Balboa Park
Categories: Venues & Event Spaces, Parks [Edit]
Neighborhood: Balboa Park1549 El Prado
(between Plaza De Panama & Village Pl)
San Diego, CA 92101 (619) 239-0512
- Good for Kids: Yes
86 Reviews for Balboa Park
On our trip last summer to San Diego we spent several days here. It's a great, inexpensive place to hang out, especially for families with young children. My hubby loved the auto museum, my son loved the science museum and special area for toddlers called Kid City. There were outdoor concerts and kid's shows all over the place, great food and atmosphere at the Prado. It is full of museums, and close to the zoo. It's beautiful, and the weather tends to be great. It's perfect for the toddler set. I wish that Golden Gate Park offered so much.
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Hands down one of my top 10 favorite places to spend a day at in San Diego. There's so much to do, so much to see, and every weekend finds something new. Some of my favorite things/moments in Balboa Park:
1. People watching
2. Stringing a hammock between two trees and relaxing the day away with your BF (yes, you get stared at, but they're all just jealous they didn't think of it first...)
3. Taking a stroll with friends in the evening and happening upon members of some astronomy club giving free views of Saturn through their telescopes (AWESOME)
4. The fountain
5. Playing bocce with friends
6. Picnics
7. The Artist's Village
8. Counting the number of wedding parties/quincinera parties in the park in one day
9. Free concerts, free movies, free museum days
10. The fact that I've been there HOW many times and still haven't seen the entire park. Sweet.
Chris Butler's favorite place to pratice volleyball and drop f-bombs: http://www.10news.com/...
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This park is so beautiful! There was everything here - theatre, amphitheatre, trails, old beautiful buildings, gardens, lush grass. If I weren't in such a rush, I could've stayed here forever laying on one of the grassy knolls.
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I visiting again this year and visited:
Air and Space Museum-Star Trek Exhibit, $24 http://www.balboapark....
International Pacific Relations Cottages-Free, only open Sunday 1-4, some of the places give out snacks.
Timken Art Museum-Free http://www.balboapark....
San Diego Museum of Art-Georgia O"keefe exhibit, $10 http://www.sdmart.org/
Botanical Building-Free http://www.sandiegohis...
Rose Garden-Free http://www.sandiego.go...
Had 5 hours before my flight home and spent is leisurely at the Balboa Park. People come to picnic, sit and lounge chairs, go to the dog park, play volley ball. Great place.
Love the free red Tram, needed it with all the walking in the museums
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1 Previous Review: Show all »
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08/07/2006
I enjoyed Balboa Park, I only got to do a quick bus tour a few years ago and promised to come back,… Read more »
I love running through this park! One time I saw a homeless guy with some brand new safety orange colored New Balance running kicks with a LAPTOP plugged into the side of the Space Museum(?) totally taking advantage of the free wi-fi!
I remember going to Balboa Park and the zoo all the time as a kid - and I never got tired of it! As an adult (and the result of all our moving) I came back to California only once and stayed for about 2 1/2 years. Unfortunately, I only went through the park once during that tenure since we were living quite a bit of ways from SD. But I took advantage of it as much as I could while I was here for that afternoon. Very peaceful and extremely beautiful!
Nothing is more relaxing after a long day at work than a walk through Balboa Park. I also jog here some mornings, and it's a great escape and antidote to stress. The beauty of the trees and landscape brings you to peace, and the magnificent architecture along Prado makes you feel lucky to live in San Diego (if you do).
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I just love being at Balboa Park. I work close by, and the only thing that keeps me sane is walking through the park on my lunch break. I've got my iPod, and I'm good to go. The arcitechture is amazing, the museums always have good exhibits. It's definately one of the best ways to kill a day in San Diego.
I love Balboa Park.
During Christmas, they have really cool themes called the "December Nights." I like going there at night. Good for long walks. The museums are cool, if you like art. Picnics are cool, too. Lots of water fountains, the food is ridiculiously priced. It's nice to be here on 4th of July. Just a peaceful place to BE at, though some people do come here to smoke and do drugs.
