The Best Things in La Jolla are Free
Upscale San Diego enclave is wrapped around a walkable waterfront
Apr 7, 2009
Put on your walking shoes when you come to the village-like community of north San Diego known as La Jolla. You'll need them, because once you find a place to park your car (which can take awhile), you won't want to have to deal with it again until you're ready to move on.
You'd want those walking shoes anyway, because the best things in this urban village are as free as the breeze that brushes the bluffs circling sapphire-blue La Jolla Cove. Visitors on a budget shouldn't be put off by the high-end establishments - La Valencia, the Grand Colonial, Torry Pines - that give La Jolla a five-star reputation among affluent travelers. There are plenty of places where mere mortals can afford to eat, too, even if they have to sleep down the road in a more financially forgiving community.
Seaside promenade follows bluffs to seal rookery
Start your day with a leisurely stroll around the promenade that winds for several miles along the bluffs separating the village-like town center from the surging Pacific. Pocket beaches, sculpted cliffs, barking sea lions and flocks of cawing seabirds will grab and keep your attention.
Begin at Goldfish Point, where you can watch colorful kayaks bobbing in and out of sea caves, and continue about a mile, through Scripps Park, to a crescent-shaped beach protected by a seawall. Locally known as Children's Pool, the beach each winter and spring attracts hundreds of harbor seals that gather to give birth and nurture their young. The rookery is the subject of ongoing controversy between residents who'd like to see the cove drained and returned to human use and those who want to see it declared a marine sanctuary. Beyond it lie more picture-perfect coves perfect for picnics or toe-dipping (swimming without a wetsuit is for seals only).
Paddle, Surf or Dive at La Jolla Shores
Want to get wet? Fetch your car or grab a taxi to La Jolla Shores, a nearby neighborhood with a broad, lifeguard-protected beach favored by families. La Jolla's watersports outfitters can fix you up with a surfboard, kayak or scuba gear. Several are headquartered in a strip mall on nearby Avenida de la Playa. Among the best known: OEX Dive and Kayak and, next door, Surf Diva, a surf school and boutique that started out catering only to women but since has gone co-ed.
Visitors On a Budget Can Eat Well in La Jolla
All this walking and playing can work up an appetite. Two reasonably priced places to satisfy your cravings (both on Avenida de la Playa): Jeff's Burgers, next door to OEX, is a pint-size establishment with a giant reputation for giant-size burgers and a sprinkling of sidewalk tables. Right across the street, on the Shores' restaurant row, Osteria Romantica has a $12 lunch special that can count on your "big" meal of the day.
Back in the village, try The Spot, at 1005 Prospect, for budget-friendly pizza, steaks and salads.
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