Home is Where the Navy Sends Us

  4/5 stars Great thing to do! Ages: All Timeframe: All day or just an afternoon Websites: https://visitoceanside.org/blog/tips-for-taking-the-coaster/ Let’s ride the train!  We took a day trip, riding the coaster train from Santa Fe up to Oceanside and back. (1 hour each way) The kids had a blast climbing aboard sitting on the second story, watching the view roll past and simply being on a train.  It was a cloudy day when we went and the views of the beach were not as exciting as I had expected them to be (why I gave it 4 stars instead of 5). There is a good portion of the ride inland, and when you do get near the beach it isn’t actually that close. Still a bit of a distance from the train.  The train has open seating so you find an empty seat and it’s yours. Snag the left side for the ride up and the right side for the ride south for the beach views.   *Note, you will want to get on the train in Santa Fe (downtown San Diego) it is the first stop and you will m...

⭐⭐⭐✰✰  3/5 stars ok place to visit! All ages 1-2 hours Website:  https://sandiegoairandspace.org/museum/gillespie-field-annex      We drove out one Saturday morning to the Air and Space Museum annex. We enjoyed the museum in Balboa and so thought to check this one out as well. I gave it 3 out of 4 stars because it's mostly just a parking lot for old planes. But my kids actually really enjoyed visiting. So don't let the low rating deter you, especially if you're a plane lover. You also can't beat the price $5 per adult kids are free.  It's ok volunteer run, and they all have stories to tell or information about airplanes to share if you ask them.  There is one hangar with some beautiful planes and memorabilia on the walls, then two long outdoor rows of military and private planes parked some you can go right up to and touch, climb inside   I'm the front is a nice bench and about 5 or 6 little tricycle airplanes littles can peddle around in. My 6-ye...

 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 Stars! Great place to visit! Website:  Pacific Southwest Railway Museum – Dedicated to preserving the railroad history of the pacific southwest and San Diego (psrm.org) Age Range: All Ages Time: All Day      Choo Choo! All Aboard!  We recently drove out to Campo to ride the train and I'm so glad we did!  The kids had a great time not only riding the train, but also exploring their superb train museum.  We rode on the Golden State ride, their classic weekend round trip.  We ended up being the only ones on the train, The Ticketmaster and guide was very friendly and knowledgeable about the locomotive we were riding and about the Pacific Railway in general.        I was able to bring my single stroller on the train with us.  It was a bit rough getting it up into the train, but it made it. I would never have been able to bring my double side by side.  We also brought lunch onboard and ate during t...

 ⭐⭐⭐⭐✰ 4/5 stars! Good place to visit! Website:  https://www.niwa.org/ Age range: all ages Time: 1-2 hours         The Japanese friendship garden is a beautiful 12-acre oasis in Balboa Park. We had the opportunity to visit during the cherry blossom festival. It was gorgeous and we had a great time, but lessons learned about the crowds this garden draws and how we may try to do it differently next time.   Out of pure luck I decided to purchase VIP tickets, they were only a few dollars cheaper.  I knew I’d have the kids with me and wanted to cut down online time so I figured the special entrance would be worth it. Turns out it was most definitely worth it. When we arrived (20 minutes before opening) the parking lots were already packed, and we had to circle a bit to find parking.  As we left the parking lot, we ran into a large crowd standing on the sidewalk.  A very large crowd and as we continued to walk towards the garden, I r...

 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 stars Great place to visit! Website:  Old Town San Diego Kid Age: All Ages Time 2-all day depending      There is a lot to do in Old Town.  You could spend an hour or all day and into the evening here.  Gardens, specialty shops, restaurants for lunch or dinner, tourist shops, historical sites, museums, it has a variety of amusements.  We went with out-of-town family and had a great day.  Parking was easy first thing in the morning (10 am), but when we left around 4:30pm cars were circling the parking lot trying to find spaces. Nightlife and dinner parking may be more difficult to come by.          We headed over to Cafe Coyote for lunch, on our way there we saw another restaurant with a viewing window of some lovely ladies making homemade tortillas.  Our wait was very short, the service was quick, and the kids all received their food within 10 minutes of sitting down and ordering.  The margar...

 ⭐⭐⭐⭐✰ 4/5 stars Good place to visit! Website:  San Diego Botanic Garden | Encinitas, California (sdbg.org) Kid Age: All Ages, depending on interests Time: 2-3 hours      Four miles of trails and paths to walk along.  Nature lovers will surely enjoy strolling along checking out the variety of plants.  Be aware there are some steep climbs, I pushed my double stroller up a few on a particularly hot day, not a fun experience.  So, I would suggest the deeper exploration and walking be done by baby wearing and during the cooler months/days.  There is also a little garden shuttle run by volunteers. (It was not operating on the day I visited).   I found this little gem through some other moms in the area, they have a fantastic little kid play area.  It's not far from the entrance and relatively close to the bathrooms.  Art easels, giant chalk board walls, a natural music area, sand pits, and my sons favorite; a small running stream he...

 ⭐⭐⭐⭐ ✫  4/5 Stars Good place to visit! Website:  Birch Aquarium at Scripps | Home (ucsd.edu) Kid Age: All Ages Time: 2-3 hours     Beautiful little aquarium.  We've been to many an aquarium, and while some exhibits are truly beautiful, others could use some improvement.  I find the price to be on the higher side for what you get.  Definitely consider a membership if you will be going more than once, your most cost-effective option.  There is a small parking lot out front (free) Bathrooms are before you enter as well as a small snack kiosk.      The aquariums to the right of the entrance are truly beautiful and well put together.  This last trip we went in the afternoon and the octopus was wiggling all over its tank, the sea turtle was out and about and most of the fish seemed quite lively.  The Giant kelp tank was definitely the highlight.        The outside touch tank area has many litt...

 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 stars! Great place to visit! Website:  Cabrillo National Monument (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov) Kid Age Range: All ages, except you'll need to baby wear at the tidepools (no stroller access) Time: 1-3 hours depending on how much time you decide to spend playing in the tide pools, or if you stay to watch the film.       This state monument honoring Cabrillo who was essential in mapping out San Diego Bay.  A small museum dedicated to the story of the 16th century exploration, ship equipment, and stories of the time.  There is a statue and plenty of beautiful views from the tippy top point of point Loma.  Easy stroller access all throughout the small welcome center, museum, and monument.  Easy access to clean public restrooms.  You can take a stroll up the walking path to the lighthouse.  The light house is small and charming, quick to explore.  Note that the lighthouse itself is not stroller friendly...

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 stars great place to visit. Must See! Website:   Plan Your Visit | San Diego Zoo Kid Age Range: All Time: All Day/Multiday experience      Truly the largest Zoo I have ever been to.   Prices and tickets vary, we purchased season passes.  Living in San Diego for this tour means we will have plenty of opportunities to go and seems to make the most sense to us as a family.  We have been to this zoo about 5 times this year, and still have not seen everything they have to offer (it is that big!). Important preparations for those with littles.  Definitely bring a stroller for little feet, unless you plan on riding the bus throughout. (I use a large side by side double stroller; it has fit through and into everywhere in the park so far with only a few tight squeezes) There is ALOT of walking.  There are some hills that are very steep.  I wish they would have the hills marked on their maps, especially the direction of the up/...