The Best Hiking Trails in San Diego

I love Balboa park. There is so much to do and see. It is such a great place to walk around and take everything in, get some great pictures, enjoy some food, museums, street performers, archery, chess, bocce ball, botanical garden, geocaches, urban adventure quest, etc. It is not Central park NYC, but it is our Central park. It is huge and you can spend an entire day and not see everything. The parking can be a pain if there is a large event going on, but with a little patience you can usually find some. The zoo is next door, and there are some great trails all around too including the Florida Canyon trail, Bridle trail, and others.

This is the spot I take everyone who's from out of town to visit, because the view is spectacular and the lighthouse is pretty cool. Also the hike by the cliffs is very nice and to see the waves pounding and shaping the rocks is just pure magnificence! If you catch the low tide then you can even walk down to the rocks for tide-pooling. I still haven't done that but that's something definitely cool to do one day! Each car's admittance costs $10 but if you have the National Park pass (only $80 a year!) then it's free! I love this park. And it's interesting to see how many local san diegans don't even know about it. Most people know the Torrey Pines State Park but Cabrillo National Monument.

Loved this trail and all the scenary! Parking across the street is $10, and the lot at the bottom of the trail is $20. Both lots close at 5:00pm. Parking along the streets is FREE, and we stayed till 6pm. You can drive and park up the trail and then walk, or hike the whole thing. There are different scenic trails. We did the Guy Fleming Trail, which jist loops around, and finished with the Beach trail that ends with steps leading you to the beach. We went on a Saturday, around 2, it wasn't crazy crowded, but full. Most people were leaving. We had a great day, and will definetly be back!