Located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, San Diego is widely known as “America’s Finest City.” Famous for its amazing weather and miles and miles of white-sand beaches, the city offers an abundance of fun attractions for visitors of all ages in all seasons.
Boasting a citywide population of more than 1.4 million and more than 3.3 million residents countywide, San Diego is California’s second largest city and the United States’ eighth largest. San Diego County is made up of 18 incorporate cities and towns along with other charismatic neighborhoods and communities, such as Del Mar, Coronado, Rancho Santa Fe, Carlsbad, Chula Vista, Solana Beach, and so on.
Discovered in 1542 by European explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, San Diego was originally named San Miguel. The bay and area of present-day San Diego was given its current name 60 years later, in 1602. European settlement in present-San Diego County first began with the founding of the first Catholic mission, Mission San Diego de Alcala, in 1769. From 1821 through 1848, this area belonged to Mexico.
As a result of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848, San Diego County became part of the United States, thus ending the U.S.-Mexican War. It was named the birthplace of California during the time of the creation of California statehood in 1850. Original San Diego was located at the foot of Presidio Hill, in the area now known as Old Town San Diego State Historic Park.
San Diego is renowned for its incredible climate, which is characterized as warm, dry summers and mild winters with most of the annual precipitation falling between December and March. The average yearly temperature measures above 70 degrees, with an average of just 42 rainy days per year.
America’s Finest City also showcases many popular attractions for the whole family to enjoy. Some of these include Sea World San Diego, LEGOLAND California, the world-famous San Diego Zoo, the Cabrillo National Monument, Balboa Park, several casinos, and many historic parks and museums.
Another attraction of San Diego is its immediacy to Mexico. Because they share an international border, Tijuana and San Diego are grouped together as an international metropolitan area. Many visitors make their way south to enjoy luxury spas, beachfront resorts, golf courses, multicultural festivals and celebrations, colorful neighborhoods, and the nightlife.
San Diego also possesses a number of sports teams, ranging from college athletics to professional. The Chargers and Padres take center stage as the two professional teams in the city. The San Diego State University Aztecs and the University of San Diego Toreros are NCAA Division I teams, while the University of California, San Diego Tritons partake in the NCAA Division II athletic events.
San Diego’s economy primarily evolves are military, tourism, research and manufacturing, and biotechnology. San Diego has been heavily involved in military and defense since the days of World War II, and it currently hosts the largest naval fleet in the world. Tourism is also a major industry in the city. Annually, the city hosts more than 30 million visitors. The city is also home to several major producers of wireless cellular technology, such as Qualcomm and LG Electronics. Because of UCSD and other research institutions, biotechnology & life science has made a large presence in the county. There are more than 400 biotechnology companies in the region alone.