Wellness Guide To San Diego, California

5 min readApr 14, 2023

San Diego needs to be on everyone’s California bucket list — it’s an amazing city filled with beautiful beaches, incredible weather, outdoors activities, tons of craft breweries, + the “California burrito!”

It’s also a very active + health conscious community — you’ll see so many people running, biking, running, playing beach volleyball, surfing, doing yoga, all the things. I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone say that they *don’t* love San Diego… enjoy!

Stay

San Diego is very spread out with many neighborhoods that all have a different vibe. While we did bike a lot, I’d recommend renting a car, as it will be easier to explore all the different areas. We rented an Airbnb in Ocean Beach for 10 days — which I loved! It’s very much an eclectic + chill surf town. Also, it wasn’t too far from anywhere we wanted to go. Ocean Beach felt very much like a small town community… everyone was so friendly!

If you are only in town for a couple days — I’d probably recommend staying downtown because you’ll have more access to restaurants + activites (Little Italy + Gaslamp Quarter) + you’ll be walking distance to Balboa Park. However, you won’t be near a beach!

Coffee + Acai Bowls

The coffee + acai bowl scene here is amazing… try them all!

Moniker Coffee Company — Coffee (Point Loma)
James Coffee Co. — Coffee (Little Italy)
Communal Coffee — Coffee (North Park)
OB Beans Coffee Roasters — Coffee (Ocean Beach)
Lazy Eye Coffee — Coffee (Multiple locations)
Copa Vida — Coffee (Multiple locations)
Better Buzz — Coffee (Multiple locations)
Northside Shake — Acai bowls (Multiple locations)
Vili’s Heath Bar — Acai bowls (Ocean Beach)
Juice Wave — Acai bowls (Mission Beach)
Tapshack Kombucha (Ocean Beach)

Cafes

Parakeet Cafe — *MUST! LOVED this cafe… amazing salads, juices, + brunch (Multiple locations)
Little Lion Cafe — Super cute brunch spot near the water (Point Loma)
Morning Glory —Very popular brunch spot with pink-everything vibe (Little Italy)
Our Green Affair — Takeaway salads + bowls (Pacific Beach)
It’s Raw Poke Shop — Takeaway poke bowls (Ocean Beach)
Medina Moroccan Baja Kitchen — Fast casual Mediterranean restaurant (North Park)
Mendocino Farms — Casual salads + sandwiches (Multiple locations)
Banyan Kitchen + Cafe — Breakfast + brunch (La Jolla)

Must = Get a California Burrito! Carne asada, guacamole, pico de gallo, cheese, sour cream, + FRENCH FRIES wrapped in a flour tortilla. So freaking good… especially after a surf 🥰

Restaurants

Carruth Cellars Wine Garden — *MUST. Loved this place! Amazing wine + pizza… such a fun vibe. (Liberty Station)
Cesarina —*MUST. Romantic Italian date night spot. The tiramsu was the best I’ve ever had (Ocean Beach)
True Food Kitchen — Healthy, seasonal food… even though it’s a chain, I love it! (Multiple locations)
Nobu — Japanese restaurant ($$$$) (Gaslamp Quarter)
Callie— Mediterranean restaurant (East Village)
Herb + Wood — Wood-fired dishes with Mediterranean flavors (Little Italy)
Ironside Fish + Oyster — Seafood restaurant (Little Italy)
Starlite — Swanky gastropub (Mission Hills)
Common Stock — Known for their chicken sandwich (Hillcrest)
Tahona Bar — Modern Mexican + mezcal restaurant (Old Town)
Lola 55 Tacos + Cocktails — Mexican restaurant (Little Italy)
Piece Pies — Vegan restaurant with incredible pies (Ocean Beach)

Wellness

#1] Go surfing! San Diego was where I learned to surf 🥰 We surfed at Pacific Beach at Pacific Beach Surf School.

#2] Take a yoga class: Sadly, I didn’t take a yoga class while I was in San Diego… but there are SO many amazing looking studios. Simply google “yoga” on google maps + you’ll find that most studios have a 4.9 or 5.0 rating. Let me know if you try a class you love!

#3] Go to Trilogy Sanctuary: Rooftop vegan cafe, yoga studio, wellness boutique, new moon events, yoga teacher training, + more! “Trilogy Sanctuary was created to provide a place that nurtures balance + inspires people to lead healthy lives in harmony with themselves + with nature.” It’s in La Jolla, which is a super cute area to walk around as well.

#4] Hike Torrey Pines: Check out All Trails for the best hiking routes in Torrey Pines — the longest is 4.5 miles!

This is also a great resource for the best beach trails in San Diego… my go to was the Ocean Beach Park Trail, since we were staying so close to it!

#5] Check out the Farmer’s Markets: We really liked the Ocean Beach Farmers Market that’s on Wednesday evenings. Also, OB People’s Food Co-Op is *so* good as a grocery store (particularly if you are in Ocean Beach!). We also liked the Little Italy Mercato Farmers Market on Saturday mornings.

To Explore

#1] Balboa Park: *MUST. Balboa Park is absolutely gorgeous. You could easily spend an entire half day here wandering around the park + gardens. It also contains a variety of museums + the San Diego Zoo!

#2] Go to the beach: *MUST. You can’t go to San Diego without going to the beach 😉 There are seriously SO many beautiful beaches... go to as many as you can! Each beach has its own vibe — check out this article on San Diego’s best beaches.

#3] Visit Coranado Island: Even if you just drive through Coronado Island it’s so fun to see + worth it in my opinion! The town is so charming. Make sure to check out Hotel del Coronado — it’s beautiful. They also have a a few spots to eat at!

#4] Go to a brewery: Did you know San Diego is the “Craft Beer Capital of America?” There’s over 150 breweries across the county! Check out this article on the 31 best San Diego breweries.

#5] Take a ROAD TRIP: The California Coast is beautiful… + there are so many incredible beach towns. Let your heart guide you!