SanDiegan.com is #1 ranked for 1,000 FREE activities & FUN things to do

SanDiegan.com is San Diego’s Original Online & Trademarked San Diego City Guide to San Diego, California – 54th Year

SanDiegan.com (circa 1995) was San Diego’s first online city guide making us an internet pioneer. Google (circa 1998) was still 3 years from its inception. Today, we are the MEGA 700-page travel leader, filled with travel adventures and maps to 50 San Diego suburbs, cities and regional travel. Enjoy attractions galore including 1,000 FREE activities & FUN things to do. Spectacular travel getaways include Catalina Island, Borrego Springs, Julian, Temecula, Tijuana, Ensenada, Rosarito Beach, and even Puerto Nuevo, which is called the Lobster Capitol of the World.

We review the best places to eat, shop, play, live, work, stay, travel.

Scroll down the home page, which is in alfa order after the site’s introduction, to:

Barry’s TOP 30 #1 PICKS FOR FUN THINGS TO DO

All are HOT-LINKED for instant access to your discovery of the Best neighborhoods, Best places to live, eat and shop! Best attractions including a walking tour of Balboa Park, Best kid-friendly activities, including Where kids eat FREE, Best beach rentals including La Jolla Kayak, Best historic museums, Best 1,000 FREE activities and things to do in San Diego.

Sightsee San Diego by Land, Air & Sea – 50 MAPS

Hot-Linked. INSTANT ACCESS.

Hot-Linked – The Ultimate Newcomer/Relocation Guide

Best Kids Eat FREE Places in San Diego 7 Days a week

700-pages of researched content in Alfa Order

BARRY KNOWS SAN DIEGO

Millions of Newcomers, Visitors and Residents have used SanDiegan.com/SAN DIEGAN since 1969 to find FUN things to do in San Diego. Barry has written 55 travel books & is a celebrated international restaurant reviewer.

BARRY KNOWS SHOPPING

Shop 2 Antique Districts, 21 Malls, HUGE Swap Meet, 11 Farmer’s Markets, 8 Factory Outlets, Bargain Shop Tijuana, Home & Car Buying.

BARRY KNOWS TIJUANA

TIJUANA Park SAFE at Border Station Parking; take RT Bus

Your American Insurance is NOT VALID IN MEXICO. If you get into an accident, you and your car will be detained in Mexico until the guilty party pays the damages. Plus, the long waits in crossing the border on your return from Tijuana often takes hours. The recommended tried and true solution is to take a sleek (No Hassle) round-trip-shuttle bus service from the Border Station Parking lot to Tijuana and back to your car. This is a 24-hour-a-day fenced and attended lot. Click on this link for a detailed explanation and map. For info on Tourismo Express RT Shuttle Bus to Tijuana click on this hot-link.

Tijuana Map Tour of Shops, Restaurants, Hotels

Exploring this international city is fun. Bargain shop Downtown Tijuana, Rio Tijuana and Hidalgo Mercado. Purchase duty-free French perfume. Bring back a bottle of duty-free liquor. Save up to 50% off on meds at Farmacia Gusher. Dine in world-class Tijuana Restaurants. Click on the headline above to view Tijuana chapter.

BARRY KNOWS RESTAURANTS

600 Best Restaurants from 10,000 Reviewed.

Barry goes unannounced, pays for his own meals, eats 3 meals at one sitting, & he inspects the kitchen.

EAT in the Best Burger Joints, #1 Asian Rest. Row, Best Ocean Views, #1 Where Kids Eat FREE, Dinner Cruises, #1 Best 70 Curbside Takeaways, Eat & Play at Dave & Busters

“Enjoy the BEST of San Diego” One-Restaurant-at-a-time.

BARRY’S FAMOUS WINE TOURS

Taste the finest wines, dine in romantic vineyard restaurants, stay in a romantic wine country hotel, or a FUN DAY TRIP to nearby Temecula (58 miles) or Valle de Guadalupe, Mexico (86 miles).

