What is your personal opinions on San Diego, California?

Question

For those who live there, how are the people? What is the night life like? What is there to do? For those who visited San Diego, did you have a fun time on your vacation? Why or why not?

The reason why I'm asking is because my family and I is considering moving there and I just want to know some of your personal opinions on San Diego.

Thnx :)

Answer 1

I love San Diego. The weather is the best in the country, never too cold or too hot and it doesnt rain. It's not dry or too humid. It is very casual and very laid back here, a lot more so than LA or SF. Older business type people walk around in t-shirts, board shorts, and flip flops instead of busines suits or some little Banana Republic outfit, we're not pretentious or concerned with high fashion like SF and LA. The people are very nice and friendly, contrary to some stereotypes people have of southern Californian's. We're not like LA and Orange County as sometimes people try to group San Diego with that area. Most people here are transplants from somewhere else and they just moved to live here and enjoy the place, so the people have a really positive and friendly vibe. You drive around and will notice all the out of state license plates. Most likely you will meet people from wherever you are coming from.

San Diego has great nightlife. Downtown has tons of really nice, upscale bars and trendy clubs. Tons of people there partying on weekends. Pacific Beach also has really good night life with tons of bars and clubs along the main strip. And it's more laid back there, less expensive and no dress codes. Other areas of SD have pretty good nightlife too like Ocean Beach, Hillcrest, and La Jolla.

You can always find something to do year round here. There are always people outside doing things; going to the beach, shopping, tons of areas to hike and explore, sailing or boating, jet skiing, snorkeling, and pretty much any outdoor activity you can think of people are doing. There always seem to be some event going on any given weekend; Del Mar racetrack during summer,tons of street fairs all year long, Padres games, Chargers games, Over the Line Tournament, music festivals like Street Scene, ect.. There also all the normal tourist attractions like the Zoo, SeaWorld, Wild Animal Park, Legoland, ect.. Mexico and TJ are easy little day trips or you can just go for an hour or two. The mountains and deserts are really close by too, 1-2 hrs. LA and Orange County are close by, Las Vegas is about 4.5 hours.

I came here for college six years ago from the SF Bay Area and stayed here after I graduated b/c I loved it so much. Everyone that moves here loves it. It's expensive, but for what you get it's worth it and a much better deal than SF or LA. it's not as expensive as SF or LA and you can live close to the beach for a reasonable price. It's not as crowded or congested as those places either and we're a lot more laid back. If you decide to move here you'll love it, most people do.

Answer 2

San Diego is a great place to live. The weather is wonderful. There's lots of job opportunities. There are many things to do no matter what your interest. The only negative about San Diego is that housing is expensive.

San Diego is a large city but it is spread out. You need to spend some time here and explore the different communites. If you enjoy outdoor activites and beautiful scenery, you will love it.

Answer 3

The rent is unusually high. Downtown area has a huge population of residents with a high percentage of them seniors. The downtown Gaslamp Quarter is almost like the French Quarter in New Orleans. The weather is great. Seaworld is here. The famous San Diego Zoo is here. You can get around fast on the trolley system. The Mexico border is about 30 minutes away. No smoking in bars or restaurants. No smoking at bus or trolley stops.
I've been here since 1996, live downtown and love it.
However, there is also a huge population of homeless in downtown area.
Hope this helps you some.

Answer 4

As a visitor from Washington DC, I love to visit but would not want to live there.

On the plus side, I LOVE the food. Mexican, fresh seafood, reasonable prices. I love Balboa park and the wild animal park, although the Smithsonian in Washington DC is also fabulous and is free, unlike the San Diego attractions. I love the weather, too, although I would miss the change of seasons if I lived there. The airport is small and the commuter terminal could almost be considered easy and intimate. Connections through LA are simple and plentiful.

On the bad side, the worst traffic in DC is not as bad as the traffic in San Diego during rush hour. Housing prices are still high, but not as bad as a they were a couple of years ago.

Answer 5

Go to this link. It was put together by Larry Himmell. who is a journalist for KFMB TV (CBS) in San Diego. It really shows the communities as they are.

http://www.kfmb.com/features/larry_himmel/story.php?id=79260

I lived there for 46 years and just loved it. I moved to Phoenix a month ago and it sure is different here...but like everyone says, San Diego is expensive real estate wise. The rest of the prices are about norm with national standards

Answer 6

I have visited San Diego a couple of different times and I love it! I would move there if I could. I love to go to La Jolla and just sit and look at the ocean. The weather has been beautiful when I have been out there. I've been to the zoo, it's nice. We just drove around alot taking in the scenery.

Answer 7

I visited San Diego several years ago. What I saw was very nice. They city was clean and the parks were vibrant with spring colors. I was just driving around enjoying sights and found a Navy Base. I had to stop and watch! WOW.... I called my mom. "Hey, there's gorgeous men here... just walking around loose!"
I'm sure I was only seeing the tourist spots, which would be attractive. One you live there for a while, I'm sure the perspecive changes.

Answer 8

I've visited there a time or two, learned rents in San Diego increase only half as fast as the rest of the state. Considering all the intangibles, people don't actually pay much if they've chosen the right neighborhood: either Hillcrest or Ocean Beach. Much of the rest of the city is "bedroom community" in the starkest and blood-drained sense of the phrase: television-lit refuge from some airless workspace, temporary comfort till another morning's dash to punch in. Of course the usual conduits for bad information disparage Hillcrest for being "homo" (actually about 30% gay, though you wouldn't know it driving through). OB, last of the sleepy West Coast beach communities, unrivaled among local neighborhoods for green and recreational spaces. The cliché there is "drug-riddled" -- maybe(?) true before motorcycle gangs moved away decades ago. How such misinformation becomes institutionalised, one really has to wonder.

Answer 9

Great city with the downtown and beach communities getting more virbrant and interesting all the time. South San Diego and the northern inland suburbs are cultural wastelands and lose most of San Diego's advantages.

Answer 10

If I could live anywhere in the US, San Diego would be my first choice.

Nice people, good food, great shopping, real estate that holds it's value, and the best year round weather in the country.

I wish it was me asking this question.