise in San Diego bay. Usually there are a number of U S Navy ships and submarines docked in the bay.
Here’s another question for San Diegoites (San Diegans???). What is parking like in the vicinity of the convention center? What I’m finding is I can get some very good motel rates that say “10 minutes drive from Convention Center/Balboa Park, etc.,” and they could be a good deal, but not if finding parking down there is impossible (or hideously expensive). Also, could I walk from, say, the Convention Center to Balboa Park (or is there reasonable public transit?).
The hotels in the immediate vicinity of the Convention Center are out of my price range (think a Sweetheart Resonance Lo D AND a Burke Pro*Session D per night!). I don’t mind sleeping a bit away from the center, if it’s not too hard to get to/park at/etc.
I am from San Diego originally, and I actually went to the ComicCon once when I was in high school. (I had a lot of fun, BTW). The Convention Center I believe is downtown, which is not walking distance to Balboa Park but there are buses from downtown to the park. You should definitely check out Balboa Park; it’s beautiful & there are lots of things to do there. They used to have organ concerts on the weekends, too.
Thye beaches are very nice in San Diego also if you feel like going there. Ocean beach is not too far of a drive from downtown.
There is a killer session downtown on Sunday nights if you are in town then. It’s an advanced session, but if you want you can always go & see what it’s like & if you want to play or not. My stepmother lives very close to that area, also, so if you are looking for more info on things to do or music stuff to check out I can put you in touch with her.
I don’t much care about beaches, to be honest (here I am, living in Santa Cruz, and I can count the number of times I’ve been to the beach on one hand!), but Balboa Park sounds lovely, as does the Gaslamp district. One thing your stepmother might be able to give me some input on is logistics…if I’m staying a distance from the Convention Center (and assuming I can get parking at the Convention Center, which seems likely), how difficult (and how safe) would it be for me to use public transit to get from the Convention Center to, say, Balboa Park? At this point, we’re probably looking at staying a good 10-15 miles from the Convention Center, which would mean driving into town. I don’t mind doing that, if I can easily leave hubby and daughter at the Convention Center and hare off on my own to do something interesting but…well…you know me. I don’t even like driving in San Francisco, which is a city I know pretty well. One thing I LOVED about London was the fact that I could get just about anywhere I wanted to go on public transit, and it wasn’t even particularly difficult. The more I can do in San Diego via public transit, the happier I’ll be.
What can I say? For a Californian, I’m a total wuss about driving in cities.
