Visiting San Diego with Kids: A Family Travel Guide for Southwest Washington Families 

Even though I’ve spent more than half my life in the Pacific Northwest, I was born in San Diego and lived there for a few years as an adult. Exploring our beloved PNW is truly fantastic, but occasionally my family travels a bit farther from home. Our recent trip back to San Diego made for a fantastic family adventure. Especially for families in our local area, it’s just a short flight away and the city is perfect for kids. Are you starting to plan your spring break vacation (or summer 2026)? Visiting San Diego with kids offers a getaway to remember.  

PDX was recently voted the top airport in the U.S. according to The Washington Post, and if you haven’t been there lately, it’s a great time to go see the brand-new terminal. Live trees, massive video walls, expansive wood-lined ceilings and stadium-style wood benches make PDX a comfortable place, which is certainly hard to do in an airport environment. No matter where you are flying to, PDX is a beautiful launch point. 

On our visit to San Diego this summer, we explored two family-friendly locations, the San Diego Zoo and LEGOLAND® California. With San Diego just a 2-hour plane ride away, even if you just plan a quick weekend trip, these locations are worth visiting.  

LEGOLAND – Visiting San Diego with Kids 

One of the other amazing things about LEGOLAND is the lack of long wait lines. We went on a summer weekday, did almost every ride, and didn’t have to wait any longer than 20 minutes for anything. When we walked into the park, we swung left, which is also what most other families did. Those rides near the entrance were busy, but after waiting in one 20-minute line we swung the other direction and did not wait in any lines longer than 10 minutes for the rest of the day.  

LEGOLAND California is a guaranteed win for any kids 10 or under, and of course all ages for any LEGO® fanatics. I highlight ages 10 and under simply because of the huge number of rides, playgrounds and family-friendly activities catered toward younger children. It can be hard to keep young kids occupied at theme parks especially if most of the rides/height requirements don’t cater to them, but LEGOLAND certainly does. For those with toddler-age kids, LEGOLAND has even created their own guide “What to do When You’re Two” to make choices all over the land that are ideal for the toddlers.  

LEGOLAND also has a fantastic free app with a map that will tell you all the wait times for each ride and how long it takes to walk to each location. It also shows height restrictions for each ride, so you can avoid walking all the way over there only to have your child be too small for the ride. It also shows bathrooms, food options, parade information, shows, meet and greets and more. Anything you can want is in the palm of your hand in the app, and we used it constantly.  

As far as the rides go, some favorites in the Dino Valley area were the Coastersaurus (minimum height requirement is 36 inches, perfect for a first roller coaster for little kids) and Explorer River Quest (no height limit). Castle Hill was also a hit with the Dragon Coaster (minimum height requirement is 40 inches) and the Royal Joust, a LEGO horse that kids age 4-12 can ride all by themselves. Castle Hill is also where we ate our delicious lunch and caught a fun medieval-themed performance. The Driving School (ages 6-13) and Junior Driving School (ages 3-5) were also a huge hit. Kids can take the wheel in a LEGO car just their size.  

In 2026, a new space-themed land is set to open next to the LEGO® Movie™ World land, which is worth noting if you are planning a future trip. We checked out a parade at the LEGO Movie World land and kids enjoyed the big play structure in the middle of that land. We were happy to see that LEGOLAND had multiple play structures throughout the park. The incredible playgrounds were a major draw for kids and were always busy, but not too crowded. There is also ample seating next to the play structures for parents to watch their children.  

A personal favorite was MINILAND USA, where you can see replicas of cities like New York, San Diego, Las Vegas, Washington, D.C. and more made entirely of LEGO bricks. These intricate creations are thrilling to see for adults and children alike. More than two million LEGO bricks were used to construct New York alone. Coast Cruise is another ride to visit to see another view of the MINILAND USA creations, and this ride has no height limit.  

During our day we had time to go to the SEA LIFE Aquarium which is also on-site and is an add-on to your LEGOLAND ticket. To experience the full aquarium, it took us about an hour to walk through and enjoy the exhibits and sea creatures. We visited it on our way out of the park, since it is located conveniently near the exit and stayed open slightly longer than the park. They also have a water park on site, but we simply didn’t have enough time to do it all in one day. I’d recommend doing two days at LEGOLAND if you want to attend the water park, which is an extra add-on to your theme park ticket.  