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My boyfriend took me here on our first date and it was the start of the sweetest day ever. The museums are interesting and gardens are beautiful. The random entertainment was enjoyable. Tons of photo opts. We haven't gotten a chance to visit the international section because it's only open once a week (i forgot which day) but we heard it's educational.
Lots of people take their wedding photos here as well. My cousin Ha N. included :o)
Balboa Park will always have a special place in my heart :o)
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It's like our version of New York's Central Park, except, smaller and far fewer bodies are buried here (I think). Recommendation: Tuesdays! Free museums. And even if its not Tuesday, you can get a ton of free entertainment watching the local crazies, homeless and street "performers" along with the awkward tethers some mothers put on their children (that's not your DOG lady!) ironically enough these same mothers carry their dogs in a purse (WTF). Go at night to see even more crazier action, drug deals, pimp slaps and weed smoking! In all seriousness, Balboa Park is one of my favorite places in San Diego to get away from everything, and everyone. Lay in the grass or watch the fountains (and the children playing in them not noticing that water should not be that color). Fun TIMES!
I really like this place. There's a lot to see. If you're broke, you can come here and just view the building's structure, see the fountain, walk around, look at the garden, and plenty more. If you're willing to spend a little bit of cash, you can see the exhibits, aeronautical museum, photo museum, and plenty other stuff. It's a real experience here. Lots of history, culture, and if you're into that stuff, then this will absolutely be a fun place to go to.
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A really pleasant place to spend an afternoon walking around, enjoying other people, taking pictures, holding hands or whatever. Plus I love the frolf course on the far side of the park. A+++ Would Go Again.
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For this expert frolicker, I must tell you that this is one of the best place for frolicking. There is lots of lush vivid grass, benches, a dog park, pretty fountains to skip around, and museums galore! I feel that a large part of San Deezy's spirit lies here in this park. Go out there any evening of the week and I swear theres something dare I say it, yes yes I do- MAGICAL about the place. I love walking, running and most importantl FROLICKING through our park! :) YEAH!
Quite possibly the best park I've ever been to. It's HUGE! And full of interesting museums, many of which have certain free days that poor broke college students like me could take advantage of and take all their international student friends to as one of the best tourist destinations in San Diego. There's also always something going on here...like magic shows, live musical performers, etc.
If you're a photographer...photo opps galoer here. =)
Highlight of one of the days I went here was that we saw a stunningly black Lamborghini and a shimmering white Hummer limousine. You can only imagine how excited my two guy friends from New Zealand were when they saw such luxurious cars in San Diego.
I love Balboa Park.
It is very pretty and the setting is very relaxing!
The architecture is beautiful, definitely need to see Balboa Park if you are visiting San Diego or you live here.
I never thought any park compared to Golden Gate Park....Balboa Park comes close though.
It's green, friendly, big and gorgeous. I could hang out there all day....the museums aren't amazing but they are nice nonetheless.
You can't beat watching hot guys running all over the place. That in itself makes the visit that much more fun.
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Nestled in between a handful of eclectic communities lies the MASSIVE Balboa park. An appropriate mix of nature, architecture, culture, museums, and pure activity are even parts in this cocktail-of-a-park. I've been found there many-a-weekends playing a pick-up game of soccer, jogging, reading on the grass, going to one of their MANY museums, checking out the atrium, and wanting to play in the fountain.
Parking is easy as there is a few massive lots. Don't worry too much how you actually get into the park as you'll never be TOO far away from your destination....and if you are, who cares, you're in a gorgeous park in sunny San Diego. I'm pretty sure the walk will be enjoyable.
More than once I've gone to Balboa park and listened to the organ player at the outdoor stone amphitheater. Read: classy. Another thing that is classy about Balboa park is the fact that their "public" bathrooms are perty darn clean. I was pleasantly surprised. The icing for this place is that they have FREE days for the museums. It's on their website...but take advantage of it! There are always cool things and new exhibits to check out....so explore.
