Things To Do
North Park
North Park has a homegrown hipster allure. When Evan and Kit moved to San Diego, they lived in North Park for a year and loved the causal walkable neighborhood. Must try food: Underbelly, an outdoor ramen restaurant, or any restaurant at the corner of Upas St and 30th St. North Park is located right next to Balboa Park, a historic urban cultural park with a Japanese garden, plenty of museums, and home to The San Diego Zoo. The Zoo is one of the best in the country, but it's LARGE and a whole-day event, so bring your walking shoes. Balboa Park has events occasionally but only has a few food options, so we recommend getting food in North Park and taking a scooter to Balboa. Also, the Lafayette Hotel in North Park recently opened a supper club called Lou Lou's Jungle Room, which has fantastic live music.
La Jolla
La Jolla is upscale, with fine dining and beautiful views of nature. If you only visit one neighbor in SD, we recommend La Jolla. If you want to be one with nature, hike Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve, park free at North Beach Sidewalk, San Diego, CA 92121, and walk to the trailhead. Black's Beach Trail starts at the top of a bluff and takes you to the nude beach. The entrance of the trail is next to Torrey Pines Gliderport. We love this one; it's medium difficulty, and you can only do it if you are confident in heights. We don't recommend hiking the La Jolla trail. It's beautiful, but erosion has made it treacherous. Our favorite breakfast spots are The Cottage and Shorehouse Kitchen. Our favorite dinner spots are Pesto, George's at the Cove, and Catania. For wine, go to We Olive & Wine Bar, an intimate spot for light apps. See seals in the wild, check out tide pools at La Jolla Cove, and walk the coast.
Other Neighborhoods
Coronado is a small resort town with Hotel Del Coronado and a classic old-time breakfast spot, Clayton's Coffee Shop. Pacific Beach is for college kids and surfers. Our favorite food spot is Dirty Wings, right off the beach. If you rent a car and want to travel through all the coastal neighborhoods, you can take S Coast Highway 101.