Travel with Children - San Diego with 10-yr boy. Suggestions?

Hello everyone. We're taking our 10 yr. old nephew for a long weekend to San Diego. Any thoughts on what we could do there? He loves animals, so we're thinking the Wild Animal Park. But beyond that we're out of ideas. Anything else? (It doesn't have to be animal-related.)
Thanks so much in advance.
BCH

SeaWorld is generally a pretty big hit with the kiddos. Live shows, feed/pet the dolphins, etc.

We were just in SD in April (for my college roommate's wedding) with our kids (3 1/2, 1 1/2). We opted for the Wild Animal Park over the Zoo. It was a very good time and it turned out that the discount tickets we bought included a free ride on the tram going around the savannah. Feeding the lorikeets was also fun.

Sea World, as stated, was a big hit with our 3 yo. She now wants to be an orca trainer when she grows up! A lot to see there, although admission is pricey. Definitely a good call.

We also went to Mission Beach and Coronado. Both are nice, but I personally preferred Coronado.

If he loves animals, why not do the Zoo and the Wild Animal Park? I think you can get a 3-day pass for both that works out cheaper than the two places individually.

Isn't there also a Legoland in or around San Diego? I've never been, and hear that it is pricey, but perhaps he'd be interested in that.

I'm guessing that a day trip to Tijuana is out? Lots of interesting "animals" can be found there.

theres legoland not too far from sd

Legoland is in Carlsbad, about 30 miles north of San Diego.

Wild Animal Park is in Escondido, about the same distance north of San Diego. It's fabulous, but be aware it is very hot inland in the summer.

Do kids like harbor cruises? The harbor cruises give a very pretty view of the San Diego shoreline and the naval ships.

Cabrillo National Monument at the tip of Point Loma is great, with a spectacular view of San Diego. You can walk around the point and see the lighthouse.

It's fun to see the sea lions at the cove in downtown La Jolla.

You can take the ferry from downtown San Diego to Coronado Island and rent bikes to ride around Coronado.

The Maritime Museum on the waterfront should be good fun for child and adult alike.

Corvette Diner in Liberty Station is a great place to take a kid to eat. It's enroute to Cabrillo.

Check the Padre schedule for home games. Petco Park is downtown.

Walk around Balboa Park. See what is playing at the Reuben H. Fleet Omnimax Theatre. Stop by the Spreckels organ pavilion (http://www.sosorgan.com) and see if there are any concerts.

Perhaps someone else can help, because I can't recall the name.

There's an historic hacienda village that has things like a 19th century general store, fire station, and the like. My wife and I enjoyed it, I know I would have loved it as a 10 year old, and we saw lots and lots of kids there who seemed to be having a great time.

There's an historic hacienda village that has things like a 19th century general store, fire station, and the like. My wife and I enjoyed it, I know I would have loved it as a 10 year old, and we saw lots and lots of kids there who seemed to be having a great time.

Old Town State Park (http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_ID=663)

You can drive, or get there by trolley from downtown. The boy might enjoy the trolley ride. There are a number of restaurants in the park.

you can always just take out a boat (with a tube) either from the lake or downtown where you can drive past the aircraft carrier and submarines

Old Town State Park (http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_ID=663)

You can drive, or get there by trolley from downtown. The boy might enjoy the trolley ride. There are a number of restaurants in the park.That's the one. Thanks!

Hello everyone. We're taking our 10 yr. old nephew for a long weekend to San Diego. Any thoughts on what we could do there? He loves animals, so we're thinking the Wild Animal Park. But beyond that we're out of ideas. Anything else? (It doesn't have to be animal-related.)
Thanks so much in advance.
BCH

San Diego Zoo is probably one of the best in the world. They used to have some 2 headed snakes which he would love.

Seaworld, Wild Animal Park. also great. Lego Land is near if he is still into them.

Also, if Navy is in, tour aircraft carrier

Also, if Navy is in, tour aircraft carrier

Actually there's a permanent decommissioned aircraft carrier on display, the USS Midway. Very neat for a young boy. There's also a couple of old submarines that they can tour here as well.

Like others have said, the zoo and WAP are great. You can buy a pass that covers both of them, in some cases it's cheaper to just sign up for a zoological society membership (which gets you into both parks for free). They have a membership booth right next to the ticket counters, so it's easy to compare.

