Private Customizable Iconic City Highlights Tour - Cultural, Historic, Shuttled

San Diego, US
100% of travellers recommend this
Excellent (6 reviews)

Highlights

  • Explore the cultural heartbeat of Balboa Park
  • Discover the vibrant history of the Gaslamp Quarter
  • Experience the essentials of downtown San Diego
  • Travel back in time to Old Town San Diego
  • Learn about the rich Spanish and Mexican heritage

Meeting Point

Meet by the backside of the big fountain facing Columbia Street by the Little Italy Food Hall in the Piazza della Famiglia. Please call, text or What'sapp Julie if you are going to be late or cannot find it.

Meeting point

523 W Date St, San Diego, CA 92101 , United States

End point

End Point

Meet by the backside of the big fountain facing Columbia Street by the Little Italy Food Hall in the Piazza della Famiglia. Please call, text or What'sapp Julie if you are going to be late or cannot find it.

Meeting point

523 W Date St, San Diego, CA 92101 , United States

End point

What to expect

1

Balboa Park

BALBOA PARK is the cultural heartbeat of our city; you will fall in love with the country’s largest urban cultural park and be dazzled discovering its origins as you take in its incredible vegetation, gorgeous flowers and ornate architecture. TOUR TIDBITS: One of San Diego's biggest tourist destinations contains a tranquil garden purposely landscaped to attract countless beautiful butterflies. But this garden was not always so tranquil! Over the years it has served as a dance hall, a mining camp, and stagecoach station. And, at one point, it was surrounded by a big redwood fence with a few strategically placed holes that visitors could peek through to spy on… a nudist colony!

Duration 90 minutes
2

Gaslamp Quarter

TOUR TIDBITS: In the 1980s, when the city of San Diego was reinventing its downtown area—now known as "The Gaslamp Quarter"—they made plans and even produced signs with the original name for this soon-to-be resurrected historic district. (The original name was actually not "The Gaslamp Quarter.”) The original name caused a huge public outcry, and the city ended up renaming it "The Gaslamp Quarter." On the tour, you'll find out what the original name was, why they changed it, and you'll see the beautifully renovated architectural details from the Victorian era when gas lamps lit this historic district.

Duration 15 minutes
3

San Diego

DOWNTOWN SAN DIEGO: Explore these San Diego Downtown essentials: scenic San Diego Bay’s Embarcadero waterfront, the famous and vibrant Gaslamp Quarter, hip and historic Little Italy, and Petco Park.

Duration 45 minutes
4

Old Town San Diego

OLD TOWN: Take a trip into the past and learn about our rich Spanish and Mexican heritage and why we are the “Birthplace of California.” Experience our original city—colorful and festive now, but find out why it wasn’t always that way. TOUR TIDBITS: For entertainment, early settlers in San Diego would tie the leg of a bull to the leg of a grizzly bear (which they would hunt down in our local mountains) and then let them fight. Find out where these brawls took place, and see the beautiful buildings surrounding this historic landmark. And if we’re lucky, you’ll feel like you were there in the early days if we happen to catch some artisans in period dress, folkloric dancers or Mariachis!

Duration 45 minutes

Additional Information

  • Additional information
    Public transportation options are available nearby
  • Additional information
    Not recommended for participants with poor cardiovascular health
  • Additional information
    Suitable for all physical fitness levels
  • Additional information
    If you have a child in your party under 8 years old, you must bring your own child car seat or booster seat, depending on their age. It is NOT okay for the child to sit on your lap.
  • Additional information
    You will be shuttled in a midsize car. If there are 4 adults in your party this might be uncomfortable since 3 sit in the back.
  • Additional information
    On this tour we do mini walking tours around Balboa Park and Old Town which total approx. 1-2 miles. We can limit the walking if you have any mobility issues - just let us know and we will adjust the itinerary.
Provided by San Diego Private Tours - Journeys with Julie

What our experts say

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    Visit nearby Little Italy for lunch.
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    Bring your camera for great photos!
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    Wear comfortable shoes for walking.
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    Adjust the itinerary based on mobility.

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