By Stephanie Wicburg
While San Diego may be best known for its beaches or attractions such as Sea World, as a native, I know that there are several other less-known opportunities that anyone can enjoy. San Diego is probably best known for its beaches, including the beaches in La Jolla, Coronado, Oceanside, or Moonlight Beach, and in addition to the multitudes of beaches, you may have also heard of San Diego’s many feature attractions such as Sea World, the Safari Park, or Legoland. What you may not have heard of, however, are many of the other features of my beautiful hometown.
If you are a nature enthusiast, there are several opportunities throughout various parts of San Diego. For hiking, there are several locations around San Diego of varying length and difficulty, all with beautiful greenery. Some of these locations include the Torrey Pines trail in Torrey Pines (known as a relatively easy hike with two trails approximately a mile each) and the multitude of hiking trails in Poway, a subcommunity of San Diego, specifically the Blue Sky Ecological Reserve (known for its native plants and wildlife, and is also a relatively easy hike).
Alternatively, if you are more into the bar or club scene, the Gaslamp Quarter in downtown is a good place to go. With at least 16 clubs and restaurants there are plenty of opportunities to enjoy the beautiful atmosphere of the city. On a side note to this interest though, if you are interested in a day-time version of this activity, San Diego is also well known for its vineyards, are there are plenty of opportunities to visit and attend wine tastings (I personally recommend the Bernardo Winery in Rancho Bernardo or any of the vineyards in the nearby area of Temecula).
There is also the opportunity to see many parts of San Diego’s history in downtown in Little Italy or in many of the available historical sites such as the USS Midway, Balboa Park. I highly recommend Balboa Park. As the host to various exhibits throughout the year in its in-house museums (including San Diego’s Natural History Museum), and also some of the best gardens, Balboa Park is a wonderful place to spend a day exploring and enjoying the sunny warm weather typical for San Diego.
All in all, San Diego is a very diverse city, with much to offer anyone who is interested and I am proud to call it home. Happy traveling!
Featured image from NeedPix