Explore our wedding venue: The Hotel Del Coronado. Established in 1888, this National Historic Landmark is famously featured in the 1959 film Some Like It Hot starring Marilyn Monroe, and is the second largest wooden structure in the United States.

Enjoy the iconic Coronado Beach, and the beauty of The Del’s ornate Victorian architecture, sun decks and gardens. Have a bite at one of the hotel’s many eateries (our favorite is the Islander Pizza at ENO Pizzeria), or visit the Shops at the Del for ocean-themed décor and clothing.

Want to explore the island? Take a walk from the hotel straight down Orange Avenue to survey the sights of Coronado. From street cafés to docked aircraft carriers, there is plenty to see.

Free parking: there is free 2 hour street parking, and free all-day parking in a secret public beach lot, just a 7 minute walk from the hotel. Drive past the little guard house at 1812–1830 Avenida de la Arenas and continue to the lot on the lefthand side, adjacent to the access ramp leading up to the beach.

Experience the essence of Southern California on a skate, stroll, or bike ride along the oceanfront boardwalk at Mission Beach. Hear the locals blast by with their shoulder-mounted boomboxes, and see their fancy dogs in baby strollers. Grab some delicious tacos from El Jefe’s Taco Shop, or a refreshing drink from Draft, just steps from the sand. Rent roller skates (or blades) and bikes at Mission Beach Surf Rentals or Hamel’s Castle.

Take a loop around Mission Bay to admire the lovely boats, quaint houses, sandy beaches, and grassy parks. For our favorite route, turn left to follow the path behind Mizu Japanese Cuisine & Sushi (but maybe skip their food) on W. Mission Bay Dr., and enjoy the relative quiet of the bayside.

Free parking: there are public parking lots on either side of Belmont Park, but they tend to be the most full. For the best chance of finding a spot, try the public lots across the street at 1001 W Mission Bay Dr or 3021 Mission Blvd.

Public bathrooms, showers, water fountains, and lifeguard services available.

Visit Belmont Park: San Diego’s historic seaside amusement park. Built in 1925, the park features The Giant Dipper, one of only two wooden rollercoasters still remaining on the West Coast, and The Plunge, formerly the largest saltwater (now freshwater) indoor swimming pool in the world. Try a round of mini golf, a game of laser tag, or take to the sky on the zip line and climbing walls.

Free parking: there are public lots on either side of Belmont Park, but they tend to be the busiest. For the best chance of finding a spot, try parking lots across the street at 1001 W Mission Bay Dr or 3021 Mission Blvd.

Public bathrooms and water fountains available.

Visit La Jolla Shores for a (slightly) more local San Diego beach experience. Explore the tide pools to look for sea anemones and sand crabs, rent a board at Surf Diva (small local business, woman-owned) and check out the surf just north at Scripps Pier, or take a guided kayak tour inside the La Jolla sea caves (self-guided rentals are also available, but entering the sea caves is not permitted). Got kids? Let them play on the swings and slides at the seaside jungle gym.

Explore the food and drink options just south of the beach on Avenida De La Playa. For the most classic La Jolla lunch, visit The Cheese Shop for their delicious sandwiches, retro candies, and old-fashioned sodas. Be sure to try one of their famous flourless oatmeal cookies. Check out the grilled fish tacos and beach bowls at Shore Rider, and the crazy seasonal decorations at Barbarella. For a fine dining experience, walk across the street to Piatti. For dessert, taste samples of artisanal ice cream at Scoops, and (struggle to) choose your favorite one.

If you have (or want to rent) snorkeling gear, head over to the hidden beach access path right next to the Marine Room Restaurant (fine dining with a stunning view and seasonal High Tide meals where the waves crash against the windows) and get in the water for a chance to swim with (harmless) leopard sharks. If you’re lucky, you may even spot one of the green sea turtles that have migrated from the tropics to the temperate waters of the California coast.

Free parking: public lot available, but often crowded. Search for street parking in the residential neighborhoods towards Avenida De La Playa.

Public bathrooms, showers, water fountains, fire pits, and lifeguard services available.

The Birch Aquarium is affiliated with the Scripps Institute of Oceanography and open to the public. Home to more than 380 species and 3,000 animals, the aquarium’s most famous residents include its 250+ pound Giant Black Sea Bass and rescued Loggerhead Sea Turtle. There are also daily feedings and talks for the Aquarium’s Weedy Seadragons and Little Blue Penguins.

Perched on the cliffs overlooking La Jolla Shores and Scripps Pier, it offers a hands-on outdoor tide pool experience and sweeping views of the environment in which many of its marine inhabitants can be found. Visitors can enjoy Blue Beach, a large patio with outdoor games, picnic tables, and a play area for children, as well as a large viewing tank of sharks and rays.

Free parking: public lot on the aquarium grounds.

Public bathrooms and water fountains available.

Check out the California sea lions at La Jolla Cove. These pinnipeds have taken over this popular swim and snorkel spot, but you can still enjoy the water and beach if you keep a safe distance. Venture into the small sea cave located in the Cove’s leftmost cliff wall and walk through to see sparkling views of the coastline when you come out the other side. For a dramatic descent, stop into The Cave Store and climb the 144 steps straight down through the cliff, where Sunny Jim’s Cave opens out to the sea. Visitors pay a small admission fee and are allowed 15-20 minutes inside (note: for those with limited mobility or claustrophobia, this may not be the experience for you).