San Diego Best of Everything San Diego, California USA

Live the San Diego Adventure

How to Use this Website: Headings Hot-Linked & in A-Z Quick Alpha Order

(1) Click here for instant access to 50 suburbs & city walking & driving tours with maps. (2) Click on the Barry Icon at the top left corner of every page to return to the home page. (3) Click on the little box with the arrow in it in the right corner to instantly return to the top of any page. (4) SEE Today’s most visited Pages at Bottom of the Home page. (5) MEGA 700-pages of content is organized & HOT-LINKED in alphabetical order after the introduction. (6) Information is updated annually.

ADDING TO OUR CREDIBILITY

Google categorizes our MEGA 700-page website as an authority site just like it does The New York Times.

Barry Awarded San Diego Day by the City of San Diego

The City of San Diego gave Barry a “Barry Berndes Day” on January 14th, 2018. This prestigious award was in recognition of Barry’s over 50-year devotion to showing millions of newcomers, visitors, and residents his city annually via the SAN DIEGAN, SanDiegan.com, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, & LinkedIn.

Barry’s TOP 30 #1 PICKS FOR FUN THINGS TO DO

Barry’s Best Attraction Tips

#1 Ranked. Visit Cabrillo National Monument for its Spectacular Skyline views. #1 Ranked Tour the Embarcadero’s Historic Ships and restaurants. #1 Ranked 14 Historic Must-See Museums #2 Ranked Shop the Best Factory Outlet Centers in San Diego! #1 Ranked Must See Museums and Attractions. #7 Ranked Kobey’s Swap Meet. Take Balboa Park map tour to 17 museums, dozens of galleries and the San Diego Zoo. #2 Ranked. San Diego’s Best DIY Micro Brewery Tour.

Barry’s Best Restaurants

#1 Ranked. Eat FREE on your Birthday. #1 Ranked Where kids eat FREE #1 Ranked. Best Top 10 Burger Joints Yes, we’re #1 Ranked.Romantic Harbor Dinner Cruise at Sunset. Top Ranked. Dining at the Marine Rooms Restaurant at High Tide. Top Ranked. Dine at the Top of the Market Restaurant #1 Ranked. San Diego Banquets & Catering #1 Ranked. Dining at the Top of the Market Restaurant Downtown. Dine at Truluck’s for a “show stopping seafood & Crab experience” at a world class special occasion restaurant. Have a Bloody Mary at the bar at the La Jolla Shores Hotel. Scroll down the page for a list of the 600 Best San Diego Restaurants in San Diego Personally Reviewed including Best Breakfast & Brunch All Personally Reviewed.

Barry’s Best Shopping Tips

#2 Ranked. Shop the Best Factory Outlet Centers in San Diego. #2 Ranked. City Lights is Best Year-Round Christmas Collectables Store. #3 Ranked. Baja Duty FREE Shopping at the Tijuana Border. #7 Ranked Kobey’s Swap Meet. La Mesa Antique District. Ocean Beach Antique District.

Barry’s Best Sights to See

SIGHTSEE SAN DIEGO by Air, Land, and Sea. See a spectacular San Diego city view from Cabrillo National Monument. SEE A GREEN FLASH at Sunset Cliffs. Explore La Jolla & seeing the view at Mt. Soledad Monument. #1 Ranked. Shop Historic La Mesa for antiques. #1 Ranked. Encinitas is a Historic Hwy. 101 Beach Town. #1 Ranked. Tour the Embarcadero and Historic Ships. Be at the Finish line at the Del Mar Racetrack. Dining at the Top of the Market Restaurant Downtown. Tour Coronado & The World Famous Hotel del Coronado. Wine, Dine & Explore the Temecula Valley Wineries.

Barry’s Best of TIJUANA

#1 Ranked. PARK SAFE at Border Station Parking & take the RT Shuttle. #1 Ranked. Tijuana Restaurants, Shops, Hotels. #1 Ranked. Gusher Drugstore in TJ Save 32%-50! #1 Ranked. Explore and bargain shop Downtown Tijuana, Rio Tijuana and Hidalgo Mercado. Dine in world-class Restaurants. Return safe via a round trip bus shuttle service to your car in a protected lot. Discover two Mega Factory Outlets at the Border on the U.S. side. Live the San Diego Experience.a

Barry’s Best of Baja Tips

#1 Ranked. Wine Tasting adventure in Valle de Guadalupe. Romantic Escape to Ensenada, Mexico. Dine at the Lobster Capitol of the World. Where to Buy Mexican Insurance.

