Facts About San Diego, California
A roundup of San Diego, California
facts:
- San Diego, California is the seventh
largest city in the United States, with 2.5 million residents.
- The Hotel del Coronado on Coronado
Island is the largest wooden structure in the United States.
- San Diego, California is rimmed with
seventy miles of beaches.
- San Diego's Zoo is home to the only
pair of giant pandas in the United States, and when Hua Mei was
born here, she was the first baby panda born in the Western
Hemisphere since 1990 (she is now in China.
- San Diego, California is famed for the
best climate in the United States.
- San Diego, California is home of the
first European settlement on the West Coast.
- Legal drinking age is 21. Across the
border in Tijuana, it's 18.
San Diego, California Taxes
- Hotel tax is 10%
- Sales tax is 7.5% (A helpful hint: when
calculating a 15% restaurant tip, all you have to do is double
the tax!)
Getting Around San Diego
San Diego spreads over some 300 square
miles (514.0 km2). Most of the popular San Diego attractions are
clustered along a five mile wide strip near the ocean.
Getting to San Diego
San Diego Airport (SAN), sometimes called
Lindbergh Field, is conveniently located near downtown, and most
major airlines fly to it. Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner goes to San
Diego from Los Angeles.
Most San Diego visitors, 65% of them, come
in their personal cars. The most common approaches are I-5 from Los
Angeles and northern California, I-15 from Las Vegas, and I-8 from
Phoenix.
Getting Around San Diego
Most San Diego visitors find it convenient
to drive from place to place.
Remember that San Diego is a big city,
and subject to traffic jams during rush hours. Get a good map before
you go. Most San Diego tourist maps suffer from a lack of the detail
needed to navigate.
Try using the Old Town Trolley to get around
between major sights without parking hassles (and costs). They stop
at eight of the most popular attractions.
If you're going to Tijuana, use the San
Diego Trolley. It's easier than driving, it stops right at the
border gate, and your car is probably safer in the city than it is
in one of the border parking lots.
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