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This makes me wistful of days when the government cared about people. This is a prime spot of land which is huge and designated a public resource for the city and its inhabitants. In many cities this would now be a strip mall. This is the pride of the city, with buetiful architecture and fantastic museums (actually above average museums). The only thing I dont like is this a hole mime which begs for bucks then got pissed that I took his picture. I will figure out how to attach his picture to my profile just to get back at him some way. Go to Balboa park, you will probably see me there.
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I can't even begin to say how much I love Balboa Park.
It's my favorite place in all of San Diego. I love it by day, I love it by night, in the heat, when it rains, when it's crowded and when it's empty. It's fun, interesting, pretty, romantic and regal. You can go to the museum there, see an imax movie, look at pottery, watch a Shakespeare play, see a movie on the lawn, have a wedding, take pictures, stroll around hand in hand, have a picnic, look at the 4th of July fireworks, play soccer, bocce, volleyball or tennis. You can lose some pounds running around. You can take your dog for a stroll. You can shop the world at the UN Cottages. You can head to Spreckles Organ Pavilion, the Prado restaurant, the best Zoo in the world, the botanical gardens or the Japanese garden. But most of all - I love Balboa Park for it's understated elegance. It's larger than Central Park, full of equal pageantry during it's December Nights or on balmy midweek summer afternoons.
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Was in San Diego and decided to stop off at Balboa Park. Balboa Park is a mega park about 5 - 10 minutes away from downtown San Diego with elegant grounds and gardens, 15 museums, and the San Diego Zoo.
The one major plus to Balboa Park is that it's a very beautiful park to walk around. You can easily spend a full day walking around the grounds and taking in all the sites. There are lots of street performers here which just add to the atmosphere. The architecture of the buildings here are beautiful and with the many fountains and gardens here, you can easily get lost here.
But the downfall to Balboa Park is that you need to bring cash and lots of it if you want to visit any of the museums and some of the gardens charge you for admission. Now, I don't mind spending a couple of bucks here and there, but prices seem way high to me. You can get a passport to everything but the zoo for about $40. If you want to do say just 1 item like the Museum of Natural History, that's like $10.
The fiance and I only had enough time to visit one Museum so we chose the Museum of Natural History. On the outside it looks impressive, but looks can be deceiving. While everything inside was nice, just the amount of exhibits that they had here were small. They had a couple of things here and there, it just fell way short of expectations. We did the whole museum and to be honest, I was unimpressed and probably would have rather spent the money on some other Museum.
As to rating, the grounds were beautiful but the Museum of Natural History just fell way short of expectations and left a bad taste in my mouth. As much as I want to rate Balboa Park higher, I just can't. I would definitely come back again and maybe another museum might make up for the the Museum of Natural History, but for now, 3 star rating. Worth the visit, but don't get your hopes up to high.
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I gotta say that it's been years since I've been down to Balboa Park. When I say years, I mean since like elementary school Field Trips.
Perhaps that's why I was so shocked when we decided to go visit the Museums yesterday, and were so disturbed at the un-godly high prices to get in. Of course we didn't pay the $15 per adult, so we decided to walk around and enjoy the day regardless.
I'm keeping this review short for once..... consider it more a rant/rave than anything else. How the hell do they get away with ripping people off like that?!?!?!?! At least at the movies tickets are only $10 and you get to be entertained while there. At a museum you just look at stuff.
So lame!!
Well for what it's worth, the little village where the country homes are was neat to see. We even got our names written in Chinese script to bring home with us, so we can add that to our memory box if nothing else.
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Just wandering around this place if very enjoyable. Minus the architecture and Palm Trees Balboa park reminds me of what 90% of my home state looks like. I also used to cause trouble here with some pirate types. Also a great spot for a first date. Even if you pull off something epic that should be on a chick flick here. She will still get married and not tell you about it. But still try and date you none the less. What floozys they are.
