A city with natural beauty in every direction and a near perfect mediterranean climate, San Diego is an outdoor adventurer’s paradise. With options for hiking, biking, surfing, camping, and beautiful scenic parks for relaxing we’ve compiled the best outdoor activities in and around San Diego.
Hiking
San Diego has hiking literally everywhere, from the coast to the desert. See all the amazing places you can put some miles on those hiking boots.
The Best Hikes In San Diego
Coasts, shrubs, mountains, forests and deserts can all be found in San Diego, which should entice any hikers or outdoor enthusiasts. Paired with the great weather year round, you’re never without several great options to hike and experience the nature in and around San Diego. Check out these hikes in San Diego and see why its easy to fall in love with this place.
Beaches and Water Activities
What’s San Diego without exploring the beautiful coastline and ocean? Check out these great beach and water activities in San Diego.
Ocean Beach Bonfire
Having a beach bonfire is one of the best free things you can do in San Diego. Fires on the beach are legal in San Diego County, but must be in a designated city fire pit. You can have a propane-fueled device, similar to the parks, but this does not really provide the atmosphere you want for a nighttime bonfire, so buy some wood from one of the local convenient stores (they all have it) and pit it up. Ocean Beach has several fire pits just south of Lifeguard Tower 5. You can park in the Dog Beach parking lot and the pits are straight out by the water, past the volleyball courts. Once the sun begins to set, start the fire and watch the twinkling lights of La Jolla brighten the hillside just up the coast to the north.
Windansea Beach
Windansea Beach is a rocky coastline in La Jolla (with some sandy beach at low tide) that is most famous as being an early surf break when SoCal surf culture, and therefore mainland American surf culture, was in its infancy. Windansea is a lovely stretch of picturesque rocks (not a wide sandy beach) that is perfect for a picnic or watching sunset.
Coronado Beach
Coronado Beach is a wide, white sand beach with plenty of room to find a place for the day, making it one of the better beaches in San Diego for sunbathing and other beach activities. There are restrooms and outdoor showers at two locations on the beach and lifeguards on duty all summer. The views from Coronado Beach are lovely with Point Loma to the west and Hotel Del Coronado to the east.
Sunset Cliffs
Sunset Cliffs is a stretch of coastline south of Ocean Beach that offers some of the most stunning views in all of San Diego County. The cliffs start around Adair Boulevard in OB and run south all the way to Sunset Cliffs Natural Park. The shorefront and cliffs continue south of that all the way to Cabrillo National Monument on the southernmost tip of Point Loma, but the land south of Sunset Cliffs Natural Park is private (military, college). It is great for a casual walk with the family or the dog, or a solo walk alone to contemplate life, love, and the pursuit of happiness.
Torrey Pines State Beach
Torrey Pines State Beach is a wide stretch of beach from Torrey Pines State Reserve in the south to Del Mar in the north and is one of the more underrated places to spend a beach day in San Diego. The water here is clean and warm and the beach is nice and sandy all the way out. There is minimal kelp, like some of the other beaches, and probably the best part is the inlet of Los Pensaquitos Creek leading into the lagoon that is a nice calm place to swim and snorkel during high tide. The views up and down the beach are lovely with the massive cliffs of Torrey Pines State Reserve to the south. The main parking is in the North Beach lot, though there is competitive parking right on the beach, along Highway 101, and then in the South Beach lot closer to the state park.
Parks and Scenic Areas
Parks and vistas are found all throughout San Diego, making perfect places to have a picnic, play some games, or go for an afternoon stroll and watch sunset.
Kate Sessions Park
There are many, many lovely green areas in San Diego and many, many places with beautiful views, but Kate Sessions Park in Pacific Beach combines both, which makes it probably the best place to have a picnic in all of San Diego County. Bring a blanket or chairs, pack your own food or bring a portable grill to cook out (it is legal, just try not to set your fellow park-goers on fire), and find a spot at the top of the hill. The view is spectacular – you will see all of Mission Bay, downtown San Diego, Coronado, and on a clear day south all the way to Mexico.
Cabrillo National Monument
Cabrillo National Monument is like a big brother to Sunset Cliffs in Ocean Beach – it is historically significant, beautiful, and part of the National Park System. It is where the first European explorer – Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo – stepped foot on modern California in 1542 (and then immediately left and got murked in the Channel Islands a few months later and then no Europeans set foot in San Diego for over two hundred years).
Torrey Pines State Reserve
Torrey Pines State Preserve should be on everyone’s list to visit in San Diego, whether you are in town for a day or you have lived here your whole life. There are two ways to hike through Torrey Pines – on the beach below the cliffs or up in the cliffs themselves. We recommend the latter, starting up at the Torrey Pines Reserve Lodge and Visitor Center. Parking in the main lot by the visitor center is usually open, though it can fill up on weekends and sunset. There is overflow parking at the bottom of the hill by the beach.
Deserts and Mountain Adventures
Rising mountains out east give way to epic desert landscapes, providing a change of scenery to snowy peaks, pine forests, and desert canyons.