50 Free Maps & easy-self-guided City Tours

Hot-Linked. INSTANT ACCESS. Color photos. What to see & do, Where to eat.

Best 50 Air, Land & Sea Tours

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED. Spice up your self-guided land tours by clicking on one of these hotlinks for a helicopter tour, seaplane tour, sailboat San Diego Bay cruise, Catamaran Boat Cruise, or a Hornblower sunset dinner and dancing harbor cruise.

Best 600 Restaurants from 10,000 Reviewed

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED! I have literally dined in 10,000 restaurants over the past 54 years. I go unannounced, I pay for my own meals, and I inspect the kitchen. Unlike a Yelp reviewer, I am a professional reviewer. So, I always eat three meals at one sitting, and I NEVER ORDER MY OWN MEALS. I just say, “bring me the best entree on the menu along with at least one appetizer and two desserts”. I add, “Do NOT tell me what the entree is until it’s served”. I add that “I don’t care what it costs. Just bring me the best entree. If you are in doubt, consult the chef”.

Best Asian Cuisine

#2 RANKED. HOT-LINKED! The Kearney Mesa Convoy District is home to the Best Asian Restaurant Row in America. It’s 1.5 miles long and filled with over 100 restaurants, which are literally next door to one another. For Dim Sum served by cart by dozens of ladies at lunch in a bustling atmosphere, you’re looking for the 20,000 sq. ft. Hong Kong-style award-winner Jasmine Seafood Restaurant. Everything is showcased within SanDiegan.com with maps, photos, and reviews. This is an awesome way to seriously get to know a city via dining in its best restaurants suburb by suburb.

Best Banquets & Catering

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED! If there is a wedding or special event in your future, then do what thousands of locals do, visit this page. My personally reviewed recommendations include impressive wineries, elite golf course clubhouses, classy yacht clubs, prestigious hotels, and awesome restaurants with breathtaking ocean views.

Best Breakfast & Brunch 75-Personally Reviewed

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED! All 75 breakfast and brunch restaurants have been personally reviewed by me. I went unannounced, paid for my own meals, and inspected their kitchen. Expect a delicious dining experience while discovering my Best of San Diego, Ca. Reviewed.

Best Burger Joints–Top 10

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED! An American passion is a constant search for the best hamburger. Here at SanDiegan.com, you’ll find my Top 10 Best Burger Joints in San Diego. Plus, I’ve added 20 more honorable mentions with a useful map. I dined in each burger joint, and I sampled multiple burgers at one sitting to find their Best burger!

Best Lunch & Dinner Restaurants 175-Reviewed

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED! I only recommend the best of the best. As San Diego’s Dean of Restaurant Reviewers, I showcase the city by dining in the best restaurants. I go unannounced, paying for my own meals, and inspecting their kitchen. San Diego is an awesome restaurant town.

Best 70 Curbside Takeaways

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED! San Diego BEST Curbside Takeaways place. I only recommend personally reviewed restaurants vs. a list of unknown places. I have always been a big supporter of curbside takeaway dining. Now that dining at home or in your hotel room has become the new NORMAL make it your own by adding candlelight, champagne, and music via Pandora. So, why not see if you can also recall some long-forgotten dance steps?

Best Eat FREE On Your Birthday in San Diego

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED. You may not live to be 100, but everyone should have 100 birthdays. Eating in multiple restaurants for FREE during your birthday month is what local restaurant owners are encouraging you to do. Eat FREE on your Birthday in San Diego is FUN and Highly Recommended. Highly recommended is the GRAND SLAMM BREAKFAST at any Denny’s Restaurant. Just show up on your birthday with your driver’s license to prove that it’s your birthday. It’s that simple! Other restaurants want you to go online and to get their FREE meal offer. Better yet! Since you can’t get to all of these 75 restaurants on your birthday, most restaurant offers are month-long for a FREE meal. Even Rubio’s and Jack-in-the-Box restaurants are offering FREE tacos!