Where to Stay near LEGOLAND – Visiting San Diego with Kids

LEGOLAND California is in Carlsbad, which is about 35 miles north of downtown San Diego and its major airport. LEGOLAND has two hotels right on site, the LEGOLAND® Hotel and LEGOLAND® Castle Hotel. They are located right next to the gates so you can get in and out of the park in no time, which is especially helpful for those who have kids that are still napping. There are also many other Carlsbad hotels that are within a 15-minute drive of LEGOLAND.  

San Diego Zoo – Visiting San Diego with Kids 

The iconic San Diego Zoo is also a must-visit. It’s truly suitable for any age, kids and adults alike. I spent many of my younger years here as a toddler/young child and have the best memories and even continued visiting as a teenager/young adult. There are so many special things about the San Diego Zoo that once you are in the city, it feels impossible to not make the trip.  

Once you’re at the San Diego Zoo, you have two major options to choose from: take the guided bus tour, which is free, or explore on your own. The bus tour is a 35-minute tour on a double-decker bus and is a great way to get the layout of the zoo. Strollers aren’t permitted, so you’d have to leave those behind at stroller parking. We opted to walk around so we could get a closer view of the animals. Also, with young kids, you never know how long they will want to sit before they’re ready to get up and move around!  

Walking around at our own pace gave us a chance to see animals close-up and enjoy the scenic walking views. We visited the koalas first and then made our way to the rhinos, flamingoes, a cheetah and giraffes. You can even feed the giraffes during special times! We thought it was interesting that in the cheetah enclosure, there was a dog in there with him. We learned that the cheetah and the dog were great friends.

Throughout the zoo, there were many volunteers and employees ready to share tons of information on the animals, and some even had tables set up with extra information or interactive things to touch and see. This is great for younger kids who want to touch everything!  

One pro tip about the zoo is to go early. By the middle of the day, there were some animals that were ready for their midday nap. In the morning you’re more likely to see the animals being active. It doesn’t hurt to beat the crowds by getting there early, either. 

The zoo also has a Skyfari® Aerial Tram for a bird’s eye view of the park. Large strollers won’t fit in the aerial tram though, so be mindful about that if you plan to do a lot of walking at either end of the park. 

The gorillas are also a personal favorite, and with a very large enclosure, you can see the gorillas from a few different vantage points. We also enjoyed the Africa Rocks exhibit, which has a beautiful garden. Their Elephant Odyssey exhibit is quite large and includes an Elephant Care Center, which was unique to see. 

Throughout the park there are many options for children to play. There are sculptures and replicas of different animals for them to climb. A favorite play area for us was the arctic area and the entirety of the Wildlife Explorers Basecamp. The Wildlife Explorers Basecamp is located on the far left of the entrance, past all the dining and shopping options. There, you can interact, climb and play and there’s even a small area for water play. There’s also a reptile house and an invertebrate house. In the Cool Critters indoor area, the axolotl was popular, and we came home with a black stuffed axolotl toy.    

It’s impossible to mention the San Diego Zoo without talking about the pandas. In August 2024, the zoo reimagined their Panda Ridge habitat and expanded it to be four times the size of the previous one. There is usually a line to see the pandas, but it’s worth it. The San Diego Zoo is one of the only zoos in the country that has pandas on view.  

Like LEGOLAND, the zoo has a fantastic app designed to make your experience easy. With locations of every animal on the map in addition to dining, shopping and bathrooms, it made navigation a breeze. The map gave us real-time directions with an ETA included. Be aware that the zoo is extremely hilly, so wear comfortable shoes. There is enough space though in the entirety of the zoo to easily maneuver a double stroller, which is great for young kids. They also have elevators in many places as well. As far as dining, there are many options throughout the park to match a variety of dietary requirements.  

Where to Stay near the San Diego Zoo – Visiting San Diego with Kids

The zoo is close to the San Diego airport, only about five miles away. There are many places you can stay in that region that would provide easy access to both the zoo and the airport. It’s also worth noting that in case you are wanting to plan a last-minute trip to the San Diego Zoo, they do offer free admission all October for children under 11. They’ve also done this in previous years, so keep an eye on October for a potential zoo trip in addition to considering it for your spring break or summer plans.  

The San Diego Zoo is also famous for their conservation work. The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance integrates wildlife health and care, science and education to develop sustainable conservation solutions. By visiting the zoo, you’re not only enjoying a vacation with your family – but you’re also helping support conservation efforts for the international nonprofit organization.  

Whether you’re feeding giraffes at the San Diego Zoo or watching your kids drive their first LEGO car at LEGOLAND, San Diego is the kind of destination that keeps families coming back. With the ease of flying out of PDX and so many options for fun, relaxation and discovery, it’s the great spot for your next spring break or summer adventure.  

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