Mount Laguna Recreation Area
Mount Laguna Recreation Area is a rebuttal to those who say San Diego is just a beach town. Less than hour away, this alpine sanctuary is nestled within the Cleveland National Forest just west of Anza Borrego Desert State Park. Mount Laguna has lush forests, mountain peaks, and meadows where you can hike, car camp, mountain bike, backpack, and easily access the Pacific Crest Trail.
What To Do In Anza Borrego Desert State Park
One of the largest state parks in the country sits just east of San Diego
Palomar Mountain State Park
Palomar Mountain is covered almost entirely in coniferous forest. If you remember anything from your high school ecology class – that means it is covered in Christmas trees. Palomar Mountain State Park can feel almost like the Sierras in places with towering pines and fir trees and this makes it a unique getaway in SoCal.
Family-Friendly Outdoor Activities
San Diego is one of the most family-friendly cities, and there’s no shortage of outdoor activities to be had with the fam.
Silver Strand Bikeway In Coronado
On any given sunny day in San Diego, which is most days of the year outside of May and June, a bike ride is one of the best things you can do with your time. And if you want to experience one of the most scenic bicycle routes in San Diego, the trip around Coronado Island is about as good as you can get. Your best option is either bring your own bike across the ferry or rent a bike from Holland’s Bicycles at the ferry landing on Coronado. Single bikes are $40. It is $50 for a bike with a child seat. This entire path is flat so it is a perfect leisurely ride for all of us casual bikers out there.
Tappers Mini Golf Liberty Station
Tappers, located in Liberty Station at The Loma Club, has our favorite miniature golf in San Diego. The Loma Club is located at the northern end of Liberty Station and is a combination of a par three golf course, a bar that serves food, two miniature golf courses, and a large patio/courtyard with a stage where there is often live music. If this sounds like an oddly eclectic mix of things to you, you’re not wrong, but once you get there you will realize that all it just kind of works. The Loma Club has a very Caddy Shack/golf party kind of vibe to it.
Lions Tigers and Bears San Diego Animal Sanctuary
Lions Tigers and Bears is a massive outdoor animal sanctuary home to rescued big cats and bears from all over the world. Located out in Alpine, this place is not only an amazing visit (they have so many tigers…), it is a testament to how to do animal rescue and welfare the right way. You can tell from their guided tour that this place cares about the animals and puts in the effort. You will never look at traveling circuses the same.
Trail Tykes at Mission Trails
Trail Tykes at Mission Trails is a biweekly guided walk through the natural habitat of Mission Trails Regional Park, one of the largest urban parks in the United States. Every Wednesday and Sunday at 10am, one of the staff at Mission Trails will host a short show followed by a guided walk through the park – all geared toward kids.
The California Wolf Center In Julian
Just over one hour from San Diego in the laguna mountains is the California Wolf Center. There goal is to help educate the public on the different wolf species and their role in the ecosystems. They currently care for over 20 wolves, including North Western gray wolves, and Mexican gray wolves.
Tree Treks With Tree San Diego
Tree Treks are a family-friendly, community event hosted by Tree San Diego, a local non-profit dedicated to improving the urban tree canopy. Held each month, each Tree Trek takes you on a walk through different parks or neighborhoods with a professional arborist to teach you about the trees of San Diego and their benefits to the community, public health, and the environment. A map is provided to all attendees with pre-selected trees that will be included on the walk, usually about 8-12 trees. (You also get a cool neon vest for safety when crossing streets). At each tree, a certified arborists will talk about how to identify the tree, its unique traits, and the influence it has on the surrounding environment.
Sports and Recreation
Great weather, parks, and outdoor spaces mean prime areas for playing sports and getting a little competitive.
Balboa Park Golf Course
The Balboa Park Municipal Course is a public course on the eastern side of Balboa Park and is probably the best golf course in the San Diego for the money. Maybe second to Torrey Pines. Balboa is well maintained, picturesque, and very welcoming. Sam Snead holds the course record with a 60, but see if you can break 100. The greens here are always smooth and fast. And so are the beers.
Mission Bay Golf Course
Mission Bay Golf Course is a public course that is great for beginners or a casual round of golf. The course is 18 holes and they have a massive driving range alongside chipping and putting greens. Most holes at Mission Bay are par 3 and it can turn into a missile range with all the short holes aimed at each other and many beginners out there, but that is half the fun of it.
The Loma Club Par Three Golf Course
The Loma Club is the perfect place for casual golfers. It is a par three golf course located in Liberty Station that has a very relaxed and easygoing vibe (there is a corn hole game set up at the tee box on hole 7, right by the beer cart). The holes are short (seven of them are 150 yards or less), the staff is friendly, and the atmosphere is basically a party. To us, The Loma Club is the best golf course in San Diego for beginners, or anyone just wanting to take it easy and not play such a formal round. On any given day you will be find beginner golfers, birthday party revelers, and families with young children. But despite its laidback nature, the course is well maintained and well worth a visit for more experienced golfers looking to hone their short game. Just beware the crossfire – things can get a little loose around hole 7 and beer number three.