Best Embarcadero tour of ships, museums, dining

#3 RANKED. HOT-LINKED. Tour the historic maritime museum and climb aboard its fleet of ships, visit the USS Midway aircraft carrier, dine in fabulous bayfront seafood restaurants, wander through fascinating shops at Seaport Village as you stroll the historic Embarcadero.

Best Farmer’s Markets & Outdoor Bazaars

Best FREE 1,000 Activities & Fun Things to Do

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED. The best 1,000 FREE activities and things to do in San Diego are a click away. For example, the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Safari Park offer FREE admission for children up to age 11 when accompanied by a paying adult each October to celebrate founder’s day. Balboa Park museums offer FREE admission to residents on rotating Tuesdays. Admission to the Old Town’s State Historic Park is FREE and parking is FREE. The Military gets FREE admission to most attractions. So do a little preplanning and you’ll discover that most things to do in San Diego are FREE!

30 Parades including 3 boat parades
30 Art Galleries + Spanish Village
50 Maps for Walking & Driving Tours
54 Miles of Beaches (La Jolla Shores is #1)
75 kids eat FREE restaurants
75 FREE meal on your birthday places
140 San Diego Festivals
200 Farmer’s Markets
250 Hiking Trails & Campgrounds
340 City Parks for picnics & family outings

BARRY KNOWS SAN DIEGO

Best 14 Historical Museums

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED! Here are 14 MUST-SEE historic attractions and museums! Plan to spend half a day exploring San Diego’s Old Town State Historic Park. Admission and parking are free. The park conveys an authentic re-creation of the pueblo of tiny San Diego’s history between 1821 and 1872. You’ll stroll thru restored adobe homes, museums, landmarks, commercial shops, and restaurants as informative park rangers and volunteers bring the flavor of the past into the present. My Old Town walking tour and map are very helpful. These historic attractions are almost all operated by volunteers and are thus true labors of love. All these historical museums are excellent!

Best Kids Eat FREE Places in San Diego 7 Days a week

#2 RANKED. HOT-LINKED.

Best Las Vegas-Style Casinos are 15 min. from Downtown

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED! Two casinos are only 15 freeway minutes from downtown San Diego. They are JAMUL CASINO & Sycuan Casino. Our Las Vegas-style casinos offer top-notch gaming venues along with nationally acclaimed entertainment, and dining alternatives galore 24 hours a day. Five casinos even boast luxurious hotel accommodations. Thus, you no longer have to travel to Las Vegas to enjoy gaming at its best. One casino even has a BIG factory outlet.

BARRY KNOWS SAN DIEGO

Best Micro-Breweries easy–self–guided–city-tour

#3 RANKED. HOT-LINKED. San Diego is the Microbrewery Capital of the World. It can boast such a claim because they have won more blue ribbons at world competitions than any other city. My SanDiegan.com tour includes three of the top microbreweries in the U.S.A. They are Stone Brewery, Ballast Point Brewing Company & Coronado Brewery. Plus, my self-guided tour shows you four popular neighborhoods with maps and great places to eat.

Best Tijuana Parking at U.S. Border & RT Bus Shuttle

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED. Border Station Parking is the best place to park your car on the U.S.A. side of the U.S./Mexican Border. Border Station Parking (428-9477) is at 4570 Camino de la Plaza. in San Ysidro. Parking is ($9) for 10 hours Monday through Thursday. On the weekends it jumps to ($18) a day and on holidays it’s even higher. Exit the last exit before entering Mexico from the I-5 Freeway and take an immediate right into their tall 24-hour attended, fenced, parking lot. From here you can board a round trip Tourismo Express Shuttle Bus that will bring you back to this same parking lot after a day of fun in Tijuana, Mexico. You’ll board the bus in the parking lot. Nothing could be easier. The last departure from Tijuana is 7 p.m. Tourismo Express Shuttle Bus (619-428-0011) charges ($10) per person round trip and ($6) one way. Taking the shuttle is 1,000% better than walking to the border, and then taking a cab to downtown TJ. Also, within SanDiegan.com read my extensive Tijuana Chapter and study the maps.

