TONS of great restaurants and lots of fun shopping. Hotels charge a lot for parking (ours was $30 a day). If you do rent a car, look to parking in the public garages. There are a number of them and top cost is $8/day. Don't miss this newly revitalized area of San Diego!

had to go to camp penelton to visit my
son. Read about The best western in differnt
web sites decicided to take a chance. Glad I
did only 5 minutes to the main gate, clean good
service and great military rate. Could of had more
fruit in breakfast room, breakfast should of stayed
open a little longer. otherwise great place.

I hadn't been back to San Diego in over 10 years, but the city is still a pleasant place to visit. I was only there about a day so didn't get to the zoo this trip, but a couple a high points you shouldn't miss.

1) The waterfront is a lot of fun, in particular, the new USS Midway. She is docked right at the waterfront (Harbor Drive and Broadway) and is amazing. Millions have been spent refurbishing here, so plan to spend several hours wandering all over her, listen to the volunteers talk about life aboard the ship, carrier landings, see the planes and helicopters on the flight deck and then grab a snack and take in the harbor. The ship is massive, but has ample benches and elevators for those needing special assistance. Kids will eat it up.

2) Other place I enjoyed is the Seaport Village. It's loaded with stores for shopping, stands for food and restaurants. Clean, nice and great view of San Diego bay. A great afternoon.

3) If you like to talk walks or run, the harbor has a great path that hugs Harbor Drive. I did a seven mile run there early one morning and it was wonderful. Go down Broadway to the bay and you run right into Harbor Drive.

The one thing to get ready for as you venture out, though, is the homeless population. With such a nice climate they are everywhere - city streets, parks, bus/train stations, the harbor and lakefront paths. I grew up in Philadelphia and now reside in Chicago so nothing new to me, but be prepared if you aren't used to this or have young children. The homeless are not hostile like NYC, but you need to be mindful of your personal security, particularly after dark if you are walking alone.

My family (two adults, 9 and 10 year old children) spent a week in San Diego this past September. We stayed at a rental condo right on Pacific beach with a fabulous view. September is an ideal time to visit San Diego, the weather is warm but not hot, the tourists are mostly gone and the lodging prices are "off-season." The condo gave us lots of room and a kitchen at a fabulous location at a much cheaper rate than any hotel.

There are so many fabulous family activities in San Diego, we didn't do nearly everything we could have. But bring your walking shoes! Our favorites were the San Diego Zoo and WIld Animal Park, Sea World, Legoland and the LaJolla beaches. I wish we could have had more time to explore the museums of Balboa park, but we did enjoy the free trolley ride through the park. We did not find much to interest a family in the Gaslamp district, it was very crowded and targeted towards adult convention-goers. It is also entirely possible to do very little, but relax by the beach and still have a great time.

You definitely have to rent a car to experience the whole city. I also recommend that you research ticket packages for multiple attractions to save a little money.