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About San Diego

Schedule a Visit

We are available to help you reserve hotel and transportation, as well as offer suggestions for activities and restaurants. Many local attractions offer discounted pricing for guests of UC San Diego Health.

Contact
Email cfs@ucsd.edu for more help in coordinating your stay.

San Diego: America's Finest City

With its great weather, miles of sandy beaches, and major attractions, San Diego is known worldwide as one of the best tourist destinations. San Diego is also a location for leading-edge businesses for telecommunications, biotechnology, software, electronics and other major industries.

Here's why San Diego is a great place to live and work:

  • San Diego is renowned for its idyllic climate, 70 miles of pristine beaches and a dazzling array of world-class family attractions. Popular attractions include the world-famous San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park, Sea World San Diego and LEGOLAND California. Balboa Park, the largest urban cultural park in the U.S., is home to 15 museums, numerous art galleries, beautiful gardens, the Tony Award-winning The Globe Theatres and the world-famous San Diego Zoo.
  • The city of San Diego lies in the southwest corner of California, 120 miles (193 km) south of the city of Los Angeles and 20 miles (32 km) north of Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. Elevation ranges from sea level to 1,591 feet.
  • The city's 1.38 million residents make it the eighth largest city in the country and the second largest in California. Yet San Diego has a comfortable, small town atmosphere.
Neighborhood Activities
La Jolla La Jolla is about the Beach, Shopping, Dining Out, and enjoying the varied Cultural Activities of this jewel of a city by the sea.
Seaport Village Come explore 50-plus diverse shops, 17 unique eateries and outdoor entertainment and find everything under the sun.
Gaslamp Sidewalk cafes and open air restaurants, jazz clubs, late night dancing, resident artists distinctive hotels and micro breweries all contribute to the festive spirit of the San Diego Gaslamp Quarter District.
Little Italy A stable ethnic business and residential community, since the 1920′s; Little Italy today represents Downtown San Diego's oldest continuous neighborhood business district. At one time, more than 6,000 Italian families lived in Little Italy and toiled to build San Diego into the center of the world's tuna industry.
Old Town Old Town San Diego is considered the "birthplace" of California. San Diego is the site of the first permanent Spanish settlement in California. It was here in 1769, that Father Junipero Serra came to establish the very first mission in a chain of 21 missions that were to be the cornerstone of California's colonization. Father Serra's mission and Presidio were built on a hillside overlooking what is currently known as Old Town San Diego.
Coronado Although connected to the mainland by a narrow strip of land, Coronado is considered by many to be an island. Perhaps an island offering a different culture and tempo from the city across the bay, San Diego. Home of the famous Hotel Del.
Carlsbad Carlsbad is known for its many antique stores, shops, restaurants, hotels, white sandy beaches, Legoland, and flower fields.
Balboa Park The original park itself was completed in 1910, and named after the Spanish explorer who first saw the Pacific Ocean. It was the 1915 Panama-California Exposition however that truly gave the park its character with the choice of a "Spanish" type of architecture for the Fair buildings. Home to numerous art and culture museums.
Hillcrest Hillcrest is known for its tolerance, diversity, and locally-owned businesses, including restaurants, cafés, bars, clubs, trendy thrift-stores, and other independent specialty stores. Hillcrest has a high population density, compared to many other neighborhoods in San Diego, and it has a large and active lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.

Hotels

The following local hotels offer a discount to our guests. Please ask for the UCSD rate.

Hotel Address Website Features
Sheraton La Jolla 3299 Holiday Court, La Jolla sheratonlajolla.com/ucsd, account code: 368064 Free WiFi and fitness center
Estancia La Jolla 9700 N. Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla estancialajolla.com
Hyatt Regency at Aventine 3777 La Jolla Village Drive, San Diego lajolla.hyatt.com Business Shuttle drops off to places within 5 miles of hotel, Free WiFi, and fitness center.
Hilton Torrey Pines 10950 N. Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla hilton.com Free WiFi and Breakfast
La Jolla Shores Hotel 8110 Camino Del Oro, La Jolla ljshoreshotel.com Shuttle to UCSD
La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club 2000 Spindrift Drive, La Jolla ljbtc.com Shuttle to UCSD
San Diego Marriott La Jolla 4240 La Jolla Village Drive, La Jolla marriott.com Shuttle to UCSD
The Lodge at Torrey Pines 11480 N. Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla lodgetorreypines.com
Residence Inn by Marriott* 8901 Gilman Drive, La Jolla marriott.com* Free WiFi*

*This hotel is located close to the UCSD campus but does not offer a discounted rate for UCSD guests.

For more information, please visit Greater San Diego Chamber of Commerce or the San Diego Convention and Visitor's Bureau.