Churches

Click on Churchfinder.com for an extensive and informative list of over 100 places of worship. Since San Diego is often referred to as Paradise on Earth, it should come as no surprise that locals love to worship their God.

Coupons and Deals

HOT-LINKED. You’ll enjoy the many discount coupons for fun things to do, like a sunset champagne dinner cruise aboard a Hornblower yacht on San Diego Bay. A tour of the USS Midway Aircraft Carrier and the awesome high-end factory outlet shops are absolute musts. Be sure to visit the information center at each mall for their many discount coupons.

Eat FREE On Your Birthday in San Diego

Free San Diego Relocation Assistance

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED. Also, refer to my home buying, renting, condos, apartments and office space click on this tab Commercial.com for assistance in finding office space. I’ve used Pacific Coast Commercial for office space with great success.

Hotels Good City Access

If you’re NOT staying in a spectacular oceanfront hotel like La Jolla Shores Hotel or a romantic San Diego Harbor view hotel like Kona Kai Resort & Spa on Shelter Island, then staying in a good Sandiegan.com recommended hotel with excellent access to the rest of the city for a lot less money makes good sense. Stay in centrally located Mission Valley. Back-in-the-day, Mission Valley’s Hotel Circle was where everyone stayed. That was before the downtown convention center was built. Two locally-owned hotels with restaurants on their property are The Kings Inn ($77) night and the recently upgraded Town & Country Resort ($149) a night. If you are in the military, rates are even lower. Mission Valley is home to two major shopping centers, great restaurants, two golf courses, dozens of good hotels, and offers easy access to all attractions. Check rates before booking.

Kids Eat FREE Places in San Diego 7-Days a Week

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED. There are dozens of restaurants in San Diego that want to offer your kids a free meal on specific days a week when an adult purchases a meal. This is a win-win offer you should not pass up for enjoying Kids Eat FREE Places in San Diego 7-Days a Week

Kid-Friendly 40 Things to Do

HOT-LINKED. You are one click away from instant access to 30 fun activities just for kids. Plus, kid-friendly restaurants, where kids eat FREE every day, and where kids eat FREE on their Birthday.

Mexico: Shop at Tijuana’s #1 Drugstore Up to 50% Off

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED Gusher Farmacia (#10) on the Tijuana map is at 9550-27B at Av. Paseo de Los Heros in the Plaza Rio Tijuana Shopping Center (664-684-0235) is open 24 hours a day. English is spoken. This modern superstore, with 5 locations, has the biggest and widest selection of medical drugs from throughout the world at reduced prices. They offer an everyday 32% discount on all drugs and up to 50% off on some drugs. These drugs are manufactured in the U.S. as well as in foreign countries. Be sure to ask for Corona Virus fighting drugs that are hard to get in the U.S. If you have taken the shuttle from Border Station Parking, it stops here at this mega Shopping Center on a regular schedule for a return trip back to where you parked your car. Nothing could be simpler. Plus, there is plenty to see and do in the Rio Tijuana shopping district including great dining. See my Self-Guided map and tour. A block away is the Hidalgo Mercado, which is the native market. Check with customs, if in doubt, for what you can bring back to the U.S. by calling the FDA before going to Mexico.

Mexico: Tijuana Shopping Self-guided map tour

#3 RANKED. HOT-LINKED. This is my 54th year providing a do-it-yourself day trip with a map to Tijuana. You’ll need to bring your passport to cross the international border. My first recommendation is to park on the U.S. side of the border at the Border Station Parking lot. Then take a round trip shuttle to and from Tijuana back to where you parked your car in a 24-hour attended lot with a tall wire fence around it. Taking your car to Tijuana is not recommended because your insurance is not valid in Mexico. Secondarily, the wait time in line to return to the U.S. can be up to 10 hours. Instead, I highly recommend taking a round-trip shuttle (buses cross quickly both ways via a special border crossing lane). Everything is thoroughly covered in my self-guided tour of Tijuana including where to shop for French perfume and dine like royalty while being served by tuxedo-clad waiters.

