Seaport Village

One of downtown's many places to stop for a snack and walk along the harbor.
Seaport Village was built on landfill over Punta de los Muertos (Spanish for Point of the Dead), where the Spanish expedition of 1782 buried those who had died of scurvy. In later years it was a railroad yard where goods and other materials used to come through the area. The famous USS Midway turned into a museum is located few yards away.

Nearby Attractions

See all attractions in San Diego
Gaslamp Quarter
Historical neighborhood in San Diego downtown. Many different architectural buildings to discover.
Balboa Park
Beautiful park in the heart of the city. Home to many museums and the world-famous San Diego Zoo.
U.S. Grant Hotel
The U.S. Grant Hotel is a historic hotel in downtown San Diego. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Santa Fe Depot
Over a century old, the Santa Fe Depot's Spanish Colonial Revivalist style has landed this operational train station on the National Register of Historic Places.
USS Midway
This US Navy aircraft carrier was commissioned in 1945, served the entire length of the Cold War, and was decommissioned in 1992. It is now a popular museum.
Little Italy neighbourhood
Known as a chic neighbourhood full of restaurants, shops and beautiful views of the bay.

Related Tours

San Diego in a Day: Private Full-Day Highlights Driving Tour
Explore the best of San Diego in a day, with its spectacular Spanish colonial architecture, rich Mexican heritage, and seventy miles of coastline with a private guide on this full-day driving tour where you will have the opportunity to see its most popular highlights and stop at your favourite spots.


On your private tour, you will:

  • Enjoy hotel pick-up to start your tour with your professional driver guide;
  • Cruise through some of the city's most iconic landmarks and natural wonders;
  • Visit stunning La Jolla Cove, marvel at the crystal-clear waters and stunning coastal cliffs, and appreciate marine life and the bay;
  • Snap a memorable photo at Soledad Mountain with breathtaking views of downtown San Diego, Tijuana, Mexico and Mission Bay;
  • Walk around San Diego Old Town, a historic neighbourhood that gives a glimpse into San Diego's rich past including the Spanish Mission;
  • Explore Balboa Park, San Diego’s World Fair location, and visit the Botanic Garden and see the several great museums and Rose Gardens;
  • See Cabrillo National Monument, stand at the westernmost point of the continental United States and enjoy stunning views of Downtown San Diego, Coronado Island and Tijuana Beach; 
  • Enjoy a walk around the waterfront, with a photo stop at the famous USS Midway, an iconic aircraft carrier that now serves as a museum;
  • Discover the Gaslamp Quarter and soak up the energy of this vibrant neighbourhood.

On this fascinating in-depth Private Full-Day San Diego Highlights tour, you will discover much about California’s second-largest city, from its ‘discovery’ by Rodriguez Cabrillo in 1542, to the indigenous Kumeyaay peoples who occupied the area 12,000 years prior to European arrival. 

Learn about the settlement of San Dieguito and the cultural, socio-political and historical developments that powered it to a city of a population of 1.4 million. With a deeply embedded Mexican heritage, the legacy of San Diego’s place in the Mexican Empire from 1821 is a fascinating story. 

An Italian community, established in Waterfront Park in the early 19th century, has also shaped the culture of the city. See for yourself why San Diego - or Sandie as the locals call it - is dubbed America’s Finest City.

On the San Diego Private Half-Day Highlights tour, you will visit several of the city’s major historical sites –including Cabrillo National Monument and Balboa Park, quaint neighbourhoods, and Coronado Island - a picturesque peninsula blessed by gorgeous beaches, tidal pools, and coves. 

Soak up the buzz of the Gaslamp Quarter, the architecture of Old Town, and the sprawling green space of Balboa Park. San Diego offers plenty of mouth-watering options for lunch, from delicious fish tacos to homemade pasta, and your guide will happily direct you to their favourites in Old Town. 

Visit a local beach, enjoy a laid-back hippy vibe and browse artisan trinkets before returning to explore the Gaslamp Quarter. At the end of the tour, your guide will drop you off back at your hotel or somewhere central of your choosing. 

Please note that the Botanical Garden in Balboa Park is closed for major renovation until the end of 2024.
The Best of San Diego: Private Walking Tour including USS Midway
Discover the history and culture of San Diego, known as "America's finest city", the second-largest in California with a population of around 1.4 million people. With a warm beautiful weather all year round, world-famous attractions and an interesting culinary scene, San Diego is a great destination for those who want to learn more about its culture, diversity or engage in outdoor activities.

