Location: Balboa Park (3 Miles Northeast of Downtown San Diego)
Open: Sundays 12PM – 4PM
Cost: Free
Features: Visit the Cottages of 21 Countries (+11 more on a rotating basis) to learn their cultures through food, music, dance, and more.
Spanish Village Art Center
Location: Balboa Park (3 Miles Northeast of Downtown San Diego)
Open Daily: 11AM – 4PM (Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas)
Cost: Free
Features: Village of 37 art studios hosting over 200 artists working with paint, jewelry, clay, metals, baskets, and more.
Balboa Park Flower Gardens
Location: Balboa Park (3 Miles Northeast of Downtown San Diego)
Open Daily: Most Gardens are Open Daily
Cost: All Gardens, except one, are Free
Features: Over a Dozen Gardens are Spread Throughout Balboa Park, Representing Plants from Around the World.
Japanese Friendship Garden
Location: Balboa Park (3 Miles Northeast of Downtown San Diego)
Open Daily: 10AM – 4PM (must enter by 3:30); Closed Mondays. (During Summer, the Gardens are Open Mondays and until 5PM during Weekdays.)
Cost: $4 ($2.50 for Students and Seniors 55+)
Features: Quaint Japanese Zen Garden, Koi Pond, and Visiting Exhibits
Museum of San Diego History
Location: Balboa Park (3 Miles Northeast of Downtown San Diego)
Open Daily: 10AM – 5PM. Closed Mondays, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day.
Cost: $5 ($2 for Kids under 18, $4 for Seniors 65+)
Features: Great Stories and Photos of San Diego’s History; Learn about the Changes in Power from Kumeyaay Indians to Spanish Colony, followed by Mexican Independence and then American Statehood.
Museum of Photographic Arts
Location: Balboa Park (3 Miles Northeast of Downtown San Diego)
Open Daily: 10AM – 5PM. Closed on Mondays and some Major Holidays.
Cost: $8 ($6 for Students, Seniors, and Military)
Features: Home to one of the World’s Largest Collections of Photographs
Marston House
Location: Balboa Park (3 Miles Northeast of Downtown San Diego)
Hours: Guided Tours Start every half-hour, Friday-Sunday 10AM-4:30PM
Cost: $8 ($4 for Kids 6-12, $5 for Seniors 65+)
Features: Listed on the National Register of Historic Places; Built in 1905 and surrounded by Gardens; Part of 7th Avenue Walking Tour.
Spreckels Organ Pavilion Concerts in Balboa Park
Location: Balboa Park (3 Miles Northeast of Downtown San Diego)
Show Times: Sundays at 2PM Year-Round; Mondays at 7:30PM from June – August; Additional Concerts Tuesdays – Thursdays from June – August
Cost: Free
Features: Enjoy a Variety of Musical Performances at this Beautiful Outdoor Venue in Balboa Park, which is home to one of the World’s Largest Outdoor Pipe Organs played by an Internationally-Acclaimed Organist.
The Old Globe Theatre Complex
Location: Balboa Park (3 Miles Northeast of Downtown San Diego)
Show Times: Year-round
Cost: $29+ Per Show; Cheaper with Subscriptions; $20 Tickets for those Under 30
Features: Tony Award Winning Theatre is “Home to the Most Acclaimed National Artists, Designers, Directors and Playwrights in the Theatre Industry”. Twenty Productions have gone on to Broadway including Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Full Monty, Damn Yankees, and A Catered Affair.
Starlight Theatre in Balboa Park
Location: Balboa Park (3 Miles Northeast of Downtown San Diego)
Show Times: June to September at 7:30PM
Cost: Ranges from $10 – $75
Features: Musicals Performed Outdoors by Well-Known Actors from Hollywood and Broadway
Marie Hitchcock Puppet Theater
Location: Balboa Park (3 Miles Northeast of Downtown San Diego)
Show Times: Generally Wednesdays – Sundays at 11AM, 1PM, and 2:30PM. (More details below.)
Cost: $5 ($3 for Kids 2 and up; $4 for Seniors 65+)
Features: Nation’s Longest Running, Full-Time Puppet Theater
San Diego Junior Theatre
Location: Balboa Park (3 Miles Northeast of Downtown San Diego)
Show Times: Six Performances Each Year in Balboa Park with More in Additional Locations
Cost: $10 – $15
Features: Watch Performances of Future Academy Award and Tony Award Winners. Past Alumni Include Dennis Hopper, Raquel Welch, Annette Bening, Brian Stokes Mitchell, and Christian Hoff. This is the Oldest Youth Theatre Program in the Country.
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