December Nights in Balboa Park

Visiting Balboa Park is high on any tourist’s list of things to do in San Diego. The park is filled with San Diego’s top attractions, including great museums, gardens, the San Diego Zoo, and trails for walking, running, and biking. You can fill an entire day exploring the museums in the park–there’s over a dozen!

With the December Nights holiday festival on Dec 2 & 3, the fun extends into the night. Activities start at 3pm on Friday and 12 noon on Saturday. The park will be filled with colorful lights draping the buildings and trees. Plus you’ll find an International Christmas Festival featuring food from around the world, holiday shopping, and entertainment by local performing arts companies.

The park’s museums will be offering free admission from 5-9pm, meaning there’s plenty of time to take in another exhibit. Look for holiday exhibits at The Timken Museum of Art, which showcases its ornaments collection on a Christmas tree, gingerbread houses at the Mingei International Museum, and a model train raring around the holiday tree at the San Diego Model Railroad Museum, among many other museum exhibits in Balboa park.

Best Western Plus Island Palms is a great place to stay for December Nights, or any time. We’re less than 10 miles from Balboa Park, and even close to other top San Diego attractions like SeaWorld, the Gaslamp Quarter, and Old Town. Plus with our amenities, like pools, tennis courts, and walking and biking paths along the water, you don’t have to go far to start having fun.