Tourist attractions La Jolla

One of the largest, most diverse and most celebrated zoological parks in the world, the San Diego Zoo occupies 100 acres of lushly landscaped hillsides and ravines at the northern end of Balboa Park. Some 4,000 animals represent 800 different species..

San Diego's cultural focal point is a 1,200-acre park rising immediately to the north of downtown. Velvet lawns, lush gardens and century-old shade trees harbor a world-renowned zoo, outdoor and indoor performance spaces, and a wealth of diverse muse..

Established in 1941, San Diego's premier venue for contemporary art occupies Ellen Browning Scripps' remodeled and restored home (1916). Scripps commissioned architect Irving Gill to design the structure, which, like the other Gill-designed buildings..

With a glorious setting above La Jolla's coastline, the contemporary Mission-style complex encompasses a state-of-the-art aquarium and the largest museum in the nation devoted solely to oceanography. Named to recognize funding from the Stephen and Ma..

A leading world center for biological research and a unique marriage of science and architecture, the Salk Institute for Biological Studies occupies a 26-acre site overlooking the Pacific.Founded in 1960 by Dr. Jonas Salk$ (1914-95), who pioneered th..

Situated in attractive Mission Bay Park, this waterfront attraction mixes entertainment and education in a venue designed to heighten awareness of conservation issues.The park had just four attractions when it opened in 1964 on a 22-acre site on the ..

A broad plaza surrounded by restored adobe and wood structures marks the original heart of San Diego, dating from the 1820s. Situated at the foot of Presidio Hill, it became known as Old Town when it was eclipsed by the development of waterfront New ..

Located on the crest of a sandstone ridge 400ft above the sea, this park at the southern tip of Point Loma commemorates the European exploration of the US Pacific coast in 1542 and preserves one of the oldest lighthouses on the West Coast. Juan Rodrí..

Born out a Smithsonian Institution exhibit in the Panama-California Exposition of 1915, the museum now has a collection of more than 70,000 objects, arranged to explore evolution, anthropology, ancient history and indigigenous cultures. The museum oc..

Sleekly clad in Italian travertine marble, the compact, single-story museum (1965, Frank Hope) displays in its six galleries and rotunda the Putnam Foundation Collection, a trove of art spanning 600 years, as well as high-qualty traveling exhibitions..

The white and blue ring-shaped Art Moderne structure (1935), formerly called the Ford Building, housed a demonstration automobile assembly line for the California Pacific Exposition. The Aerospace Museum has been here since 1980.Dedicated to chronicl..

Established in 1899, this 1,750-acre reserve is dedicated to the preservation of one of the world's rarest pine trees. Thought to be remnants of an ancient forest that was disrupted by glaciers, fewer than 6,000 Torrey pines (Pinus torreyana) survive..

Looming over the western end of Mission Valley, this stately, white museum building (1929, William Templeton Johnson) is a San Diego landmark. Capped by a commanding tower, the Mission Revival structure features characteristic Spanish Colonial elemen..

The foundations of Spanish colonial history in Alta California lie atop this prominent knoll, from which sweeping views extend over San Diego. The beautifully landscaped park features a fine historical museum and archaeological remains of the first E..

The 8,500sq-ft Arts and Crafts mansion (1905, Irving Gill) was built as the home of local department-store owner George White Marston-benefactor of Presidio Park-and his wife, Anna Gunn Marston. Currently operated by the San Diego Historical Society ..

Three historic ships, two replicas, a submarine and their onboard exhibits form the core of a museum dedicated to the city's maritime history. The highlight of the collection is the Star of India. Launched as the British full-rigged ship Euterpe on N..

California's first mission, with its gleaming white stucco façade and distinctive five-bell campanario, occupies a secluded site on the north slope of the San Diego River valley. The Mother of the Missions was named for St. Didacus of Alcalá, a 15C S..

This folk art museum occupies six galleries on two levels of a building known since 1934 as the House of Charm. Mingei, a term by scholar Soetsu Yanagi, combines the Japanese words for people (min) and art (gei). Changing exhibits of traditional and ..

The collection here totals more than 12,000 objects, with particular strengths in Renaissance, Baroque, Asian and American art. It's housed in a 1926 building in Balboa Park. The elaborate Plateresque facade of the building was inspired by the entry ..

Expanded fourfold in 2000, this museum has reinvented itself with vast exhibition galleries, a 228-seat theater, and a learning center with a photo library. The permanent collection of 4,000 19C-20C works features Ansel Adams, Edward Weston, Margaret..