La Jolla is located within San Diego city limits, but it feels like a small, beautiful town of its own. Its name comes from a Spanish word for “jewel,” and it really is the jewel of the city — a charming, upscale hillside community surrounded on three sides by the Pacific Ocean. If you have a day to spend here, there’s plenty to keep you busy. Here are some of our favorite things to do in La Jolla.
Breakfast (or Brunch) on the Cove
It isn’t hard to find a good restaurant in La Jolla, but if you’re there in the morning, we suggest Brockton Villa. If it’s nice out (and when is it not in San Diego?), you can sit on the patio right across the street from La Jolla Cove, a beach filled with neat caves and cute seals. It’s a perfect way to start the day.
Brockton Villa has a diverse menu, but the French toast is its claim to fame. Sweet, rich and moist, it’s almost more like a dessert than a breakfast. You need to try it.
Walk the Bluffs and See the Seals
Once you’re done eating, head across the street to the Cove. You can go down the stairs to the beach, where you can walk through small caves that water has washed out of the surrounding rock over the centuries. You can also walk around Scripps Park, a nice grassy area atop the bluffs. You can even walk out on the rocks over the water, being careful to avoid falling in any of the gaps between them that fill with the rushing tide. No matter where you go, chance are you will see (and hear) the seals.
A quick warning, though: the seals can smell quite bad! In fact, the stench sometimes coming from the Cove is so notorious it’s been written about in the New York Times.
Shop (or Window-Shop) on Girard Street
Girard Street is the main commercial corridor of La Jolla. You’ll find tons of quirky shops, from name brands like lululemon to locally owned, independent stores. Fitting with the upscale reputation of La Jolla — where practically no home sells for under $1 million — many of the shops are quite high-end. But even those on a budget can window-shop!
See the View From Mount Soledad
Mount Soledad towers over La Jolla, and on a clear day, it offers sweeping, 360-degree views all the way to Mexico. Even in hazy weather, you’re still likely to catch great views of Mission Bay. Atop the mountain is an enormous cross that serves as a Korean War memorial. The winding roads that lead to the top are quite scenic, and they are popular with ambitious cyclists looking for a workout.
Fun tidbit: Mount Soledad was the longtime home of Theodor Geisel, whom you know as perhaps the most famous children’s author of all time, Dr. Seuss. Geisel lived here for decades until his death in 1991.
Hit the Beach
It’s Southern California, so a trip to a sunny beach is a must-do on a fun day. Just north of La Jolla’s downtown stretch is La Jolla Shores, a quiet community with an expansive, sandy beach and lots of cute surf shops.
Many of the shops in La Jolla Shores rent out surfboards and stand-up paddleboards, so give those activities a shot if they sound up your alley. There are also many kayak and/or snorkeling tours based in the area, and some are pretty affordable. If you snorkel, you’ll see lots of colorful fish and, quite possibly, leopard sharks. Don’t worry, though — they’re actually harmless to humans.
That’s a whole day worth of fun activities — all contained within a single neighborhood of San Diego! They don’t call it America’s Finest City for nothing.
We’re PC Housing, a San Diego-based company that connects short-term business travelers with homes across the U.S. and Canada. Whether it’s San Diego or another city from California to Nova Scotia, we’ve got you covered. Get in touch with us today and let us find you your home on your next trip.