SAN DIEGO DOWNTOWN TOUR – 10K

Description

We’ve hit the pavement hard to plan the perfect route on this must-see tour of San Diego. It packs in everything amazing about downtown & the marina, without making your mind or feet feel too overwhelmed. There is a unique calming quality to this coastal city that makes this informative, inspiring and fun 10k running tour just breeze by, even when we’re winding our way through the bustling business district of California’s 2nd largest city!

We’ll start our run navigating the diverse city streets of downtown. We run right through the middle of the Padres Petco Park Stadium, MLB’s undisputed best ballpark in baseball, as we warm up our legs to tackle the legendary Gaslamp District, known as the “Historic Heart of San Diego.” There’s no doubt this colorful neighborhood came up in your Google search, and we’ll show you what it’s all about. You’ll want to know which bars, clubs and restaurants to make note of and which to just pass by. This area transforms from day to night, but it’s always fun. During our daytime runs we’ll get to focus on the historic brick buildings nestled amongst modern architecture around Balboa Theatre and Horton Plaza, as well as getting our fair share of native San Diegan people watching. At night, the Gaslamp becomes the hot spot for dancing and drinking with live music blaring from cleverly designed bars and laughter billowing from basement comedy clubs and hidden speakeasy’s.

We’ll also be running through Little Italy, which has a similar yet more tame transformation than the Gaslamp, and It’s everything it sounds like. For a few blocks, we’ll feel like we’re running down an old street in Italy, smelling fresh brewed cafe and baked lasagne from Nonna’s while waving at Little Italy’s resident Sicilian sipping wine on his statue adorned gold patio and loudly welcoming us in Italian to his neighbourhood. The eateries serve amazing food, wine, espresso & gelato all day, but you’ll want to come back at night to see this district lit up and come alive with fancy cars and hip crowds. Run now, drink later…that is, of course, unless you want to pause our run here for a quick story or two about this quaint former fishing district and enjoy an educational craft beer tasting at Ballast Point Brewery! Book a tour on a Farmer’s Market day for even more local farm fresh fun.
We’ve made our way through the city and seen so much on the urban half of our tour. The next stretch will keep you reaching for your camera and begging us to slow down to enjoy the view. We’ll run through scenic waterfront parks and along the ocean side Embarcadero as we check out everything from the Star of India, the world’s oldest sailing ship, to pirate ships and aircraft carriers along the way. We’ll fit in as much about the extensive maritime history as possible, if you’re into that thing. Otherwise, we’ll turn our jog into a run and make our way to some amazing military monuments surrounding the massive USS Midway where you’ll get to look back to the stunning cityscape that we just ran our way through. If you have the time and energy left after an obligatory photo shoot at the “Unconditional Surrender” statue, we love to run up the stairs to the ships deck to show you more Naval history, and an even better view of the city skyline, Coronado Island and the beautiful San Diego Bay.

Finally, we’ll make our way to Seaport Village. As we run our way along one of the nicest ocean paths we’ve ever seen, we’ll tell you all about the village, where to go shopping and find delicious local cuisine like authentic Mexicali fish tacos. As we wind down and cruise along the water to our final stop, it couldn’t be more beautiful in the marina parks, full of flying kites and fellow runners amidst the backdrop of the daily boating action on the bay and the dramatic Coronado Bridge.

This is San Diego! A unique mix of big city living and classic California beach culture that comes together seamlessly in a place rich with history dating back to, and beyond, Cabrillo’s landfall right where you’re standing in 1542. We’re told that he knew right away, this was the definitely place to be. “Keep it Classy San Diego.” – Ron Burgandy.

This is what our guests had to say about this tour:

I was in San Diego for a neuroscience conference and wanted to explore but didn’t have much free time. Thankfully, I came across Chad’s Downtown “Sight Run” and was able to book a sunset tour for the day I arrived. He was super flexible, fun and informative on our jog through interesting local history and sights. He gave me some awesome recommendations and cool stories to make my colleagues jealous. I have a great sense of the city now, and highly recommend running with Chad if you have an hour or two to spare!

This is a brilliant way to visit San Diego whether you’re a tourist or a local. Chad is ridiculously knowledgeable about the area, ran at a pace that was perfect for me, and gave me some great tips that added richness to my visit. Highly recommended!