In southern California, just over the Mexican border, San Diego is a charming coastal city. The weather is mild all year long with plenty of great beach days. The city is urban sprawl mixed with natural landscape. It’s a city defined by hills, mesas, canyons, and water. The San Diego River splits the city. And you’ll need a car here because the city began on the hills and mesas leaving gaps and canyons in between the best destinations.

The distance between the mesas and hills allowed the city to break up into a variety of diverse neighborhoods. San Diego State University is the heart of the College Area, which is known for inexpensive restaurants and many canyons. Ocean Beach is an almost-town neighborhood on the beach. Each one has its one feeling or niche. The only way to find out which one suits you best is to explore them.

A city can’t get much more kid friendly than San Diego. Days at the beach are easy to plan the weather tends to cooperate, too. Boardwalks line the beach plying your senses with brightly colored t-shirts and towels, the smell of French fries, the sound of arcade games and the taste of saltwater taffy.

You could spend a day (or more) in Balboa Park wandering the trails and exploring the gardens. Balboa is also the location of the San Diego Zoo. The zoo is home to over 4,000 species many of them endangered. San Diego is one of the few American zoos where you will see the Giant Panda. There’s even a special children’s zoo where kids can pet sheep and see baby animals.

SeaWorld San Diego is a hit with kids, too. The famous whale Shamu resides here and performs in the show “Believe.” There are also several marine environment exhibits where you can see manatees, penguins, sharks, polar bears and other animals.

Despite a long-standing reputation as a politically conservative city, San Diego is very gay friendly. People are willing to be out here and many of them are military people (even though San Diego’s reputation as a conservative town comes in part from being a military town).

Hillcrest is the heart of the gay community in San Diego. Filled with fun clothing shops, cafes, and some of the best food in San Diego, you’ll be able to spend all day here. There’s plenty of nightlife, too. Wine bars are popular and numerous. For something a bit more offbeat, check out gay cowboy nights at Urban Mo’s.

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