San Diego · 3-day itinerary
3 Days in San Diego: A Grown-Up Itinerary
Three days lets you see San Diego's three sides: the park and the city, the La Jolla coast, and the bay from Point Loma and Coronado. Each day ends with a great dinner and something worth staying up for.
- Day 1
- Balboa Park, Little Italy, the Old Globe or a tiki bar
- Day 2
- La Jolla: the cove, Birch Aquarium, George's at sunset
- Day 3
- Point Loma, Sunset Cliffs, Mister A's, Prohibition Lounge
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Day 1: Balboa Park and Little Italy
A slow day in the park, then dinner and a show or a rum bar.
Morning
Balboa Park & the Botanical Building
El Prado, Balboa Park
Walk El Prado to the Botanical Building and Lily Pond (closed Thursdays).
The city's great park of Spanish Revival buildings, gardens and museums. The restored 1915 Botanical Building and its Lily Pond reopened in December 2024; open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., closed Thursdays.
Late morning
The San Diego Museum of Art
1450 El Prado, Balboa Park
An hour or two with the old masters. Closed Wednesdays.
The city's main art museum, behind a Spanish plateresque facade on El Prado, with European old masters, Asian art and changing exhibitions. Closed Wednesdays; opens at noon on Sundays.
Dinner
Born & Raised
1909 India St, Little Italy
Steak from the trolley, then a drink on the rooftop.
A glamorous, art deco steakhouse with camel-leather booths, dry-aged steaks and tableside cart service, plus a rooftop bar over the Little Italy rooftops. Listed in the Michelin Guide.
Evening
The Old Globe
Balboa Park
If there's a show on, book it. Otherwise, the next stop.
A Tony Award-winning theatre in Balboa Park with three stages, including an outdoor festival theatre, staging new plays, pre-Broadway musicals and Shakespeare. Fall 2026 runs include Topdog/Underdog and the pre-Broadway musical Begin Again.
Late
False Idol
675 W Beech St (through Craft & Commerce)
A rum nightcap in the basement tiki temple; reserve ahead.
A basement tiki temple from Martin Cate of Smuggler's Cove, entered through a walk-in cooler inside Craft & Commerce, with carved panels, glowing glass floats and 100-plus rums.
Day 2: La Jolla
About 25 minutes north by car. Go early and stay for sunset.
Morning
La Jolla Cove & the Coast Walk
Coast Blvd, La Jolla
The Coast Walk and the sea lions, before the crowds.
A short clifftop walk along Coast Boulevard past sea lions on the rocks at the cove and Point La Jolla, with the Sunny Jim sea cave (reached down a tunnel through a shop) a few minutes away.
Midday
Birch Aquarium at Scripps
2300 Expedition Way, La Jolla
The kelp forest tank and the view over La Jolla Shores.
The public aquarium of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, on a hill above La Jolla Shores with a kelp forest tank and an ocean-view plaza. Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (7 p.m. on Sundays through February 2027).
Sunset dinner
George's at the Cove
1250 Prospect St, La Jolla
Book a table along the glass for the sunset.
A La Jolla institution for more than 40 years, with three levels over the cove: the casual Ocean Terrace rooftop and the dressier dining room below, all facing the Pacific sunset.
Day 3: Point Loma and a night downtown
The best view of the city, the best sunset, then the best dinner room.
Morning
Cabrillo National Monument
Tip of Point Loma
The whole bay laid out below the old lighthouse.
The tip of Point Loma, with the whole bay, city and Coronado spread below, the 1855 Old Point Loma Lighthouse and tide pools on the ocean side. Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; trails start closing from about 4.
Lunch
Liberty Public Market
2820 Historic Decatur Rd, Liberty Station
Pick-and-mix lunch at Liberty Station.
A food hall of local vendors in a former Naval Training Center building at Liberty Station, good for a relaxed lunch on the way to Point Loma. Open 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily; vendor hours vary.
Sunset
Sunset Cliffs Natural Park
Sunset Cliffs Blvd, Point Loma
Get there half an hour early to park.
A mile and a half of sandstone cliffs, arches and caves on Point Loma's ocean side, and San Diego's favourite place to watch the sun go down (and look for the green flash).
Dinner
Mister A's
2550 Fifth Ave, 12th floor, Bankers Hill
Twelve floors up, with the city lit below.
A penthouse dining room on top of the Manchester building since 1965, with views over the skyline, the bay and the Pacific, and planes gliding past at eye level on their approach. Recently renovated, with a bigger bar and rooftop patio lounge.
Late
Prohibition Lounge
548 Fifth Ave, Gaslamp Quarter
A live band from about 9 p.m.; dress up on weekends.
An underground 1920s-style lounge behind a door marked as a law office on Fifth Avenue, with live jazz, blues, soul and rockabilly bands from about 9 p.m. and proper cocktails.
Swaps
- Rather be on the water? Swap day 1's show for the harbor dinner cruise from Broadway Pier.
- A fourth day? Take the ferry to Coronado for the Hotel del's beach and bar, or spend it in Temecula wine country.
- Special occasion? Book Addison's tasting menu instead of Mister A's (it's 25 minutes north).
Flagship harbor dinner cruise
Broadway Pier, 990 N Harbor Dr
A two-and-a-half to three-hour evening cruise on San Diego Bay: a three-course dinner, a glass of Champagne, skyline views past the Coronado Bridge and the Midway, and a DJ for dancing.
Hotel del Coronado: Babcock & Story Bar and Sun Deck
1500 Orange Ave, Coronado
The 1888 beachfront hotel's restored mahogany bar opens onto a big patio facing the Pacific, with live music Thursday to Saturday from 6 to 10 p.m.; next door, the Sun Deck has fire pits for the sunset.
Tip: The Coronado ferry from Broadway Pier runs hourly and takes about 15 minutes.
Addison
Fairmont Grand Del Mar, 5200 Grand Del Mar Way
Chef William Bradley's three-Michelin-star dining room, Southern California's first, serving a changing ten-course tasting menu. It marked its 20th year with a redesigned room and a new Champagne lounge.
Tip: About 25 minutes north of downtown; plan a car both ways.
Everything here was checked in September 2026. Hours, show runs and reservation rules change, so confirm before you go.
Questions people ask
Is 3 days enough for San Diego?
Yes, for a grown-up trip: a day for Balboa Park and Little Italy, a day in La Jolla and a day for Point Loma and Sunset Cliffs, with a great dinner each night. Add a fourth for Coronado or Temecula.
Do you need a car in San Diego?
Not downtown, in Little Italy or Balboa Park. For La Jolla, Point Loma and North County, a car or rideshare makes things much easier; the ferry covers Coronado.
What is the best time of year to visit San Diego?
September to November is lovely: warm, with fewer crowds than summer. Early summer often brings grey mornings along the coast (locals call it May Gray and June Gloom).