Top 10 Free Things To Do and Attractions in Imperial Beach

"Families appreciate the beauty and abundance of recreational opportunities at Balboa Park. This expansive outdoor space includes 17 museums, playgrounds, a swimming pool, and over a dozen different gardens. Many visitors come here to enjoy the Pepper Grove Playground, a large kids' recreation area with slides, swings, a jungle gym, sandbox, playing fields, and picnic tables."

"This 1,400-acre site encompasses historical buildings, numerous museums, gardens, and green space. The park was created for the Panama California Exhibition of 1915-1916, and most of the buildings remain from that event. The predominant architecture is Spanish-style, with low-rise buildings that blend in with the natural surroundings."

"Belmont Park opened for business in 1925 and remains San Diego’s oldest and only beachside amusement park. Things to do at Belmont Park include a ride on the historic Giant Dipper roller coaster, miniature golf, laser tag, arcade games, and a handful of other rides. It’s free to enter and walk through the midway full of pay-to-play carnival games and you can also grab a Dole Whip, giant ice cream cone, hot dog or other quick-service treats."

"Belmont Park is an amusement park and entertainment center located along Mission Beach. The historic Giant Dipper roller coaster has been around for over 95 years, and there are many other classic rides to enjoy, such as bumper cars and a carousel. Get a hole-in-one at the tiki miniature golf course or battle against your enemies in the Tron-themed laser tag experience."

"San Diego’s answer to the east coast’s Coney Island, Belmont Park is one of the main attractions at Mission Beach, which sits north of Ocean Beach. Get your stomach rollercoaster-ready or if you’re still feeling the heat of your Ocean Beach tacos, just take a nice long stroll along the Boardwalk."

"This park has an excellent history museum in the Robinson-Rose House at the southern end of the plaza. You’ll also find a diorama depicting the original pueblo at the park’s visitor center, where you can pick up a copy of the Old Town San Diego State Historic Park Tour Guide & Brief History ($3), or a presentation tour (free) at 11am and 2pm daily. Personal tours cost $10 and depart at 11:30am and 1pm."

"Old Town State Park is known as the birthplace of California. In 1821, when Mexico gained independence from Spain, a small group of Mexican settlers began building homes at the foot of the hillside below the first mission and Presidio. Because wood was scarce at the time, sun-dried adobe bricks were used."

"Spend a long morning in Old Town State Historic Park, exploring the adobe buildings and browsing the many gift shops. You’ll be tempted to sit down for a Mexican lunch at one of the tourist restaurants, but save your appetite for a more genuine experience at El Indio, just up the street in Mission Hills."

"Seen as the entrance point for control of the west by Europeans, Presidio Park remains a place of history amidst the city of San Diego. Interpreting the entire site for guests is the Junipero Serra Museum which houses many artifacts dealing with Spanish and Mexican heritage, colonization, the beginnings of customs within California and showcasing the lives of those who began it all. The presidio, first built to protect colonists from attack, later took on roles as military headquarters and a central outdoor space to remember history."

"You will find grassy greenfields, attractive architecture plus columns. There is also a wooded hilltop overlooking the San Diego Bay from that perfect angle where you can catch the sun setting about everything. What a gorgeous place to have your landscape photography!"

"This historic park overlooks Old Town San Diego and is the location of the original mission Presidio. None of the original buildings remain, but the 40-acre park is home to panoramic views over the city, walking trails, and many places to picnic. (Location: Old Town)"

"Centennial Park in Coronado has a sandy beach on both sides of it on San Diego Bay. Condo buildings look down on this grass park, but the focal point is […]"

"The Wells Fargo Museum, located inside the Colorado House, features one of the company’s original 1867 Concord stagecoaches. The recreated and historically-furnished former hotel also houses actual historic telegraph machines and a variety of other memorabilia related to the banking and transportation company. Photo Courtesy of Historic Old Town Community Foundation"

"The San Diego Union Museum enables visitors to see where the San Diego Union, the first newspaper in the city, got its start. Visitors can tour the recreated editor’s office and the original print room to see how they looked in 1868. The prefabricated wooden building was manufactured on the East Coast, shipped to California and reassembled in 1851."

"The museum showcases the region’s unique, colorful, and diverse history exhibiting artifacts, costumes, textiles, art, and photographs detailing life and development of the local area."

"The Seeley Stable Museum is a reproduction of the Yuma to San Diego stage stop. It displays a wide collection of 19th-century transportation vehicles and equipment as well as other rare artifacts."

"Located inside Balboa Park, the San Diego Museum of Art is one of the most popular indoor attractions in San Diego and plays host to a large collection of artwork. For those who enjoy viewing masterpieces created by European, American and Asian artists, the museum offers a broad selection of pieces including work from the 19th and 20th centuries, as well as some from today’s most recognizable artists. The San Diego Museum of Art is the oldest and largest art museum in the region and welcomes guests from all over the world throughout the year."

"It’s a rare phenomenon for such a sunny place, but it does happen, and it doesn’t have to be a vacation ruiner. Just visit somewhere like the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (MCASD). MCASD houses many different types of art, including paintings, sculptures, scrolls and 3D art installations that jut out from the walls and dangle from invisible strings."

"The region's largest fine arts museum attracts more than 250,000 visitors a year to its diverse cultural exhibits. The museum's collection is astoundingly comprehensive, with artwork ranging in date from 5,000 BC to the present. The San Diego Museum of Art is most famous for its South Asian paintings from the Edwin Binney 3rd collection."

"National Geographic has a fantastic reputation for its glossy photos of far-flung deserts and majestic mountains. See some of their best prints all in one place in this permanent collection of the magazine’s photography. The museum aims to inspire a new generation to protect the planet, and it is hard not to feel moved by the hypnotic selection of photographs in their collection."

"For the best sushi in La Mesa, diners head to Banbu Sushi Bar and Grill. This restaurant has beautiful outdoor dining options with firepits, so head here on a nice night, no matter..."

"This place is fancy, young, trendy with the plates nearly as beautiful as the people. Lionfish Modern Coastal Cuisine is located in the Gaslamp area inside an ultra cool upscale hotel. Lionfish does everything from sashimi to small plates to share to full on instagram worthy entrees."

"Restaurants in San Diego’s touristy Gaslamp Quarter haven't had to try very hard in the past, but the 2017 opening of the swanky Pendry Hotel infused the neighborhood with new culinary energy. Of the hotel's six drinking and dining venues..."