Legoland is nice, but expensive. If you're planning on hitting the zoo, WAP, Sea world, and Legoland, you probably will need a very high credit limit on your card.

A stroll into La Jolla is nice, there's a cove where sea lions roost that's fun to watch. It's like sea world but free.

Take advantage of the weather. Enjoy the numerous beaches, go snorkling, go body boarding or take a surf lesson (kids do way better learning surfing than adults do), do a kayak trip into the La jolla caves.

For a long weekend, I say hit up one of the parks, then enjoy the sand and surf.

A stroll into La Jolla is nice, there's a cove where sea lions roost that's fun to watch. It's like sea world but free.

Take advantage of the weather. Enjoy the numerous beaches, go snorkling, go body boarding or take a surf lesson (kids do way better learning surfing than adults do), do a kayak trip into the La jolla caves.

For a long weekend, I say hit up one of the parks, then enjoy the sand and surf.While we're on the subject of La Jolla, there's also another cove that is very popular for snorkeling. The water is shallow and there's a small kelp forest in the middle of it, with lots of "wildlife," all of it harmless, to see.

One note about ocean swimming. The current off the west coast moves in the opposite direction of the Gulf Stream. Instead of bringing up warm water from the tropics, it brings down cold water from the Arctic. Even in summer, the water will be very chilly. When I was scuba diving, I always work a fairly thick full wetsuit -- 3/8" with farmer Johns. Even for snorkeling, I'd always wear a sweatshirt, which helps keep the cold water away.

We just got back from San Diego last Saturday. We have a three year old and she loved the San Diego Zoo and The Wild Animal Park. We got the two park pass which is good for unlimited admission for five consecutive days. It was cheaper than the individual park admissions and included the Savannah Ride, Dino Mountain, and most of the other extras. There is also a three park pass with SeaWorld included if you like.

We went to LegoLand and the Wild Animal Park on the same day. It was a very long but nice day. My daughter liked LegoLand but my wife and I weren't impressed. Admission price was high ($161 for two adults and one child even with the AAA %10 discount) and the lines for the rides moved very slowly even mid-week when we were there. I did like Miniland and I thought the renditions of NYC, Vegas, and Washington D.C. was all very well done. Overall, I think Idlewild, our local kid oriented amusement park, is better run and nicer than LegoLand for about half the price. YMMV...

We also did the Birch Aquarium which is nice but on the small side. There exhibits are mainly oriented towards the sea life you would see along the west coast of the USA. They also have a Shark Tank (smaller sharks) and some artificial tidepools where kids can touch sea anemones, starfish, and other sea life. We did the aquarium in the morning and then drove through La Jolla in the afternoon to see the coves. The Sea Lions and Seals typically start coming back to the cove around 4PM. We were there a bit early but still saw a bunch on a rock outcrop not too far from the shore. If you like snorkeling there were lots of folks taking advantage of the marine underwater park in La Jolla. It looked nice but we didn't snorkel. Finally, we didn't check it out but the concierge at our hotel said the Gliderport in La Jolla is a fun place to hang out (pun not intended) and watch the motorized hang gliders launch.

The USS Midway and the maritime museum both looked nice but we didn't have time to check them out either.

Another tip, for beaches and swimming every day started out overcast and chilly; however, by noon the sun would typically come out and it would warm up. Even so with the coastal winds and the temperatures in the mid to high 70's it still was a little chilly for swimming. There is some kind of standard "gray affect" for the San Diego Area where the mornings are overcast. From what I read it is typically occurs mainly in June. So you may not experience it. Coronado Beach is really nice and I recommend checking it out. There is free parking in the street next to the beach. The beach itself is large, so it is still a long walk to the water. Check out the Hotel Del if you got to Coronado Beach. We didn't get to it but a friend of mine highly recommended it. It is an old classic Victorian style hotel.

Overall, we loved San Diego and would go back. There is tons to do for folks of all sorts. Even with a hotel award stay (Marriott Coronado Island Resort), we still found it to be on the expensive side (food and admission to the sites) and I recommend you budget accordingly. I hope you have a great time on your trip.

--Jon

Not animal themed but if it's hot and you want to avoid the beach:

Knott's Soak City (http://www.knotts.com/SOAKCITY/sd/index.shtml)in Chula Vista (south of San Diego)

Wave Water Park (http://www.thewavewaterpark.com/)in Vista (north of San Diego)