What to do in or at the Ocean
Report by Daniel H.
If you decide to study in San Diego you should definitely go to the ocean and try some popular activities there. While the beaches are pretty empty during the week, they get very crowded on weekends or during vacation. As you will mostly have classes in the afternoon during the week, I can only recommend trying to surf early in the morning. The waves are the best early in the morning; the beach is almost empty and if you’re lucky you can meet some nice dolphins while surfing.
Belmont Park
Certainly if you’re not a big fan of surfing you can just hang out at the beach, play volleyball (they have nets there), Frisbee or whatever you like to play at the beach. For you who don’t like the cold water of the sea you can enjoy the beach area at Belmont Park. Next to Belmont Park (http://www.belmontpark.com/), a small amusement park free of charge offers many attractions to do. You can find a mini golf court, a laser tag area, a games hall and many more things next to the big wooden rollercoaster.
Wavehouse
My personal highlight and favorite place in San Diego is the Wavehouse, which is also located in Belmont Park, right next to the beach walk. The Wavehouse in San Diego is one of just 5 in the world, which offers two artificial kinds of waves to surf, the smaller flowrider for beginners and the flowbarrel for advanced flowriders.
As a regular flowboard 1 hour session on the flowbarrel is relatively expensive, I recommend the membership to all of you who get addicted to this fantastic sport. If you stay at least 3 months (necessary for membership) you can save a lot of money. Many of my friends who didn’t want to try the Wavehouse still really like the place and even I went there many times without going to surf there because you can just enjoy yourself there.
Ocean Beach
Next to the athletes riding the waves is a bar and restaurant which offers affordable and good food. You can just hang out there, listen to the music, watch the surfers, and enjoy the nice view over the beach. After the sunset you can relax next to the fire area and have some drinks.
If you prefer to be at a less crowded place to enjoy the sunset I recommend you to go to Ocean Beach. There you can watch the sunset, relax and have a bonfire at the fire places at the beach (Bonfires are not allowed at many other beach areas).