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it's like DUDE, what are you looking for? need a place let your dog run free, or make out with your significant other(s). want to watch people make drug deals, or visit a zoo or a museum (or a thousand museums all at once) ????? Everything is available here at Balboa, the best urban park in the nation!!!!
Just got back from a run through Balboa Park and I just realized how lucky I am to live so near such a beautiful place. While listening to some Bad Religion (A Walk was suiting for this jaunt) I smiled and waved to my fellow joggers while watching the downtown landscape go by. I also love the photographic arts museum and the museum of man is a classic.
I also want to thank Balboa Park for making my 17th birthday a memorable one. It involved 12 hand crafted joints, a palm reader with 3 fingers, a free entrance into the space museum because the teller thought I was cute and a drunk Mexican couple who felt the need to give me 100 bucks because it was my birthday. Thanks again!
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This park is great for just about any age and group size. I'll touch on the highlights that I personally have experienced:
1. The Organ Pavillion: Last summer, I came here for a Laurel and Hardy series where a live organist played along with Laurel and Hardy sketches. My husband and I came along with another couple and we packed chocolate cake, some coffee spiked with Grand Marnier, and fresh berries and sat back to enjoy the show. The weather was heavenly, and surprisingly, the production was actually very entertaining.
2. Museums: The museums have a variety of different exhibits. Find one that peaks your interest and it'll be sure to please. I've personally found any exhibit I've experienced to be both informative and entertaining. This is one of my favorites: http://www.yelp.com/bi...
3. Japanese Friendship Garden: Beautiful, charming garden. I saw their bonsai collection which was incredible. Miniature fruit trees and deciduous trees were such entertaining oddities.
4. Botanical Garden: This structure sits like a delicate bird cage at the end of a reflecting pool which holds blooming lilies. I've had the pleasure of hitting this spot up one day when they were having their amazing orchid exhibition.
5. The Prado: I've had some really great meals here. If you're looking for a light meal, I recommend their salads, and their calamari. Great place to have a glass of wine or cold beer on a warm day especially out on their beautiful garden patio.
6. Ruben H. Fleet Science Center: I'm not the biggest fan of this theater. It's been a few years since I've seen a movie in one of their theaters, but from what I remember, their I-MAX was very disappointing. The "screen" was all segmented with honeycomb shaped panels which distracted from the images. The children's exhibits are probably fine for kids, but a bit lackluster to me.
As you can tell, there's a huge variety of activities you can entertain yourself with. It's a great place to walk or jog, it's a great spot for a picnic and they allow alcohol on the premises. Highly recommended for tourists and locals.
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Balboa Park is a true gem. The fact that a major U.S. city was designed in such a way to have a park that rivals the size of the entire downtown area, located adjacent to downtown, is very cool in my book. (and yes I know Griffith Park in LA is even larger, and is adjacent to downtown...but it's mostly mountain areas that are inaccessible to pedestrians)
Parking is plentiful along the quiet access roads that meander through the park. If you walk across the bridge over the Escondido Freeway you'll not only get a tremendous view, but easy access to all the cultural museums, historic buildings, and most significantly The San Diego Zoo.
Other cool features are a Japanese Garden, an off-leash dog park, lawn bowling courts, as well as ample pathways for hiking and jogging.
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One of my very favorite Parks in All of San Diego...
Love this Place-- and my dogs love this too! We walk here at least about once a week-- and totally enjoy the beauty of the lovely trees, the fresh cut grass, the historic buildings and museums, and all of the charm that the Prado holds.
They host a FREE Tuesday event for Museums--where each week you can go through and tour a couple of museums without paying a fee to do so.
Fabulous place to enjoy a jog, walk with the dogs, and to get some great exercise in.
Nate's point is a wonderful dog park-- fenced in completely on all sides with a water fountain and 2 picnic tables.
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The Parking is one of the "poops"-- of course.