La Jolla Cove Village hosts a charming collection of boutique and luxury shops, hotels, and restaurants. Stop into Warwick’s (established in 1896, it is America’s oldest continuously family-owned and operated bookstore), offering stationery, unique gifts, and weekly author readings. Admire the beautiful Spanish architecture of “The Pink Lady of La Jolla”, the La Valencia Hotel.

Free Cove parking: public parking available along the road leading down to the cove, but tends to fill up. Drive slowly and watch for people leaving.

Public bathrooms, showers, water fountains, and lifeguard services available.

Free village parking: street parking available, but scarce. Look for spots furthest from the waterfront.

With over 12,000 animals and 680 species, the San Diego Zoo is the most-visited zoo in the world. The Zoo is a nonprofit organization, and one of the leading institutions in wildlife conservation and preservation efforts, having guided more than 30 endangered species back into the wild.

Plant-lovers may be pleased to learn that the Zoo is as much a botanical garden as it is a menagerie, offering guided and self-guided botanical tours year-round. Its hundred acres support over two million exotic and native plants, making it a popular destination for botanists from around the globe.

The Zoo is home to animals of all climates, from polar bears to African lions. Some of its most popular residents are the Giant Pandas (recently returned to San Diego after a five year absence, timed viewing tickets may be required), snow leopards, koalas, orangutans, and hippopotamuses. Other attractions include its five aviaries, butterfly forest, guided bus tours, and Skyfari aerial tram, where you can soar over the animals via cable car.

Free parking: there is a large parking lot for Zoo guests, but on busy days parking can be found in the residential neighborhood next to Roosevelt International Middle School.

Take a stroll through Balboa Park, San Diego's cultural epicenter. Featuring multiple botanical gardens, water features, and performance venues, the Park is also home to 18 world-renowned museums, as well as the San Diego Zoo.

Admire the Spanish-inspired architecture, water lily-strewn reflecting pond, and marvelous redwood lath Botanical Building --one of California's most-photographed landmarks-- housing over 2,100 plants.

In order of preference, our favorite museums include:

1.) The Natural History Museum

2.) San Diego Museum of Art

hosts an incredible collection of iconic paintings by artists from Matisse to Sorolla. Impressive array of artifacts from pre-colonial India, and Asia.

3.) Museum of Us (formerly the Museum of Man)

exhibition of note:

- Post Secret: an archive of anonymous postcards from around the world that reveal the senders' most closely-guarded secrets --traumas, loves, despairs, dreams-- with the aim of showcasing that anyone might be holding the same secrets as you.

4.) Model Railroad Museum

Also enjoyable:

- Japanese Friendship Garden

- Fleet Science Center

- Air & Space Museum

Free parking: there are many parking lots throughout the Park, with the highest concentration of spots near the Air & Space Museum. There is also a large lot behind the Fleet Science Center, and some street parking outside the Museum of Natural History.

A Pirate's Life For You! All hands on deck for the Maritime Museum, a fleet afloat in San Diego Bay. Walk the decks of these historic ships, and experience 500 years of seafaring history.

Step onto the world's oldest active sailing ship, The Star of India, built in 1863. Explore the frigate replica, HMS Surprise --featured in the award-winning film adaptation of Patrick O'Brien's novel, Master and Commander, starring Russell Crowe as Captain Jack Aubrey.

Sail around San Diego Bay on a 16th century Spanish galleon! Unveiled in 2015, the San Salvador is a working replica of the ship captained by explorer Juan Cabrillo in 1542. The museum offers 4 hour sailing tours to the public. Learn how sailors navigated to the New World with nothing but the wind to speed them.

Join the crew and haul a line on a traditional Tall Ship! The Californian is a working replica of a Gold Rush-era revenue cutter, where you can learn about whaling and sea otter trade, local sea battles, the art of ship’s gunnery, and life at sea during a cruise around San Diego Bay.

Note: the Maritime Museum is located right next to the Midway Museum, so you can visit both if you want to experience historical and modern seafaring in one day!

Parking: unfortunately there is no free parking near the Maritime Museum. Navigate to Seaport Village and try to park in the lot there, or closest to the bay. Parking is around $1.50 per hour, with a limit of three hours. From there, the walk is about five minutes along the waterfront to the museum.

Want a taste of life in the US Navy? Climb aboard the USS Midway. Commissioned eight days after the end of World War II, this aircraft carrier was the largest warship in the world until 1955. The Midway operated for 47 years and —after being decommissioned in 1992– was converted into a museum ship on permanent display in San Diego.

Explore this floating city first-hand with a self-guided or family self-guided audio tour (allow 3-5 hours for full audio experience). The Midway had it all: post office, barbershop, hospital, jail, dining hall, chapel, police headquarters, laundry service, and even a sundry store with VHS rentals.

From the relative luxury of the executive officer’s quarters, to the prison-quality bunks of the ship’s engineers, see what life at sea was like for the sailors and pilots of the latter 20th century (note: for those with limited mobility or claustrophobia, this may not be the experience for you).

Sit in the cockpits of fighter jets, navigate labyrinthine passageways, and marvel at the amount of coffee machines onboard. From the flight deck, walk the runway and see where the Navy’s modern warships are docked just across the bay.

Tickets are slightly cheaper if booked online instead of purchased at the door.

Note: the Midway Museum is located right next to the Maritime Museum, so you can visit both if you want to experience historical and modern seafaring in one day!

Parking: unfortunately there is no free parking near the Midway. Navigate to Seaport Village and try to park in the lot there, or closest to the bay. Parking is around $1.50 per hour, with a limit of three hours. From there, the walk is about five minutes along the waterfront to the museum.