Best Zoo in Little Italy

"Spread across 100 acres, the San Diego Zoo is home to 3,700 rare and endangered animals, with some 700,000 plants creating the lush habitats surrounding them. Well known for its animal care and conservation efforts (the zoo employs 300 animal care staff!), the zoo is a top priority for most San Diego-bound travelers. Given its sprawling size, it can be a lot of ground to cover, especially for little legs."

"Visitors watch animals from an open truck, San Diego Zoo Safari Park|© Jason O. Watson (USA: California photographs) / Alamy Stock Photo"

"Day 1: Balboa Park, San Diego Zoo, Downtown & The Gaslamp District [Skip to Page] Day 2: Old Town, The Midway & Coronado [Skip to Page]"

"This not-for-profit aquarium and zoo connects kids with the animals and plants of the California coast. Located on the Sweetwater Marsh National Wildlife Refuge in Chula Vista, the Living Coast Discovery Center offers family-friendly activities and events such as shark, ray, turtle, and eagle feedings; guided trail hikes; Overnight Adventures; and VIP Animal Encounters. Seasonal exhibits promote wildlife conservation and educate young visitors about their impact on the environment."

"This nonprofit discovery center is there to provide environmental education related to coastal resource conservation. You park in a parking lot and bus takes you over to the center. Once there you can see the sharks, visit the sting ray touch tank, and see the bald eagles they have there."

"This is located in the Sweetwater Marsh Unit of the San Diego National Wildlife Refuge in Chula Vista and is a popular choice for school trips. The experience here is pretty unique. You get to feed bat rays and have meet-and-greets with reptiles."

"The Lost Forest is a fun little area packed with extensive trails that wind through exhibits and aviaries. These trails are home to animals from the rainforests of Asia and Africa, and wind their way up into the canopy as well as along the forest floor, with arboreal animals displayed above and ground dwellers below. You’ll find monkeys, barbirusas, tigers, great apes, okapis, and several various species of exotic birds."

"Guests will feel like there are in the rain forest when they enter the Lost Forest. The Lost Forest is in the northeast corner of the Zoo. Some animals in this area include hippos, tigers, okapi, otters, birds and primates."

"The Asian Passage is south of Panda Canyon and is a simulation of a tropical Asian rain forest. This scenic passage includes grizzly bears, snow leopards, and sun bears. This spectacular area also features the Sun Bear Forest, which resembles a southeast Asian rain forest, and the Hawaiian Native Plant Garden."

"The Asian Passage area includes the Sun Bear Forest, Grizzly Bear exhibit, and more. It’s a fun area to explore, and isn’t quite as big as Africa Rocks."

"Elephant Odyssey is one of the most well known parts of the park. It’s a huge area that’s dedicated solely to several beautiful African and Asian elephants. The Elephants are free to roam among large areas, and it also includes the Elephant Care Center where you may see a zookeeper caring for one of them."

"The Elephant Odyssey is home to the African and Asian elephant habitat. This area includes the majestic elephants along with the Elephant Care Center and Fossil Portal. Guests can also see lions, jaguars, California condor, camels, and the Malayan tapir."

"Fish and chips headlines the menu at this family-owned and operated Oceanside eatery with views of the harbor. For non-fried options, consider the grilled fish plate seasoned with butter, garlic or herb seasoning. Outdoor seating is first-come, first-served."

"Great bayside seafood restaurant next to the US Midway museum. Our seafood entrees were fresh and amazing!. We brought our 3 kids along and felt…"

"Featuring eight galleries that hold more than 100 interactive science exhibits, the Fleet Science Center is the best place to go for hands-on learning. It’s also home to the world’s first IMAX Dome Theater, which shows the biggest films on the planet. Since its opening in 1973, the Fleet has been one of San Diego’s most-visited museums, thanks to the theater and interactive exhibits like Kid City (an exhibition just for kids age five and under)."

"Founded in 1973, it was the first museum to build a planetarium and IMAX dome on site, offering its guests a wide range of entertainment options even as it educated them on scientific subjects. Other museums quickly went “hey, that’s a good idea” and copied the design, and now, you can’t throw a rock without hitting a museum dome. The good news is that the Fleet Science Center is still just as fun as it was in the ’70s."

"And maybe you and the husband would like to try out a couple of things yourself. There are weight galleries that have about 100 hands-on exhibits for children and grown ups to navigate. You can explore the concept of gravity and how it works."

"The San Diego Asian Pacific Historic District, San Diego’s historic Chinatown, is an eight-block district adjacent to and in part overlapping with the Gaslamp Quarter Historic District. The San Diego Chinatown is bounded by Market Street on the north, 2nd Ave. on the west, 6th ave. on the east and J st. on the south. 22 structures are considered historically contributing."

"The Chinese Historical Museum displays Chinese-American art, culture and history. Housed in a restored mission-style building, exhibits include miniature models, historic photographs and rare artifacts related to the heritage of San Diego’s Chinese community. *Small donation requested."