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If you're planning a family vacation, head west to southern California and visit San Diego-a paradise for adults and children, alike with year-round warm, sunny weather, superb beaches, and terrific attractions for everyone from toddlers to teens and their parents and grandparents. No wonder it's been a vacation destination for our family for more than 35 years. If you're not arriving by car, you'll need to rent one as some of your must-see destinations are not easily accessible by public transportation. Even though the daytime weather is usually warm (daytime temperatures hover around 70°F year-round), you will definitely need jackets or sweaters for the cooler evenings which can dip down into the 60s, and into the 40s during the winter.
Nearly every major and not so major hotel chain has a location in the San Diego area, so finding something within your budget won't be a problem. If budget is not a big concern, I can highly recommend Hotel Del on Coronado Island, a National Historic Landmark that has 112 years of history and a special department in charge of kids' activities. We've stayed there several times, and while we took the afternoon off after a busy morning of exploring kid-friendly attractions, our children could enjoy supervised sand castle building, tide pool education, beach games, swimming, arts and crafts, and stories. For the teens, there's even kayaking and surfing lessons, sailing clinics, kite construction and flying as well as a "Radical Reptiles and Friends" program. You can see more pictures and make your reservations online at www.hoteldel.com.
 
Here are the San Diego must-sees that will excite and delight you and your children:
- Probably the most well-recognized attraction is the San Diego Zoo-truly a zoo of zoos set in a 100-acre tropical garden with 3,900 animals of 800 species that is also noted for its many rare and exotic animals such as giant pandas and their baby cub on loan from China. Setting the standards for other city zoos, the San Diego Zoo had spectacular natural habitats such as a Rain Forest Aviary, Polar Bear Plunge, Hippo Beach, Gorilla Tropics, Tiger River, and Sun Bear Forest. Seeing the entire zoo with children in tow is next to impossible, but you can take a three-mile guided bus tour which takes you through all the major areas. This will give you a good idea as to where you want to head next such as the children's petting zoo where rabbits, guinea pigs, sheep, and goats are all waiting to be cuddled. Everything is this area has been scaled down in size, even the rest rooms. Be sure to allow time to visit the gift shops at the zoo's entrance. They offer an extensive stock of educational kits, wildlife T-shirts, and crafts from around the world.
- Just 32 miles north is the Wild Animal Park. First see the sights at Nairobi Village, then take the guided monorail tour past 3,000 animals which are free to roam over the 200-acre preserve as they would in their native habitats of Africa and Asia. The 1.75-mile Kilimanjaro Hiking Trail will take you through a variety of lush botanical gardens and past the homes of elephants, cheetahs, lions, gorillas, and many other species. Be sure to save time for the park's newest exhibit, Condor Ridge. Here you can meander along mountain trails and see many of North America's most critically-endangered species, including California condors, back-footed ferrets, thick-billed parrots, burrowing owls, Harris hawks, and the desert big horn sheep.
- On another day, plan to spend at least several hours, if not a full day, at Sea World located on Mission Bay. This 150-acre marine park features five major shows such as the Otter and Walrus Show, the Bird Show, and the Whale and Dolphin Show (if you sit too close, you're sure to be splashed), as well as dozens of fascinating exhibits of marine life from around the world, including Shark Encounter, Penguin Encounter, and Manatee Rescue. The newest attraction is 4-D movie Pirates, which is a surprise-filled funny show about a hapless pirate ship crew and its wacky captain. The 4th dimension offers special effects that will fascinate the whole family such as sprays of water, blasts of air, and other wild surprises. In other areas of the park, your children can pet dolphins, touch and feed bat rays, pick up a starfish, and view the largest waterfowl collection in the U.S.
- Remember Lego--spending hours playing with it as a child and now with your own children? Just 30 minutes north of downtown San Diego in the seaside community of Carlsbad is Legoland, the only family park of its kind in North America. There are six distinctive play areas featured in the 128-acre park-Castle Hill, Fun Town, Imagination Zone, Village Green, Miniland, and the Ridge. Each area has rides, attractions, and opportunities to build, areas to explore, and more than 1,000 Lego models fabricated from 30 million Lego elements.
