SeeCalifornia.com

Some of us avoid anything that remotely sounds like it could be a tourist trap. But given enough time to explore you’ll find that even the attractions you’re leery about seeing in San Diego offer unexpected surprises. Sometimes you just have to go there to find out if a trip, a place, and an attraction are worth the price of admission.

4  SAN DIEGO ATTRACTIONS YOU MUST SEE  

1. San Diego Zoo / San Diego Safari Park – Though crowds can be a downer, San Diego Zoo has one of the best landscaped facilities in the nation, and its collection of animals in one place include the rare Chinese Panda bears, definitely a kick to watch. It’s not even one zoo, but two. The traditional downtown zoo in Balboa Park is your first stop. The Safari Park zoo near Escondido is a whole different animal, so to speak, but very much worth the trip!

2. San Diego Old Town State Historic Park (right upper photo) FREE

3. Cabrillo National Monument (bottom right photo). Go there for the views – amazing views! Also see the lighthouse. FEE TO PARK

4. Beaches – The iconic Hotel del Coronado (bottom left photo) has a wonderful public beach, but San Diego is also known for Ocean Beach with a great fishing pier, Mission Beach with Belmont Park roller coaster and fun zone, Pacific Beach and of course, beautiful La Jolla with Blackie’s nude beach.  FREE

San Diego’s other Must-See’s include: Gaslamp Quarter, Coronado Bay Bridge, PGA ranked Torrey Pines Golf Course, the Mormon Temple, Balboa Park’s 17 museums, Horton Plaza, Little Italy, Mission Bay, Tijuana (south of the border), SeaWorld San Diego, Legoland (Carlsbad), harbor boat tours, USS Midway, Star of India, Del Mar Fair & Racetrack, San Diego Mission