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California’s Best Coastal Idyll

California’s Best Coastal Idyll

California has always occupied a strange place in my psyche, which makes sense: Its place within the American psyche, writ-large, is one of nothing if not of contradiction.

On one hand, I subconsciously associate the state with sunshine and beaches, with beautiful people, wonderful food and the endless horizon of the Pacific Ocean. On the other hand, as someone who grew up about as far from an ocean as you can get, California always seemed out of reach—even when I was there.

I bring this up because it’s the lens through which I compare San Francisco vs San Diego. I think it’ll be a helpful frame for you, too, if you’re deciding which of these cities is right for you to visit.

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How I Came to Know Both of These California Cities

I first visited San Francisco and San Diego at very different times in my life. I was 19 when I first traveled to San Francisco—it was one of the first trips I ever took by myself, in fact. Although the weather was puzzling (“August,” my friend I stayed with told me, “feels more like winter than it does like summer”), I found myself enchanted by the topography, the microclimates and the socially liberal atmosphere.

My maiden voyage to San Diego was different for a lot of reasons, among them that I visited during the middle of winter—and that I was almost two decades older. Still, while I can’t officially name it to be the best summer city in USA (since I haven’t been there in summer), I loved being able to enjoy nearly 24/7 sunshine and relatively warm weather in January, to say nothing of beautiful beaches from north to south, and delicious food.

 
 
San Francisco

Ways to Compare San Francisco with San Diego

Climate

I mentioned that San Francisco has microclimates, which is a fancy way of saying that the weather can be vastly different simply by traveling into a different neighborhood of the city. The reality, to be sure, is that San Francisco is a cold and often foggy or overcast city. San Diego, by contrast, enjoys bright sunshine almost every day of the year, and an average temperature (~70ºF) much higher than San Francisco’s (~60ºF).

Things to do

When comparing attractions in San Francisco or San Diego, the reality is that San Francisco is more iconic. Whether we’re talking about the Golden Gate Bridge, Dolores Park or simply the San Francisco streetcars, travelers to San Diego tend to have longer bucket lists. Much of what there is to do in San Diego is less conspicuous, whether that’s watching sea lions at La Jolla Cove, or walking amid mansions on Coronado Island.

Getting there and around

As a hub for United Airlines and one of the busiest airports in the world, San Francisco enjoys nonstop flights to basically every major city in the US; you’re much more likely to have to connect en route to San Diego, if you don’t live in a large city. Likewise, you don’t need a car to get around in San Francisco at all, while one is indispensable to exploring in (and especially around) San Diego.

Food, drink and hospitality

Should foodies visit San Diego or San Francisco? Both cities have a large selection of award-winning restaurants, awesome bars and great hotels to choose from. However, I’d say that in general San Francisco is better for diners seeking…colorful experiences, be that ethnic cuisine or LGBTQ+ nightlife. San Diego is much better for things you might expect in southern California, be that fresh seafood, Cali-Mex cuisine or upscale waterfront watering holes.

Day trips and onward excursions

San Francisco is the gateway to northern and central California, whether you head down the coast to Big Sur, or inland to Yosemite National Park. You can also take a day trip to destinations like coastal Santa Cruz, or the Napa Valley wine country. San Diego, by contrast, has Tijuana, Mexico as its most common day trip; it’s also not a very far drive up the coast to Orange County or Los Angeles, or inland to Palm Springs or Joshua Tree.

 
 
San Diego

Is San Francisco or San Diego Safer?

Let’s address the elephant in the room: Yes, San Francisco has a homelessness problem—and yes, it’s gotten worse over the years. Worse, it’s not confined to one specific area, even if a couple (namely, The Tenderloin and SOMA) are much more conspicuous hubs of rif-raff than, say, Russian Hill or North Beach. At the same time, while this can produce unsightly results (and car break-ins), I’m not sure how “dangerous” it actually makes the city.

San Diego, by contrast, is largely unaffected by homelessness. There are exceptions to this rule, obviously, but I can’t think of a single place I went to in the city where I saw large amounts of indigence. San Diego is very safe in general, actually, which makes sense when you consider the large military presence there, and the sort of people that might attract. (Which is not to insult the libertines of San Francisco—I’m just saying!).

Other FAQ About Visiting San Diego and San Francisco

Should you visit San Diego or San Francisco?

Obviously, if you can swing it, both San Diego and San Francisco are worth visiting. However, I’d say that in general, San Francisco has more of a “wow” factor, due to iconic sites like the Golden Gate Bridge and its famous street cars, while San Diego’s charm can reveal itself slower and more subtly.

Is San Francisco cleaner than San Diego?

San Francisco is many things, but “clean” is not one of them—well, not everywhere in the city. Sure, there are parts of the city that are clean, but there’s also a lot of utter filth. By contrast, San Diego is spotless almost everywhere you go, from downtown, to La Jolla, to Sunset Cliffs.

Is San Diego cooler than San Francisco?

In a literal sense, San Diego is much warmer than San Francisco, with higher temperatures both due to its more southerly location, as well as the fact that it isn’t surrounded on three sides by water. Figuratively, it’s up for debate. San Francisco certainly has a cooler reputation, but the older I get, the more “cool” I find cities that take a little bit of work to appreciate, as San Diego does.

The Bottom Line

Comparing San Francisco vs San Diego might seem like a fool’s errand—but I promise it’s not. Both of these cities, of course, are fabulous for their own reasons. And in the particular case of San Francisco, I think it handily defies negative stereotypes about it that have arisen in recent years. Indeed, while I would of course recommend that you visit both places if you can, I hope my trip has helped you to decide between them, if you simply don’t have the time or resources for a two-city trip right now. Need personalized help putting your California itinerary together? Consider hiring me as your Travel Coach!

 

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