City: San Diego, CA

Category: Tours & Attractions

Telephone: (619) 239-0512

Address: 1549 El Prado

Description: Balboa Park is truly the heart of San Diego, both geographically and culturally. You could spend a whole day in the park and barely scratch the surface of all there is to do. Rather than try to cram Balboa Park into a few short paragraphs, we’ve devoted an entire chapter to an in-depth description of all it has to offer. But just to give you a taste of what you’ll find, we’ll start with, of course, the world-famous San Diego Zoo. That’s a day’s expedition all by itself. Another day could easily be spent going through its museums—the Aerospace Museum, the Natural History Museum, the Museum of Photography, and the Model Railroad Museum, just to name a few. The miniature railroad and the historic merry-go-round are favorites with the kids, and both adults and youngsters flock to the Ruben H. Fleet Space Theater and Science Center for IMAX films and hands-on exhibits. If you plan to spend the day at Balboa Park, turn to its chapter and we’ll give you the whole lowdown, including some tips on scheduling your time. You’ll find even more information about entertainment in the park in The Arts chapter.