Be careful not to park in spots on the street the days that they will be doing park maintenance. They post signs-- and make sure that you are not parked in a zone where they will tow your car for a public event or marathon. You wouldn't want to walk out and see that your car was missing!
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This place is one of my favorite running areas in San Diego. Constant beautiful scenery, from the architecture of the early 20th century buildings housing the many museums, to the nighttime free summer concerts in the organ pavilion, to the varied and diverse crowd that you will find throughout.
There are always many events going on here throughout the year, especially races and festivals. And watch out for at least 10 married couples getting their wedding photos taken throughout the park on any given weekend, more so in the summer.
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Great place to visit a beautiful spot in SD with multiple museums that gives you a great learning experience within 7 days if you get the passport which is $40. There are variety of museums such as the San Diego History, Automotive, Photographic Arts, Air & Space (my favorite), Railroad, Museum of Man. Special exhibits cost additional fees.
The Japanese Friendship Garden is a nice, cozy garden that seems to be popular for wedding ceremonies as well. I noticed that the Prado Restaurant books several wedding receptions. Even if you don't want to go to all the places, you can pay each one individually & just enjoy the beautiful scenery & walk.
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This is my 200th review. I thought long and hard about what I should choose for this milestone review and I thought that reviewing Balboa Park would be perfect since it is my favorite part of San Diego.
I have been going here since I was wee. I remember rolling down hills as a young girl when my dad was at the hospital across the street. When I started coming back here as a teenager, it was all about the Ruben H. Fleet during the day. At night it was all about the somewhat hidden Alcazar Garden where there is a bench that could tell many stories about me and my friend's Friday nights.
The park hosts numerous events throughout the year. It has something for everyone. Come on a Sunday afternoon for a free concert at the Spreckels Organ Pavilion. After the concert, you can mosey over to the International Houses for some of their hospitality. Or check out the U.N. gift shop for items from around the world. If nightlife is more your speed, check out the Happy Hour at the Prado. If it's a Thursday night, you can head over to the SD Museum of Art until 9pm.
Some of the most underappreciated parts of Balboa Park are the gardens. There's a great garden behind the House of Charm (Mingei Museum). Or you can walk across the bridge near the Ruben H. Fleet and check out the rose and cactus gardens. And the botanical garden is full of treasures. Just walking up to it along the lily pond is amazing.
The more I am away from San Diego, the more I appreciate the uniqueness of Balboa Park. On flights home, I am often asked about the park as we fly over it before landing. After the appropriate ConVis worthy endorsement, I pat myself on the back for my civic pride. And then I remind myself that I need to spend more time in the park. So many more memories to be had.
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Please, does it get better? I'm actually about to take a bike ride down there and I can't wait to see what else I find. Besides San Diego being absolutely beautiful on all other accounts the part puts it over the edge.
Every weekend there is something going on, Shakespeare, earth day, art festivals, weddings, free music. The buildings are gorgeous and look different at all times of the day. The fountain next to the natural museum is great for people watching on a warm day.
Just makes for an amazing day.
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I took my dog Stoli here today. I usually walk the same areas and Stoli seems to enjoy marking his territory everywhere.
One of the things that I like to do is discerning whos local and whos a tourist. Yea I know, too much time on my hands.
I enjoy coming here and its relaxing walking my dog but what isnt fun is going to the bathroom and seeing a homeless dude buck naked cleaning his armpits from the sink.
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Attention: Cheap Loners!
Are you anti-social? Short on cash? I hear ya, buddy; me too. Here's the formula for a perfect San Diego day sans company and cash flow.
Drive to Balboa Park. Park behind the organ pavilion. I swear, there is ALWAYS parking back there. Always. It's magic.
Grab a book. Stop at the coffee cart near The Prado. Go lay in the sun near the reflecting pool/botanic gardens. Sip your latte and read or people watch for a couple of hours. You'll also get a bonus free tan. Score!