- Mission Bay is a 4,600-acre aquatic playground devoted to boating, fishing, water skiing, swimming, wind surfing, and public recreation. There are 27 miles of sun-bleached beaches with six designated areas for swimming. There's also vast grass areas for playing Frisbee, kite flying, or family picnics.
- One of the best ways to see San Diego Bay is by water. Scheduled tours are offered daily with a narrator who can identify all those Navy boats as well as the jets and helicopters zipping overhead. It'll be windy (even chilly) out on the water, but it's a great way to see how the city converges with the sea.
- Seaport Village is always fun and a great place for dining and shopping. Located on 14 acres along the Embarcadero, Seaport Village has 60 theme shops, 4 bay-front restaurants, and 13 theme cafes. Children can ride an antique carousel and everyone can shop for San Diego momentoes.
- Downtown attractions include Gaslamp Quarter, a 16 1/2 block historic district which recreates the spirit of Victorian times with its restored buildings that house antiques, crafts, art galleries, restaurants, and shops. This is where The Children's Museum, Museo de los Ninos of San Diego, is located. An interactive museum, it's geared for families with children ages 2 to 12. Also plan to visit Old Town, the first European settlement in California, where San Diego began. Old adobes and other historic structures blend with restaurants and charming shops that capture the rich heritage of San Diego.
- San Diego's Spanish heritage is preserved in its beautiful missions. The first mission in California, Mission San Diego de Alcala, still holds daily services in the original mission chapel. Mission San Luis Rey de Francia is in nearby Oceanside, and two other missions-Mission San Antonia de Pala near Mt. Palomar, and Mission Santa Ysabel, near Julian-still serve as places of worship for nearby Indians.
- Fifteen minutes north of downtown is La Jolla, a "must-see" small beach town which is world-renowned for its resort shops, breath-taking beaches, and spectacular hillside homes. Just further north are Torrey Pines State Park and Del Mar, noted for its Del Mar Thoroughbred Club known for horse racing at its finest.
- Any extended visit to San Diego should include an excursion across the Mexican border to Tijuana, the most visited border city in the world. Here you'll find bargains for leather goods, glassware, jewelry, and pottery. The jai alai games provide a special excitement for everyone. If you are not a citizen of the U.S., you will need your passport and a multiple entry visa or a visa waiver to visit Mexico. To re-enter the United States, U.S. adult citizens will need a birth certificate, voter registration card, military I.D., or U.S. passport. U.S. adult resident aliens must carry their green cards for re-entry. If driving into Mexico, purchase Mexican auto insurance on the USA side of the border. We usually opted to ride the trolley that goes throughout much of the San Diego area and stops at the border. We then walked across the border.
So that you can truly relax, unwind, and enjoy San Diego to its fullest with your children, be sure that anyone with diabetes has packed twice the amount of insulin or oral medications and glucose testing supplies that will be needed for the duration, carries carbo snacks at all times or to counter-act any possible delay in eating times or episodes of low blood sugar, as well as identification that shows they have diabetes along with a list of your medications. Be sure everyone has good walking shoes. It's always a good idea to discuss any trip with your doctor or health care team before you leave.
When visiting the attractions, dress your children in bright clothing and designate a meeting site for lost family members. Remember that in California, kids 4 years and under or weighing 40 pounds or less must be in an approved safety seat (you can get one with your car rental) and everyone else must at all times be wearing their safety belt. Curfew in San Diego is 10 p.m. and is strictly enforced for people under 18 years of age.
For further information on San Diego, you can visit www.sandiego.org. Once you've visited beautiful San Diego, I'm sure you agree with the readers of Family Fun Magazine, who voted San Diego as the "coolest city" in 2000, besting the 1999 winner, San Francisco, and such strong contenders as Honolulu, San Diego, and Denver. Enjoy your trip!
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