Location: Rancho Bernardo
Top Things to do in Rancho Bernardo
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10 Things to Do in Rancho Bernardo That You Shouldn't Miss
Rancho Bernardo in United States, from Nouth America region, is best know for Nature & Wildlife Areas. Discover best things to do in Rancho Bernardo with beautiful photos and great reviews from traveller around the world here!
Restaurants in Rancho Bernardo
1. San Diego Zoo Safari Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 3 reviews
Step into an adventure like no other at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park! Your exciting safari experience includes seeing herds of rhinos, giraffes, antelope, zebras, and more roaming natural habitats, a choice of guided safari expeditions, and beautiful walking trails to see exotic animals. Come experience the excitement of getting up close and personal with rare Sumatran tigers at Tiger Trail, the Safari Park's newest experience!
Reviewed By den r - Los Angeles, California
We've been to many zoos and animal parks and enjoyed the San Diego Zoo Safari Park immensely. All the keepers/staff were eager to help in giving directions or detailing an animal's behavior. Of all the parks in SD, we found the staff in this park to be superb in attitude and knowledge.
TIPS:
1. Don't miss the cheetah run and be sure to not stand where the trucks will enter. Across that area is the best for photography. Especially at the end when the cheetahs get a snack.
2. For the safari tram, sit on the left side to be closest to the animals.
3. Tram ride in the early evening is best as the animals are most active and sometimes getting fed.
4. The small critter shows are informative and let you see the animals literally an arms length away.
5. The gift shops have some unique items not found in the other SD parks.
Easily walkable for any ages. Even my 80 year old Mother and 9 year old niece had no problems ambling around this bite-sized park.
2. Rancho Bernardo Historical Museum
Overall Ratings
4 based on 7 reviews
Reviewed By VerandaKitty - Poway, California
Who knew that there were battles fought in nearby ranch country? Really? Archaeological digs that the public can join? Battle re-enactments in this county? American Indians lived within miles? All this and more are some of the discussions that you might have with volunteers at this museum. There are only a few glass display cases with local memorabilia,
but photographs of early Rancho Bernardo can be ordered. There are occasional speakers on historical topics and probably lots more that I haven't encountered. I was charmed with
the quaint ivy-covered "cottage" location in a century- old winery in Rancho Bernardo. The
Bernardo Winery is still growing grapes and serving good wine and there is Cafe Merlot which serves a good breakfast and lunch just steps from the museum. The museum's path also passes a terrific little women's casual wear boutique, a vintage jewelry shop and chocolates in another tiny cottage. If you love beautiful flowers, hummingbirds, lunch and wine with your history lesson, this is a choice destination.
3. Double Peak Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 103 reviews
Reviewed By ExploringViking96 - San Diego, California
This is the perfect park to check out the best views you can find in the entire county. You can see on a clear day from Mt. Laguna to Catalina Island and all of downtown San Diego. By far a great location to soak up the views and check out the sunset!!!
4. Potato Chip Rock
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 123 reviews
Reviewed By elixirpost - cerritos
Good work out if you take the eight mile round trip hike from the Poway lake. Other one is shorter and less scenic? As the saying goes, It is the Journey Not the Destination!
Warning! Think twice before taking the round trip option while returning since it can be very tiring and could add two extra miles of descend/ascend which could be harsh to your already beaten body? Suggest using the same stretch to get back to the parking lot from the junction shown in the picture!
Spring may be the best time to go. Go early morning if you are going in summer. Carry plenty of water, use sun screen and take hiking poles to make it a good experience!
Go on a week day to avoid crowd which can be very annoying based on the comments! Also parking is FREE except weekends and holidays!
Google "City of Poway trails system" for the latest conditions, trail maps and info before your trip!
5. Stone Brewing
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 365 reviews
Stone Brewing was founded in 1996 by Steve Wagner and Greg Koch in North County San Diego, CA. It is the largest craft brewery in the southwestern United States and has been named "All-Time Top Brewery on Planet Earth" by BeerAdvocate magazine - TWICE! A recently announced $26.6M expansion plan (that includes a hotel among other lofty ventures) is underway, as are developments to become the first American craft brewery to open a brewhouse in Europe. The adjacent Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens plays host to countless wildly popular beer and dining events, and is the largest purchaser of local, organic produce in San Diego County, including a growing amount from their own Stone Farms! In addition to promoting ethical eating, the restaurant boasts a lush one-acre outdoor garden as well as a line-up of 32 rotating taps and 100+ bottled craft beer selections for guests to enjoy.
Reviewed By mtjtkd - Phoenix, Arizona
This will surprise you if you think you're going to a typical craft brewery tasting room. This is a really nice restaurant with outstanding food, most of it Asian inspired, although not traditional by any means. Beer is good too with a strong emphasis on IPAs. Has a nice gift shop. Indoor and outdoor seating.