On your private walking tour of San Diego, you will:

  • Discover the Santa Fe Depot, a historic train station in stunning Revival style architecture, built for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition which celebrated the opening of the Panama Canal;
  • Pass by the Contemporary Art Museum, which rotates exhibitions from around the world, as well as a permanent collection of works by regional artists;
  • See the century-old US Grant Hotel, a historic luxury hotel built in 1910 that boasts stunning Beaux-Arts architecture with a rich Prohibition-era speakeasy history;
  • Walk past the Balboa Theatre, a venue listed on the National Register of Historic Places;
  • Relish the buzz of the Gaslamp Quarter where a lively string of eateries, cafés and bars beg exploration;
  • See the home of the MLB’s San Diego Padres, Petco Park from the outside;
  • Explore Seaport Village and enjoy beautiful views of San Diego Bay;
  • Snap a photo at the Unconditional Surrender Statue, the famous statue featuring a sailor kissing a nurse which marked the end of WWII;
  • End your tour at the USS Midway for a self-guided tour where you will enjoy interactive experiences that tell the history of the ship and its crew.

On your tour, you will see several of the city’s highlights, including the Santa Fe Depot, an elegant railroad station built for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition. 

Renowned for its soaring towers and tiled domes, this reminder of California's Spanish heritage reflects the resplendent Colonial Revival architectural style. Natural redwood beam ceilings hung with bronze chandeliers and plenty of natural light characterise the interior. 

You will also visit one of the city’s most elegant hotels – The US Grant Hotel, a building of Art Deco glamour that has welcomed guests for over 100 years. Famed as a Prohibition-era speakeasy, the lobby is adorned with Empire-era furnishings that reflect the style of Ulysses S. Grant Jr., who built the 11-story hotel in 1910 to honour his father, the nation’s 18th president. 

Visit the Gaslamp Quarter, where a buzzing collection of tequila bars, taco restaurants and funk boutiques forms the urban playground of the city. Next, pass by Petco Park, the sporting home of the San Diego Padres, and see Seaport – a picturesque century-old harbour-side. 

Your private guided tour ends at the USS Midway Museum, where you will part ways with your guide to begin your self-guided audio discovery of the life of an enlisted sailor on this former US Navy aircraft carrier. 
Discover San Diego's Beaches: Private Driving Tour
With 266 days of golden sunshine a year, San Diego has bright skies and a mild climate benefit with gentle ocean breezes mitigating the heat. 

On your private driving tour of San Diego’s beaches, you will:

  • Enjoy hotel pick-up and drop-off from your private driver-guide at any centrally located San Diego hotel;
  • Begin your day at La Jolla Cove, where you will see active marine life;
  • Enjoy spectacular views from Soledad Mountain, from which you can see Mission Bay, downtown, and Tijuana Beach;
  • Visit Pacific and Ocean beaches, where you will begin to see how each beach town has its own communal vibe;
  • Enjoy breathtaking scenery at Sunset Cliffs Natural Park;
  • Venture to Coronado Island, where you will take a stroll, and even see the famed and haunted Hotel Del;
  • Enjoy a lunch stop at any number of local places recommended by your guide (price not included in the tour);
  • Finish your tour with a stroll around scenic Seaport Village, where you will be able to see the US Navy hard at work and see how large an aircraft carrier is from the port. 
Stretching from Oceanside to the Mexican border and from the beach east into Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and the Cleveland National Forest, San Diego’s 70 miles of picturesque coastline boasts 33 gorgeous sandy beaches. Rugged bays and tide pools teem with barnacles, crabs and sea urchins and are home to seals and sea lions, while dolphins, whales and turtles can be spotted in open water. 

Each beach has its own distinct Southern California beach culture, from skaters on boardwalks to palm-hemmed secluded sands and laid-back hang-outs where surfers rule the waves. Your Private Tour of the San Diego Coast and Beaches takes you straight to the finest coastal stretches to discover the heart and soul of the city where, literally, life's a beach. 

Your tour visits Ocean Beach, with its laid-back rhythm. It has a vintage SoCal hippy vibe with surf shops, taco stands, microbreweries and dog-friendly sands. Here, you can enjoy a pit stop at one of the many beachside eateries, or wait until you hit the crashing waves of the Pacific Beach. Serious surfers head to Pacific Beach - or “PB” as the locals call it - for an electric party atmosphere, glowing bonfires and excellent swells. 

Your final stop is La Jolla, a scenic stretch dubbed ‘Paradise by the Sea’ sheltered by a 300-ft rocky bluff that is home to seals, sea lions, numerous seabirds, lush beach flora and a wide sweep of soft honey-coloured sand. 

Along the Point Loma Peninsula’s western shoreline, the 68-acre Sunset Cliffs Natural Park encompasses native coastal scrub, dramatic cliff formations, craggy caves, intertidal lagoons and mesmerizing panoramic ocean views. 

The alabaster-white sands of Coronado Island, home to the haunted Hotel Del Coronado, boasts quintessential San Diego seaside allure, running along Ocean Boulevard and evoking the era of Marilyn Monroe, who famously filmed Some Like It Hot here in 1958. Next Seaport Village where a picturesque century-old harbourside boasts numerous seafood bistros and waterfront cafés.

Please note: Your guide will be happy to drop you off at one of the last beaches on the tour, so feel free to bring your swimsuits and towels to soak up the glorious San Diego sun!
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