Mexico: U.S. Parking at Border & RT Bus Shuttle

Mexico Travel Beyond the Border By Car Insurance

For south-of-the-border for trips into the interior of Mexico DEFINITELY BUY CAR INSURANCE. Be one of the thousands of followers that use SanDiegan.com to discover the Best of Baja California, Mexico. A weekend excursion, worth taking, is to visit the romantic seaport village of Ensenada and the nearby Valle de Guadalupe Wineries via a sleek highway that clings to the coast offering 67 miles of breathtaking ocean views. My personally researched information will enable you to stay in the best hotels, dine in gourmet restaurants, and discover the Best of Baja California, Mexico! My many chapters with maps and text include Tijuana, Puerto Nuevo, Guadalupe Valley, Ensenada, San Felipe, and Mexicali.

Mexico Travel Car Insurance

Be sure to purchase a Mexican insurance policy online from Baja Bound, before you cross into Mexico for the day or longer. If you have a serious accident in Mexico, you (and your car) will be detained until it is determined who is the guilty party and damages are paid on demand. Mexican authorities do not accept an American insurance policy as proof of financial responsibility. It only costs ($12.05) a day and ($42.94) a year. Pricing is subject to change. Just get a Mexican insurance policy online, for your peace of mind.

Museums (94) & Attractions

HOT-LINKED! Balboa Park is San Diego’s Cultural Center and is home to 17 museums, live theatre, a merry-go-round, and more that you can still enjoy via Balboa TV during the pandemic. The San Diego Museum of Art has a great app as well. Plus, SanDiegan.com offers a wonderful walking tour with three easy-to-follow maps. Yet, Balboa Park is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to museums. There are dozens of historical museums including the USS Midway Aircraft Carrier and historic Old Town San Diego, where California’s history began. Admission to Old Town including parking is FREE. My SanDiegan.com walking tours include easy-to-use maps and include where to enjoy a delicious meal with a frosty margarita, and you’ll dine to the sounds of strolling mariachi bands. Ole!

Real Estate: Home Repair & Helpful Repair Assistance

If you’re not a fix-it man, the next best thing is knowing where to find the help you need, especially if you’re a newcomer. Nextdoor.com is a favorite local resource for finding professionals and insider tips from neighbors living in your neighborhood. Really it’s the truth. Home Depot is unquestionably the best hardware store with multi-locations countywide. For roof repair, it’s Shake, Shingle & Roll Roofing. He’s the best! For low-priced junk removal contact junkbustersinc.com or call toll-FREE 1-844-464-5865 and speak to Josh. Ask for the ($99) SPECIAL. For tree removals, trimming and stump removal, look no farther than Lucas Lemcke Tree Service (619-316-5242) [Lemckelucas@hotmail.com]. They are licensed and bonded and low priced for excellent professional service. It’s not uncommon for entire neighborhoods to use this same tree service.

Real Estate: Home Buying, Apartments, Condos, Retirement Where to live

HOT-LINKED! For 54-years Sandiegan.com has been everyone’s choice for the insider information of what each suburb has to offer. I also review the top builders and mega apartment complexes. My hands-on experience includes having actually lived in nine different suburbs in San Diego County while growing up in San Diego. Reading the over 20 neighborhood chapters with walking and driving tours is a must for getting to know the lay of the land. A great source of San Diego stats is realestateusnews.com

San Diego Relocation JOBS

HOT-LINKED! Jobs, jobs, and more jobs, San Diego is a great place to live, work, and play.

San Diego Relocation Newcomer Military Assistance

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED! I served in the military in San Diego. So, I’ve been on every military base. I know the San Diego you want to know! Be sure to make full use of the Housing Referral Office for your branch of service. They are staffed with military wives, who are committed to your family having a smooth transfer. The Housing Referral Office is a big help.