Go walk around in the *free* Botanic Gardens for a while. Bring your camera, there are some funky flora in there.
Next, hit up the Museum of Photographic Arts. Quite possibly my favorite museum at the park. There is always something beautiful and thought provoking gracing the walls. Admission is only 6 dollars! What a steal!!!
The Timken Museum is always free. This place has San Diego's only Rembrandt, some pretty cool Russian icons, and a bunch of other European and American paintings. Not the most exciting museum at the park, but the price is right!
Finally, stop in for a mojito at The Prado bar. Nosh on the delicious (and complimentary!) humus and flatbread while you people watch and take in the vibrant decor. Don't forget to gnaw on the rum soaked sugar cane for "dessert." Mmmmm....
There you have it. A perfect San Diego day all by yourself for less than 20 bucks. And that's *including* alcohol!
What are you waiting for? Go! You (and your wallet) can thank me later!
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Balboa Park is the epicenter of San Diego. Everything here is beautiful. The architecture, museums, and different plantlife. There is a Koi pond in front of the Botanical center, where my daughter makes me stare at the fish for at least a half hour before moving on. And while I usually think fish are disgusting, these ones are so tranquil, you can't help but like them. Whenever I need to take a good walk or let Lehlahni run around, this is where we go to do it. She isn't even 3 yet, and knows Balboa Park by name. This is the ultimate place where locals and tourists come together and are equally amazed. Free museums for locals on Tuesdays, check out the schedule on their website (sorry, too lazy to find the link right now). The only thing I don't recommend is the Japanese Garden. they charge an admission to get in ($3 i think, not bad) but there isn't really anything in there that you can't see in the rest of the park. If you have kids, definately go check out the carosel and train at the edge of the park, near the zoo. The carosel is the fastest ever. I love it. The rose garden is gorgeous in bloom, and we always see lizards scurrying around in the cactus garden.
Oh, and if you look at the architecture, naked women are holding the buildings up. Radical.
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This place is awesome. I remember going to Balboa on a field-trip when I was in elementary school, but the trip didn't do balboa any justice. Plus I was a lot younger then and I have a greater appreciation for what Balboa has to offer now.
Every Tuesday, certain museums are free which is always great. The only downside is that it gets really crowded inside the museums when people are vacation.
My favorite museum has to be the San Diego Natural History Museum. That place is awesome! They display fossils found here in San Diego! It's amazing.
Parking can get rough during tourist season, park in one of the farther lots. There is a free tram which makes several stops throughout the park and it comes by every 5 minutes or so to take you back to your car.
Don't forget to bring your camera!
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This place is just beautiful!!
I have been coming here since I was a kid, and I can never get tired of coming here. I love to come to just walk around and bring the camera along to just take photos of all the lovely new things that are out and about.
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True, this is a destination point. True, it's crowded with the usual mass of tourists in Hawaiian shirts and khaki shorts, snapping pictures whilst screaming children drag in tow. No matter. It's a beautiful place to be nonetheless, with numerous paths leading you from one jewel to another. How can I even sum this up? The carousel: a step back in time. The architecture: glorious. The trails: endless. The museums: constant interchange of something new to behold and learn from. The Spanish Village: amazing crafts. Botanical Gardens: a sumptous, cultivated delight. The Tea Pavillion: peace. The Rose gardens: fragrantly charming. The performers: they have their moments. The fountain: (hehe- I can't help but think of Married With Children. Sorry, I digress). The memories of this place hold so much for me. Yeah, I'm a bit maudlin at the moment. It's a bit on the cheesy side, but when you love a place...well... what else can you be but overly sentimental.
If you come to San Diego, it'd be a shame if you let this place slip through your fingers. I'm just sayin'...
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Beautiful!! The gardens are so stunning. There is a feeling of serenity about the place, with lots to see and do. Excellent for museums. But mostly the park is just one of those places that makes you feel like you visited somewhere ancient, like you visited another country when really your in so cal san diego. A must see!
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