Two Weekend Trips Exploring the Outdoors in San Diego!
TRIP 1 - October 2023
I teamed up with Visit San Diego and went on two separate weekend trips to this stunning city on the California coast to experience some of the beautiful locations it has to offer! I went on the first trip in October with my partner, Chelsea Mealo, and after my time spent here I instantly fell in love.
Sunrise at Broken Hill in Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve.
The first trip was kicked off with a sunrise hike to Broken Hill in Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve. This was a fairly easy 2.5 mile loop trail that offered stunning views of the coastline. My favourite part was hanging out at the unique sandstone formations at Broken Hill.
Kayaking to the sea caves in La Jolla.
After experiencing a beautiful sunrise we headed down to La Jolla, rented some kayaks from ‘La Jolla Kayak’ and hit the water! It was so much fun soaking in the sunshine and paddling around on the crystal clear water. We made it over to the sea caves where we caught a glimpse of the playful seals and sea lions that live in the bay. Although they look like adorable water dogs, please be aware that the sea lions can be dangerous as they are WILD ANIMALS so please do not approach or disturb them for both safety reasons and protection of these beautiful animals.
Black’s Beach at sunset.
We finished our day off by watching the sunset on top of the sea cliffs towering over Black’s Beach. We didn’t go all the way down, but the trails lead through a series of switchbacks all the way to the ocean. The views from on top of the cliffs were unreal and ended up being one of my favourite views of the trip.
Early morning light at Paradise Point Resort & Spa.
Paradise Point Resort & Spa was our home base while exploring San Diego on the first trip. It is a beautiful property right on Mission Bay and located in a central area close to all of the amazing places there are to visit in San Diego.
An incredible Banyan Tree in Balboa Park.
After relaxing for the morning at the hotel we went over to Balboa Park. Balboa Park is located right in the middle of San Diego and has a seemingly unlimited amount of things to do. There are amazing restaurants, stunning architecture, a bunch of museums, botanical gardens, and hiking trails. My favourite spot was checking out these massive Banyan Trees along the Palm Canyon trail.
Watching the sunset at Sunset Cliffs.
After Balboa Park we cruised over to, Sunset Cliffs, a San Diego Classic. We watched the sunset over the Pacific Ocean on one side and the surfers catching waves on another.
A plane coming in for landing over the San Diego skyline.
On our way to the airport, we stopped to watch some planes come in for landing right over the city skyline. This was the perfect way to say goodbye to San Diego and start looking forward to the next time we would come back.
TRIP 2 - March 2024
Sunset at Windansea Beach.
After a few months of missing the warm weather, sunshine, and good vibes it was time to head back to one of my favourite places in the USA. It felt amazing to be back in San Diego.
Some moments from my stay at the Rancho Bernardo Inn.
Once Chelsea and I arrived in San Diego the first thing we did was check into the absolutely jaw-dropping Rancho Bernardo Inn. This amazing hotel was located up in the hills with one of the most beautiful hotel properties I’ve ever experienced. We ate some great food, chilled at the pool, rested up in preparation for a jam-packed weekend in San Diego, and we were even able to bring our dog who had a blast himself.
After resting at the hotel the first thing we did was sailing! Our friends Blanca and Rod live in San Diego so we invited them out for a private sailing tour and it was so much fun to relax and have the whole boat to ourselves. We sailed around the bay, had some drinks, and got to see some unique perspectives of San Diego and its surroundings.
Sunrise at Potato Chip Rock.
After sailing we went straight to bed in preparation for a sunrise hike to the infamous Potato Chip Rock. There are two separate routes you can take. One is a 7.4 mi round trip and the other is a 4.1 mile round trip. Since sunrise was at 6:45am, the hike would take us about an hour to reach the top, and we were a 45-minute drive away, we opted for the shorter hike.
Chilling on Potato Chip Rock at Sunrise.
Normally this hike is extremely busy and you have to line up to sit on the rock, but since we woke up for an early morning adventure we had the whole place to ourselves. We didn’t see other groups arriving for the rock until about 8am.
An afternoon spent at Seaport Village.
We spent most of the day after our hike relaxing at the Rancho Bernardo Inn since we were pretty tired from our early morning adventure. Once we got some rest we made our way to Seaport Village. This was an awesome place to explore where we went shopping, got some coffee, ate ice cream, and then watched the sunset while eating dinner.
Sunset at Windansea Beach (left) and Mount Soledad (right).
Our final adventure in San Diego took us to Windansea Beach. We went swimming and got our sun tan on while chilling at this stunning coastal location. My favourite part of this beach was playing around in the rock formations and hanging out underneath the small hut that is built on the rocks. It’s a beautiful historical landmark and a must-see if you visit this beach! On our way back to the hotel we accidentally drove to a lookout on Mount Soledad. The sunset was popping off with beautiful pastels so we jumped out of the car and watched the rest of the show for our last night in the city.
All in all, these two trips to San Diego skyrocketed it to the top of my list and I will FOR SURE be coming back to this beautiful coastal city time and time again for the rest of my life.
If you’re heading to San Diego, feel free to use this page to plan your very own itinerary and head over to San Diego’s official website to discover more!