Seaport Village in San Diego
Downtown shopping, dining and more along the Embarcadero
A guide to dining, shopping and entertainment at San Diego's Seaport Village and the adjacent Embarcadero
Seaport Village is ideally located on the San Diego Bay off of Harbor Drive in Downtown San Diego, California. With beautiful views of Coronado across the Bay, the upscale boutique shopping center presents a wonderful setting for enjoying an afternoon or evening of shopping, dining and entertainment.
Shopping in San Diego Seaport Village
The Village has over 100 stores and restaurants. You will not find major chain stores here, as the Village is filled with small specialty shops, specializing in souvenirs, clothes or sundries. Stores include The San Diego Store, Mistletoe, Captain’s Cove and the Seaport Village Shell Company.
With so many choices, one of the adventures of Seaport Village is discovering what matches your tastes. Establishments are subject to change.
Dining in Downtown San Diego
Seaport Village is also home to many dining choices. There are a few upscale restaurants, but there are mostly casual eateries, many with outdoor dining along with bay and the boardwalk, giving the area a Mediterranean feel. Among the many choices are Edgewater Grill, Harbor House and the San Diego Pier Café.
There are also places for burgers, pizza and other simple food. There are no chains among of any the restaurants here either, and many of the choices have a California or Mexican flavor. .
The Embarcadero
On each side of Seaport Village is a boardwalk. On the southern side, (on your left as you look at the Bay) is Embarcadero Marina Park. There are as many interesting things in the Park as the shopping center. There are vendors selling colorful t-shirts, portrait artists, tarot and psychic readers and even a professional storyteller. Musicians in the park compete with the waves from the Bay. What the artists sometimes lack in quality they make up in enthusiasm.
There are kite-flyers, balloon artists and horse-drawn carriages. There are dozens of young men and women with varied accents driving pedi-cabs, or bike cabs, which most resemble a rickshaw attached to a bicycle. They are as ubiquitous as the pigeons and runners that gather along the Bay.
The Bay is filled with boats from the nearby marina. One can also see Jet-skis, the magnificent Hotel Del Coronado across the Bay, and the uniquely curving Coronado Bay Bridge. Boarding at Seaport Village is The Seal, an amphibious craft that can travel both on land and in water.
Parking is available, and Seaport Village is near a trolley station. There are also many fine hotels in the area for overnight accommodations. A stop in Seaport Village is an important part of any visit to sunny San Diego.