6. Old Poway Park
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 104 reviews
Reviewed By HPotter8 - Los Angeles, California
We just stumbled onto this little gem of a park and old town in Poway on our way to the neighboring Wholly Crepes breakfast joint. It is a delightful way to spend a leisurely hour and some time just wandering around the beautiful small park, gazebo, and the restored old buildings associated with the train station. On the weekends, you can also purchase tickets for quick train rides around the park.
Don't forget to bring a decent camera since the park provides a nice setting for family pictures and portraits.
Unfortunately, I cannot recommend the Hamburger Factory restaurant- cute western decor sadly does not make up for the below average food.
7. Orfila Vineyards & Winery
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 205 reviews
Reviewed By mj45cal
What a winery. They have beautiful tasting room with all kinds of neat Knick knacks for sell. Clothing, food, chilled wines and a outdoor area to nosh and drink wine. Food trucks and entertainment. But the wines were the let down. Maybe it’s because we went to two other wineries prior to visiting Orfila which had some of the best Ramona/Escondido had to offer. The wines in one form or the other did not impress. We bought 6 tastes. The Viognier held promise as it filled the mouth but disappoints on the way down. It seemed to finish a bit short. The two Chardonnays were okay but for the price they were not worth it. The Lotus was a nice wine but seemed a bit flat. The rose really is a version of white zinfandel. For a first time wine drinker this is the wine to buy. The only red we liked was the Montepulciano. It was a nice wine. A bit tart but nice fruit. This is not the best representative of the Ramona/Escondido area wineries.
8. Iron Mountain
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 65 reviews
Reviewed By Cecilia S - San Francisco, California
Distance round trip: ~ 6 miles
Time: (Night hike) ~ 3.5 hours with 30 minute break at the top (~7:30-11pm)
Difficulty: Moderately easy if you are a hiker. Rocky.
This was one of our "training for Mt. Whitney" hikes. I had about 35-38 lbs on my back. Started our hike right around sunset at 7:30pm-ish. Purpose of our hike was a trial run of hiking at night.
The beginning is pretty easy and very scenic with the sun setting behind us. The terrain is quite rocky in the middle, but if you have sturdy hiking shoes, it shouldn't be a problem. The mountain really doesn't look super high, but there are lot of switch backs, so it feels a lot longer. I have not done this hike in the day time, but at night, the view is simply beautiful. When you get to the top, there are a couple of picnic tables for you to sit, recharge, and enjoy the view. You can see the city lights light up, Coronado bridge (I think), and the surrounding mountains.
Even if you're not training for anything, doing a night hike at Iron Mountain is wonderful and definitely something I would love to do again. There's only one main path up and down, so it's really hard to get lost. There were several times where we just stopped, turned off all our lights, and watched the stars light up the sky.
If I do this night hike again, I would bring a bandana or scarf to wrap around my face/mouth because there were tons of little moths that were attracted to my headlamp. I'm sure I swallowed a bunch of little flies. Other things we saw on the hike: little rodents, a baby garden snake, lots of centipedes and spiders, and stink bugs.
Temperature wise, I think it gets quite hot in the day time. Even when we started our hike at 7:30pm, it was about 75 degrees in May. It got a tad bit cooler once it was dark, but it stayed a comfortable temperature.
Parking is easy and free. The restrooms are relatively clean. Dog friendly!
9. California Center for the Arts, Escondido
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 118 reviews
With a mission of bringing people together to discover, create and celebrate both the visual and performing arts, the California Center for the Arts, Escondido is the cultural center of North San Diego County. The Center's unique campus includes a 1,500-seat concert hall, a 400-seat theater, a contemporary art museum, art and dance studios, and a full-service conference center with meeting and banquet facilities ready to host corporate gatherings, weddings and other special life events. The Center also runs an extensive education program and produces free community events, such as the Jazz Jam Sessions, 4th of July celebration, Day of the Dead Festival, Holiday Tree Lighting and WOW First Wednesdays performances.
Reviewed By travelernottourist - Mission Viejo, California
We had tickets for Pink Martini and loved the show and space. Seats are very generous in width compared to many theaters. The sound is fantastic. The seating is designed with ore Hester’s seating then multiple tiers and box seats. Did not look to be a bad seat in the house. We were in a Row D and when I saw speakers nearby worried about sound but it was great. Love that there is free parking and pleasant walk to theater. Mostly fast food restaurants close by. Bars were set up once doors opened and some snacks available. Restrooms are downstairs but staircase and elevators readily available.
10. Mount Woodson Trail
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 47 reviews
Reviewed By adventure_freedom - Singapore, null, Singapore
Dont start the hike too late in the day as we did. It is HOT!! We took the shorter route from Mt Woodson Road and the hike should take you about 40min to an hour to reach Potato Chip Rock.
We didn't successfully find it as the sun ate up most or all of our energy! But the landscape is nonetheless spectacular. You can find rocks of all shapes and sizes. Its amazing to note that despite the steep gradient of the trail, the rocks are firmly rooted!
Pictures from any angel is nice! The hike is best done in the morning too.
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