24 Hours in San Diego

Morning is the USS Midway, the aircraft carrier museum on the downtown waterfront, before the tour groups build. Walk north along the harbor into Little Italy for lunch on India Street, then east up Laurel Street and over the Cabrillo Bridge into Balboa Park. El Prado, the main promenade, is free; the San Diego Museum of Art is the paid stop.

Late afternoon, ride a bus back downtown to Broadway Pier for the Coronado Ferry, about 15 minutes across the bay, and come back for dinner in the Gaslamp Quarter. The next morning, take the trolley to Old Town, walk the state historic park when it opens at 10 a.m., and ride the free San Diego Flyer shuttle from Old Town Transit Center to the airport. Nothing needs a timed ticket.

Where the plan bends: the art museum is closed on Wednesdays; on a Wednesday, spend the hour in Balboa Park's gardens instead. The ferry runs every 60 minutes, so check the last return sailing on Flagship's schedule before you cross. If you want the zoo, it is in Balboa Park too, but it takes the whole afternoon and replaces the museum and the ferry.

Stay downtown. We read Kayak's cheapest 3-star-or-better double with a guest rating of 8 or more, taxes included, for Friday nights, and kept only downtown neighborhoods; Kayak's own neighborhood filter pulled in hotels as far away as Del Mar, so we did not trust it.

• Cortez Hill and Little Italy: The DEXTRO Little Italy, a 3-star rated 8.3, was the cheapest in January at $161 (£121). It is on the walk to Balboa Park.
• Core-Columbia, by the waterfront: Best Western Downtown San Diego, a 3-star rated 8.5, was $168 (£126) in January and the cheapest in June at $230 (£172), close to the Midway and the ferry.
• Gaslamp Quarter: for the nightlife. Gaslamp Plaza Suites was $181 (£136) in January, and the Hard Rock Hotel was $232 (£174) in June.

Point Loma had cheaper rooms on both dates, but it is outside downtown and needs a car or a bus.

MTS Route 992 stops at both terminals and runs to Santa Fe Depot, about 15 minutes each way, every 15 minutes, 4:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily. The adult fare is $3 (£2.20); tap a contactless card or phone on the validator, or buy a PRONTO card at the airport machines. Rides are capped at a $7 (£5.20) day pass. Going back, catch it at Kettner Boulevard and West Broadway.

The other route is the free San Diego Flyer shuttle between the airport and Old Town Transit Center, every 20 to 30 minutes, which connects to the trolley and the COASTER and Amtrak trains. We found no published taxi fare from SAN to downtown; the airport lists the companies and suggests asking them for a quote. Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner arrives at Santa Fe Depot, the same stop as the airport bus.

San Diego eats Mexican and seafood. Four things to fit in:

• Lunch in Little Italy, on India Street and the blocks around it, a few minutes' walk from the Midway.
• Fish tacos, the city's signature casual food, at the taco shops downtown and in Old Town.
• Dinner in the Gaslamp Quarter, along Fifth Avenue, where downtown's restaurants and bars are concentrated.
• A Mexican breakfast in Old Town, by the state historic park, before the shuttle to the airport.

We do not print restaurant prices that are not published by the restaurants. For cities where food is the main event, see the best food cities for 24 hours.

San Diego is one of the few cities where a long layover reaches the center. Take Route 992 downtown, see the Midway, eat in Little Italy and ride the 992 back from Kettner Boulevard. That is about four hours with the bus rides. Drop Balboa Park and the ferry. With 12 full hours, add Balboa Park and skip only the ferry.

Per person, at the official prices:

• Route 992 in and the trolley to Old Town next day: $6 (£4.50); the Flyer to the airport is free
• USS Midway Museum, adult, online: $39 (£29); $41 (£31) at the door
• San Diego Museum of Art: $25 (£18.70)
• Coronado Ferry, there and back: $18 (£13.50)

That is $88 (£66) before food. With the January hotel the total is about $249 (£187) per room; with the June rate it is about $318 (£238). A couple pays the tickets twice.

From the US, SAN has year-round nonstops from all of our hubs: JFK, Newark, Chicago O'Hare, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, Washington Dulles, Atlanta, Miami and Dallas/Fort Worth, per the airport's route table on Wikipedia. From the UK, British Airways flies from Heathrow all year; there is nothing from Gatwick, Manchester, Edinburgh or Stansted. Pair it with Las Vegas or San Francisco on a longer trip, or see the best US cities for a 24-hour trip.

Entry: British visitors need an approved ESTA. The official ESTA site says the fee has risen again, to $41 (£30); apply only on the government site.

San Diego is mild all year, which is why the January and June hotel prices are closer together here than in most cities. Late spring often starts gray on the coast; fall is usually the clearest season. The page's climate table has the monthly numbers. Families should also look at the best city breaks for families.

Airport to center

15 min from San Diego International Airport: MTS Route 992 bus from both terminals to Santa Fe Depot, downtown, $3 (£2.20)

One night, Friday

$161 (£121) on January 15, 2027 · $230 (£172) on June 11, 2027 (Downtown: January, The DEXTRO Little Italy, BW Premier Collection (Cortez Hill, 3-star, 8.3); June, Best Western Downtown San Diego (Core-Columbia, 3-star, 8.5))

Day ticket

MTS Day Pass, earned automatically through fare capping (PRONTO or contactless card): $7 (£5.20)

24 hours, per person

$111 (£83): half the average room, the airport ride both ways and a day ticket (entries extra)

Nonstop from the US

All 10 of our 10 US hub airports

Nonstop from the UK

LHR

Hotel prices: Cheapest 3-star-or-better double, 1 night (Friday), 2 adults, nightly total including all taxes and fees, guest rating 8+, Kayak (kayak.com, USD); Kayak's neighborhood filter mislabeled areas, so the citywide list was read and limited to the downtown neighborhoods (Gaslamp Quarter, East Village, Core-Columbia, Marina, Little Italy, Cortez Hill), checked 2026-10-21.

Best months for walking around by our weather score: April, May, June. Daytime highs and lows, rain days (1 mm or more) and sunshine hours are 2016–2025 averages for San Diego (Open-Meteo historical weather archive).

USS Midway Museum Admission: Valid Any Date

Viator charges $41; the museum's own site sells adult tickets for $39 online ($41 at the door), so booking direct saves $2. Open 10 am to 5 pm with last entry at 4 pm; simulators and parking cost extra.

2-5 hours

4.9★★★★★★★★★★(2,370 reviews)

Reserve

Rating as shown on Viator

Taste of Little Italy in San Diego

Meets in front of M Winehouse, 1918 India St, and ends at 1731 India St; fees, taxes and tips are included, and the page is unclear about which drinks are.

3.5 hours

5.0★★★★★★★★★★(1,068 reviews)

Reserve

Rating as shown on Viator

Sunset Sail Along the San Diego Skyline

No food is served, but you may bring your own food and drinks; blankets and cushions are on board. Meets at 945 Harbor Island Dr, Gate 1, Docks A-D, a short taxi ride from downtown.

2 hours

4.9★★★★★★★★★★(658 reviews)

Reserve

Rating as shown on Viator

Booking through these links supports this site at no cost to you. Prices move by date, so we do not print them here; the official prices we checked are in the page above.