BARRY KNOWS SAN DIEGO

San Diego Relocation Newcomer Guide

#1 RANKED. Access this page via the Navigational Bar on the laptop version at Sandiegan.com because as a newcomer you will be visiting this website an average of 11 to 48 times your first year of residency. Thus, getting to know all this 700-page website has to offer will be a great asset in getting you up to speed in your relocation. Be sure to review Sandiegan.com Real Estate, Neighborhoods, Jobs, and Shopping chapters. If you’re in the military read the extensive Military chapter accessing it via the Navigational Bar in the laptop version. Your research should include using the suburb maps with walking and driving tours to give you the lay of the land to discover the uniqueness of each suburb.

San Diego Relocation Newcomer Car Buying Guide

#4 RANKED. San Diego’s big car dealerships are grouped together regionally from the South to the North. The Mile of Cars mileofcars.com in the South Bay boasts of having 5,000 cars and 18 dealerships. They cater to the military at the Naval Bay at 32nd Street and Latinos south of the border in Mexico. The next concentration of dealerships is in Mission Valley along Highway 8. East of Mission Valley is the city of El Cajon, which is home to a host of dealerships along El Cajon Blvd. The remaining three multi dealerships are in Poway, Escondido, and Carlsbad. They cater to soldiers stationed at Camp Pendleton. The biggest single dealership with multi-locations and an excellent reputation is the Mossy Automotive Group with 7 locations offering Nissan, Toyota, Ford, Volkswagon, Honda, Mitsubishi, Infiniti, and El Cajon Ford. I have bought and leased several cars from Mossy. So, I can attest to their high quality.

Sandiegan.com Relocation Online Universities/Colleges

HOT-LINKED! Click on the headline for a list of the Best Online Schools in San Diego. San Diego is a college town with over a dozen colleges and universities. Plus, being a military town as well there are a lot of perks for military families to take full advantage of the extensive online alternatives available to get their degree while in San Diego.

Sandiegan.com Suburb, City, & Neighborhood Search

San Diego is paradise on earth. Just ask a local. Yet, no two suburbs are the same. Aspire to live in the coastal zone as near to the ocean as possible, especially if you are single. I have spent the past 54 years creating chapters with a map of all of the great places to live. A review of the many cities and suburbs listed in the Neighborhood tab is essential. Read each suburb chapter before you tour them. San Diego is also home to awesome new home builders including Shea Homes, McMillin.com, and Pardee Homes offer extras like solar. See the Real Estate Chapter within SanDiegan.com.

Shopping Antique Districts

There are multiple antique districts to choose from. One is in the beach town of Ocean Beach and steps from the ocean. Another is in east county’s Historic La Mesa, which is associated with many major events including antique car shows and their popular annual Octoberfest. Then there is Adams Avenue Antiques, which runs along Adams Avenue and is centered around 30th St. in North Park. All are fun to explore.

Shopping 5 Factory Outlets 21 Malls, Biggest Swap Meet

#2 RANKED. HOT–LINKED! San Diego has three awesome factory outlet centers, where you can literally shop till you drop! I also showcase the major shopping centers, as they are glamorous destinations within Sandiegan.com for the Best of everything. See the coupon page.

Shopping Online Bargains & Deals via Sandiegan.com

At the forefront of online shopping is the one and only City Lights Collectibles offering 40,000 sq. ft. of collectibles for every holiday you can imagine. Christmas is their specialty, but they also do a rousing business for Halloween. They offer FREE shipping & visitors pay no tax! Online shopping is their specialty as this store has local, national, and international clientele. However, if you can visit in person, you will be blown away by the quality and magnitude of their offering. Seeing is believing!

Sports and Recreation

HOT-LINKED Everything from Sky Diving to Sailing or just Basking in the Sun is what makes discovering my San Diego Best of San Diego, Ca. is a 365 days a year playground.

