Escondido, California: Wineries, Hiking & Family Fun

San Diego Zoo Safari Park is a 1,800-acre zoo in San Pasqual Valley near Escondido. A popular weekend getaway in California, the zoo is home to more than 2,600 animals from over 300 species as well as over 3,500 plant species. The park is located in the semi-arid environment of Southern California.

One of its most popular attractions is the Africa Tram, which takes visitors through large African exhibits. The exhibits are free-range enclosures that house animals such as antelope, giraffe, crane, buffalo, and rhinoceros. The park is engaged in the California Condor Recovery Program, breeding condors in an attempt to bring this endangered animal from the brink of extinction. San Diego Zoo functions as a quarantine center for wild animals imported into the USA and it also houses the largest veterinary hospital in the world.

15500 San Pasqual Valley Rd, Escondido, CA 92027

Located in Escondido, California, just across the street from Grape Day Park, San Diego Children's Discovery Museum is a cheerful indoor and outdoor museum with interactive, hands-on educational exhibits for children. The museum was created with the goal to inspire children to imagine, explore, and experiment through science, art, and exhibits from cultures of the world. There are four main areas at the museum: Imagine, Explore, Experiment, and Discover. The exhibits change frequently and include things like the Kids Global Village, Toddler Tidepool, Reading Book Nook, Discovery Sail Boat, Magnification Station, Our Town: Careers & Community, a magnetic ball wall, a wind tunnel, Floating Objects, Base Camp: Archaeology, Paleontology, and Geology, an edible garden, a chicken coop, a pollinator garden, an outdoor art studio, the Water Wise exhibit, and others.

320 N Broadway, Escondido, CA 92025, Phone: 760-233-7755

The California Center for the Arts in Escondido opened in 1994 on a green 12-acre campus in downtown Escondido, next to City Hall and Grape Day Park. The center was designed by Charles Moore, in his interpretation of Southern California architecture, inspired by the area’s Spanish colonial heritage. The center's campus includes a 1,500-seat concert hall, a contemporary art museum, a 400-seat theater, art studios, dance studios, and a conference center with facilities for weddings, corporate gatherings, and other celebrations. The center also has a rich education program and produces free community events every year, such as the WOW First Wednesdays performances, 4th of July celebration, Jazz Jam Sessions, Day of the Dead Festival, and holiday tree lighting.

340 N Escondido Blvd, Escondido, CA 92025, Phone: 760-839-4138

Located in northern San Diego County, high on top of the west side of Palomar Mountain, Palomar Mountain State Park is a 1,862-acre forested area with massive large pines, firs, cedar trees, and patches of flowering meadows. The park, at the average altitude of 5,000 feet, has a range of hiking trails with various difficulty levels, campsites, a fishing pond full of trout, and spectacular coastal vistas, especially from Boucher Hill Summit with its historic Boucher Hill Fire Lookout. This summit is listed as one of the Sierra Club’s Hundred Peaks. The trails are open for hiking only, and neither dogs nor mountain bikes are allowed.

19952 State Park Drive, Palomar Mountain, CA 92060, Phone: 760-742-3462

Located in a 12-acre natural habitat within Kit Carson Park and the Iris Sankey Arboretum, Queen Califia's Magical Circle is a sculpture garden created by French artist Niki de Saint Phalle, the only one of its kind in the US. The garden consists of nine massive scale sculptures, a 400-foot long “snake wall” of varied height, and maze at the entryway. There are also benches and native shrubs and trees in the interior plaza and along the perimeter, which are sculpturally integrated in the garden. The “snake wall” is a wall with a huge playful serpent, decorated in colorful mosaics, on top. There are nine freestanding large sculptures in the garden, and the star of the garden is the sculpture of Queen Califia on the back of a five-legged eagle.

3333 Bear Valley Pkwy, Escondido, CA 92025, Phone: 760-839-4691

Activities and Attractions for Couples:

The Elfin Forest Recreational Reserve is a 784-acre park and recreational area, one of San Diego County’s most valuable natural resources. The reserve has about 11 miles of hiking, biking and equestrian trails, simple picnic areas, and fascinating mountain viewing spots. The reserve is home to a range of native plant communities such as oak woodland, oak riparian, coastal sage scrub, and chaparral. The reserve has been designed to improve the domestic water supply and natural resource management and to offer various recreational opportunities. Docents and park rangers offer guided tours and exploration programs for students in order to improve environmental awareness and the conservation of local watersheds.

8833 Harmony Grove Rd, Escondido, CA 92029, Phone: 760-632-4212

Lake Hodges Pedestrian Suspension Bridge is located about 1,000 feet from the I-15 freeway bridge over Lake Hodges in San Diego County. Built for pedestrians and bikers, this stressed ribbon-style bridge is 990 feet long and 12 feet wide and was designed by T.Y. Lin International. A stressed ribbon-style bridge can have a long span (in this case 330 feet) between piers, what means that only two piers need to be in the lake. In addition, this type of bridge has a narrow profile – it is only 16 inches deep. There are only four other stressed ribbon-style bridges in the entire western hemisphere. How high the bridge is over the water depends on the amount of rainfall in the area. When it rains a lot, the bridge crosses a fast running river, but when it is dry, the riverbed is covered growing weeds in what locals jokingly call that Hodges National Forest.

Daley Ranch is a 3,058-acre conservation area established in 1996 by the City of Escondido for the preservation of a diverse and biologically unique habitat of great regional importance. The ranch contains a range of natural plant communities such as oak woodlands, chaparral, coastal sage scrub, grasslands, and riparian plants. Daley Ranch is located at the northeastern edge of Escondido, north of Dixon Lake. The ranch contains an historical red barn known as the Daley Ranch House as well as other outbuildings of historical interest. Rangers offer tours of the Ranch House every second Sunday. Visitors can enjoy six distinct trails that total 20 miles in length, suitable for hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding.

3024 La Honda Drive, Escondido, CA 92027, Phone: 760-839-4680

What to do if you are traveling with kids:

San Pasqual Battlefield State Historic Park is a 20-acre park located next to San Diego Zoo Safari Park near Escondido, California. The park was established to honor the soldiers who fought in the bloody 1846 Battle of San Pasqual during the Mexican-American War. The United States troops were commanded by General Stephen Kearny, and the Californio forces by General Andres Pico. The park is a California State Park and a California Historical Landmark and is open only on weekends. A visitors center features displays that describe the history of the San Pasqual Valley, a number of various exhibits, and a movie about the famous battle. Volunteers from the San Pasqual Battlefield Volunteer Association offer occasional living history presentations.

15808 San Pasqual Valley Rd, Escondido, CA 92027, Phone: 760-737-2201

Established in 1967, Kit Carson Park is a spacious 285-acre municipal park in Escondido, California. The park was named after the famous scout Kit Carson, who guided Captain John C. Frémont during his exploration of the Sierra Nevada. The park is located in a valley about 5 miles west of the location of the Battle of San Pasqual. Visitors can see a monument on Mule Hill commemorating the battle, located about 1 mile from the park. Around 100 acres of the park are developed while the rest is left wild as natural habitat. The developed part contains three lakes, hiking trails, the Queen Califia’s Magical Circles sculpture garden, the Iris Sankey Arboretum, the Eucalyptus Leaf Court public art project, the Girl Scouts of America Program Center, picnic areas, a large outdoor amphitheater, a kids’ playground, a covered picnic shelter, courts and fields for tennis, soccer, softball, and baseball.

3333 Bear Valley Pkwy, Escondido, CA 92025, Phone: 760-839-4691