Ways to spend your first weekend in San Diego

With an average of 263 sunny days a year, this oceanside city is easy to love. There are so many amazing things to do in San Diego that you might be wanting to stay even longer than anticipated.

You can explore the city’s gorgeous beaches and historic downtown or take a sunset harbor cruise. There are also world-class attractions like the USS Midway, the San Diego Zoo, and the gorgeous Torrey Pines Natural Reserve.

Whether you’re staying for a month or a year, there is so much to see and do in sunny San Diego.

If you’re a newcomer to the San Diego area, it may be simpler to rent a furnished apartment. Blueground’s short-term rentals in San Diego are a simple alternative to a traditional year-long lease. Just think: you won’t have to spend your own time and money scouring big box stores for furniture and new towels. A short-term lease also lets you live on your own schedule, not a landlord’s.

Blueground’s move-in-ready homes in San Diego – and around the world — come to have well-equipped kitchens, fast Wi-Fi, and luxury linens. We even include a Welcome Kit with enough eco-friendly cleaning products and snacks to last for your first few days in town.

Here are just a few of our favorite things to do in San Diego.

Friday: Dinner and a movie

Now that you’ve arrived, spend your first night in town unwinding in your brand-new Blueground home in San Diego!

Order in from one of the city’s hundreds of amazing restaurants on GrubHub, or make your own dinner in your kitchen. (We take pride in stocking all of our apartments with the basics you need to make yourself a lovely meal.)

There are some truly amazing movies set in San Diego, thanks to its glorious sunshine. None of these is quite as iconic as Top Gun, the 1986 classic about fighter pilots who occasionally play beach volleyball.

Tom Cruise stars as a rebel without a cause, rookie pilot Maverick, with Val Kilmer playing his frenemy Iceman.

The movie features some iconic San Diego landmarks, including the former Miramar Naval Air Station (aka Fighter Town U.S.A), Kansas City Barbecue (where we first encounter Meg Ryan), and the gorgeous Point Loma Coast Guard Lighthouse.

Saturday: Urban safari

Get up bright and early for the animal encounter of a lifetime. If you need a caffeine fix, look no further than your Blueground Welcome Kit, which has coffee as well as other basic supplies to get you started.

The San Diego Zoo is one of the most popular things to do in San Diego, and for good reason.

This gigantic animal park has over 4,000 animals, including deer, elephants, leopards, pandas and so many more.

The zoo is so large that you can easily spend the whole day here! There are several places to eat, or you can pack your own picnic lunch.

Sunday: Brunch and a little shopping

Ready for a lazy Sunday? Start your day off right with a hearty brunch at Kono’s Cafe, a favorite among San Diego locals.

After you’ve eaten your fill, head to the iconic Gaslamp Quarter – one of the top things to do in San Diego. Located right downtown, this historic, pedestrian-friendly neighborhood is perfect for shopping.

You will find both indie boutiques and major national brands like Quicksilver and Urban Outfitters. There are also great bars, cafes, and restaurants where you can toast a successful weekend in your new hometown.

Whether you’re staying in the city for a month or a year or longer, we hope we’ve given you more than enough ideas to make the most of your first weekend in San Diego.

If you’re still renting the old-fashioned way, you need to find out more about the Blueground experience.