Getting there & Getting around

Getting there

There are some direct international flights to San Diego's Lindbergh Field (SAN) airport, but it's not a major gateway. If you're flying in from abroad, you will most likely come via Los Angeles or another big US city. A connecting flight from LA to San Diego takes about 35 minutes, or you could rent a car for the 2.5-hour drive south.

San Diego's Lindbergh Field airport is 5km (3mi) northwest of the downtown area. Municipal buses, shuttle buses and taxis make the short trip downtown an easy one. The major car rental agencies have desks at the airport. If you plan on driving to Mexico, make sure your rental agreement allows this.

The Greyhound bus station in the heart of downtown has luggage lockers and phones and is generally user friendly. Buses run north to Los Angeles (2.5 hours), south to the Mexican border (half an hour) and east to Phoenix, Tucson, El Paso and other US cities.

The colonnaded Santa Fe train depot - one of the Spanish Colonial-style structures built at the time of the 1915 exposition - is the locus of Amtrak's only services to and from the city, all of which run along the coast. The San Diegan goes to LA (three hours) several times daily, with some LA trains continuing to Santa Barbara.

Getting around

The city bus system covers most of the metropolitan area and is the most convenient way of getting around if you're not staying out late at night. Two trolley lines run from the terminal near the railway station at the western edge of the downtown grid. One heads south to the Mexican border at San Ysidro, the other heads east through the downtown area to El Cajon.

A commuter rail service operates from the Santa Fe depot along the coast north of the city in the morning and evening rush hours. A ferry shuttles between Coronado and the Broadway Pier, on the extreme western edge of the downtown area. There are great cycle routes in Pacific Beach, Mission Beach, Mission Bay and Coronado. Some routes on MTS buses have a bike rack, and bikes can be transported without extra charge.