With pleasant weather year-round and plenty to do, San Diego makes for a perfect family getaway. 3-4 days is a perfect length of time to get a good feel for San Diego. In this post I share what I would prioritize if I had 4 days in San Diego with kids. You could easily extend your time by adding a couple days at nearby theme parks (Legoland and SeaWorld) or exploring more of the coastline. San Diego is also an easy add-on to a Disneyland trip or your other Southern California adventures.
Day 1: San Diego’s Waterfront and the USS Midway Museum
I highly recommended exploring the San Diego waterfront when visiting San Diego with kids. A walk along San Diego’s waterfront is sure to keep any transportation-obsessed youngster entertained. You will see boats of all sizes and variety. Military aircraft and watercraft are everywhere (on our last walk, we saw 4 aircraft carriers docked in the bay and another Navy ship on the move). And low-flying commercial airplanes are constantly landing and taking off at the San Diego airport. Plus, there are a variety of places to eat and shop, seafood and artisan markets, parks and a playground to burn off energy, and a paved pedestrian path.
USS Midway Museum
The USS Midway Museum is onboard the actual USS Midway, a decommissioned aircraft carrier that is permanently docked at Navy Pier. Alongside the regular audio tour (free with admission), there is a kid audio tour and questionnaire that young visitors can complete to earn USS Midway wings. On the upper deck there are a variety of aircraft to view and enter, a theater, flight simulator and other interactive experiences, and so much ship to explore! Volunteers, many of whom are Navy veterans, are available all over the ship to answer question, share their stories, and give talks. Our visit to the USS Midway was highly informative and fascinating. Our young kids loved it!
While the museum permitted strollers at the time of our visit and makes certain accessibility accommodations, it is a real ship that was not originally designed with accessibility in mind. I recommend leaving the stroller behind as it will limit what you can see. I would budget 2-3 hours to explore the ship. In that time we were not able to see and read/listen to everything, but we were able to see most things before our young kids reached their limits (lunch and nap time were calling!).
Seaport Village
Seaport Village, with its beachy vibe, has a variety of eateries, shops, and a historic carousel. This is an easy spot to find a bite to eat or grab a coffee. You will still pay a waterfront premium, but there are some less expensive options. Our kids enjoyed the carousel, but, as a heads up, it goes fast!
Little Italy
Although it is not on right on the waterfront, I recommend walking up a few blocks to enjoy a meal in Little Italy while you are in the city. This vibrant neighborhood is full of good places to eat. And I don’t know many young kids who don’t love pasta or pizza. Our carb-loving children devoured their meals at the restaurants that we tried. For a family-friendly combination of fast service, large portion sizes, and taste, I recommend Davanti Enoteca in Little Italy. I am no food expert and this is not a food blog, but as a family visiting San Diego with kids, we were happy with our meal and experience.
Day 2: Ferry to Coronado
If you have a car, I recommend driving over to Coronado for a day. If you don’t have a car, however, ferries transport pedestrians to and from Coronado throughout each day.
Catch the ferry in front of the Convention Center or at Broadway Pier. Both ferries drop passengers off at Coronado Ferry Landing. At the time of our last visit, the ferry was run by Flagship Cruises and Events. The Broadway Pier ferry departed from a dock just south of the Broadway pier. It was a little confusing, but we figured it out.
Coronado Ferry Landing (on the bay side) has a resort feel with a lot of shops and places to eat. If you walk a few blocks over to Orange Ave, you will find the main drag, full of additional shops and restaurants. There is also a Walgreens and a grocery store on Orange Ave in case you forgot sunblock like I did or want to grab food for a picnic. If you are up for getting your steps in, the Pacific Ocean and the famous Hotel del Coronado are about a 30 minute walk down Orange Ave. There are public buses that run up and down Orange Ave.
Day 3: San Diego Zoo + Balboa Park
This is a full day. I recommend getting to the San Diego Zoo early (close to opening) to have an easy time parking. You could spend most the day in the zoo and still not see everything. While our kids didn’t have quite that stamina, we thoroughly enjoyed our time at one of the best zoos in the country.
After spending much of the day looking at the animals, taking a bus tour, and riding the skyfari, we exited the San Diego Zoo into Balboa park. Balboa Park is massive, but worth exploring if you are in San Diego with kids. We did not have a specific itinerary, nor did we visit any of the many museums, but there is so much to see and do in this massive green space.
Day 4: Sea Lions at La Jolla Cove + Beach Day
La Jolla is a charming, pleasant coastal neighborhood about a 20 minute drive north of downtown San Diego. La Jolla Cove is a great place to view sea lions and seals basking in the sun and splashing in the waves. Our kids really enjoyed this experience. I have heard it can start to get crowded by mid-morning on the weekends. Even on weekdays, parking can be tough, so budget plenty of time to find a spot and maybe walk a bit. I also suggest giving yourself time to explore more of La Jolla village before heading to a beach.
And there you have it! 3-4 days in San Diego with kids are sure to fly by! As I mentioned, you can always extend your time by tacking on SeaWorld or Legoland. There is no shortage of things to do in San Diego with kids and this 3-4 day itinerary just scratches the surface while giving you a feel for San Diego.