Travel 12 Weekend Getaways for locals on a tank of gas

HOT-LINKED! Virtually every year online travel magazines rank San Diego as the top Travel destination worldwide beckoning 36 million visitors here to relax and enjoy the moment. Here is a local and regional travel bucket list of must-experience travel destinations in your own backyard to take the edge off during the coronavirus, especially if you have cabin fever.

Travel Getaway to Catalina

HOT-LINKED. A super romantic getaway 26 miles off of the California coast from Dana Point via a sleek ferry is a romantic getaway almost incomparable. The island was once owned by Wrigley chewing gum millionaire William Wrigley.

Travel Our Major Airport is only 2 min. from downtown

HOT-LINKED! San Diego is a happy 10 airport county with the San Diego International Airport at Lindbergh Field being the busiest air travel destination. It’s just 2 miles from downtown San Diego. The second busiest airline destination is North County’s McClellan–Palomar Airport. The third major airport (while technically not in the U.S.A) is Mexico’s Tijuana International Airport. Travelers can actually get to the airport from the U.S. to Mexico and back via a short walking bridge. Not reviewed are two large military airports.

Travel to San Diego By Car

YOU DEFINITELY NEED A CAR. Preplan getting a car (if you didn’t arrive by car) at the airport or train station. A cheaper way is via Dirt Cheap Car Rental. They rent slightly used cars mostly to foreign exchange students and savvy visitors, who don’t need a brand new car to impress people they don’t even know. My 50 city and suburb self-guided map tours will quickly introduce you to the best of everything.

Travel via Cruise Ship

Dozens of cruise ships make scheduled stops in San Diego at the beautiful downtown San Diego Cruise Ship Terminal. Their stopovers enable you to discover a great deal of the Downtown area.

Travel to San Diego By Train

Rail travel is fast becoming in vogue again. One reason is that the fares are so reasonable. For example, the one-way fare from Los Angeles to San Diego is a mere ($36). California’s picturesque coastline when seen by train is incredible.

Wedding Venues, Rehearsal Dinners, Wedding Receptions

#1 RANKED. HOT-LINKED! for San Diego Banquets and Catering. #2 RANKED Wedding, Rehearsal, and Reception venues. #1 RANKED. Military weddings, rehearsal dinners, and receptions venues. If there is a wedding or special event in your future, then do what thousands of locals do, visit this page. My personally reviewed recommendations include impressive wineries, elite golf course clubhouses, classy yacht clubs, prestigious hotels, and awesome restaurants with breathtaking venues and ocean views.

Wine Tours: San Diego

#3 RANKED. HOT- LINKED! There are literally 115 wineries in San Diego County. Many wineries are freeway close. San Diego wines have also been served at the White House. Also impressive is the fact that there are two viticultural areas (AVAs) in San Diego County. The oldest wine-growing region is the freeway close to San Pasqual Valley near Escondido. It’s home to the Orfila Vineyards and Winery, with more blue ribbon awards. than any other winery. Here too is the promising Rancho Guejito Vineyard. The other wine-growing region is in Ramona, boasting 30 wineries.

Wine Tours: 40 Temecula Wineries & Vineyard Dining

HOT-LINKED! Freeway close to Temecula is a famous wine-growing region. It’s also one of my highly recommended things to do in my San Diego Best of San Diego, Ca. There are 40 wineries you can visit 4 are must-visit wineries. I have also chosen two excellent restaurants to dine in. Plus, two excellent vineyard hotels I have personally stayed in and one is a French chateau. The map is excellent and includes a tour of Old Town Temecula and new Temecula.

Wine Tours: 20 Valle de Guadalupe Wineries near Ensenada, Mexico

HOT-LINKED! Sixty-eight miles south of the U.S. border near the small romantic seaport town of Ensenada. Ensenada is also home to El Rey Sol Restaurant, which is one of the top 5 French Restaurants in the world. Wine tasting in Mexico means dining in gourmet restaurants while sampling their’s wines against the backdrop of sweeping vineyard views. It’s an amazing experience and well worth the journey. Be sure to read the Ensenada chapter and study the map. Definitely buy Mexican auto insurance.

Sandiegan.com 54th year

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