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Fantastic geological formations, archeological sites, and sweeping desert vistas are only a backdrop for the wildlife found in the largest state park in the continental US. Golden eagles soar above, roadrunners dart across the paths, and bighorn sheep dot the mountainsides. In springtime a dazzling array of wildflowers create a magic show of colors across the desert. Stop by the visitor center to pick up a map that marks hiking trails, sites of Native American pictographs, and the park’s best viewpoints.

An eight-block area that overlaps part of the Gaslamp Quarter designates the former center of San Diego’s Asian community. The Chinese came to San Diego following the California Gold Rush and took up fishing and construction work; others ran opium dens and gambling halls. Filipinos and Japanese soon followed. This is the home of Chinese New Year celebrations, a farmers’ market, and an Asian bazaar. Pick up a walking-tour map at the Chinese Historical Museum (see San Diego Chinese Historical Museum), and look out for the Asian architectural flourishes on the buildings you pass by.

Coral reefs, seahorses, octopi, and undulating jellyfish have a high ooh-and-ah factor for kids. The aquarium (see Birch Aquarium at Scripps) presents special hands-on activities, scavenger hunts, craft workshops, and slumber parties throughout the year, among more than 30 tanks filled with brilliantly colored fish. Guided tide-pool adventures for tots, seasonal whale-watching and grunion runs take place off site.

As the endangered Western snowy plover seeks a place in which to lay her fragile eggs, the green-and-white vehicles of the US Border Patrol swoop down hillsides, lights blazing, in search of the illegal immigrant. An enormous, rusty, corrugated metal fence, which separates the US and Mexico, slices through the park before plunging into the sea. This southern part of the Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve (see Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve) attracts nature lovers who come to hike, ride horses, picnic on the beach, and birdwatch. On the Mexican side of the fence is a lively Mexican community and bullring (see Border Field State Park).

Several endangered species and abundant wildlife thrive at the largest US Marine Corps base and amphibious training facility in the country.

Surfers enjoy the reef break at Cardiff, while RV campers kick back at a beachside campground. The San Elijo Lagoon offers hiking trails through an ecological reserve.

In the 1880s, Captain John Frazier discovered that the water here had the same mineral content as a spa in Karlsbad, Bohemia. Curative spas attracted the health-conscious and gave life to the village.

Located on the museum’s second floor, kids dress up as pharaohs and learn about ancient Egypt by building a pyramid, deciphering hieroglyphics, and listening to the god Anubis explain the mummification process. At a re-creation of an archeological dig, children dig through sand for treasure and also learn about dating artifacts (see San Diego Museum of Man).