Ocean Beach is located south-west of Mission Bay Park, the largest facility of its kind in the world at 4,600 acres, provides many free recreational activities for visitors and refuge for wildlife in seven wildlife preserves.

Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo named Mission Bay False Bay in 1542 when he discovered a vast tidal marsh that sometimes confused sailers into believing it was the larger San Diego Bay to the south.

A massive dredging effort in the 1960's transformed what was once a sprawling swampy wetland into a major tourist attraction and massive playground for both visitors and locals.

Water activities are plentiful on Mission Bay Park's 27 miles of bayfront and 17 miles of oceanfront beaches ? Mission Beach and Pacific Beach. Separate designated areas are provided for swimming, fishing and sailing and power boating. Free sporting events at Mission Bay include professional volleyball, jetski, over-the-line and waterski competitions and exhibitions.

Vacation rentals are available in all three communities with more funky, laid back accommodations in Mission Beach and Pacific Beach and more moderately priced or luxury accommodations in Mission Bay. Mission Bay and Pacific Beach Hotels and resorts are also available in a variety of price ranges, but book early because this is San Diego's most popular vacation area.

In addition to a Visitor's Information Center with an RV pump-out station, Mission Bay Park has children's play areas, picnic shelters, barbecues, fire rings, basketball courts, sand volleyball courts and a horseshoe court. There are bicycle and walking paths throughout the park all free to the public.

Swimming areas are staffed with lifeguards during summer months and rest rooms and showers are also available.

Fiesta Island in Mission Bay Park is a nesting place for many birds including the house finch, horned lark, western meadowlark and mourning dove. The wildlife preserves at Mission Bay are home to a number of endangered species including the Least Tern, light-footed clapper rail and Belding's savannah sparrow. Lots of other kinds of birds can be seen throughout the year at Mission Bay park including the great blue heron, many species of duck, loons, osprey and egrets.

SeaWorld San Diego

Another place at Mission Bay to enjoy wildlife is the famous SeaWorld San Diego theme park. Entertainment and education are the order of the day as killer whale, Shamu, and friends provide daily shows.

Take our SeaWorld San Diego Tour which includes round-trip transportation from your hotel, park admission and shows.

Several SeaWorld San Diego animal shows are provided, the most famous of which is the Shamu Adventure. During The Shamu Adventure, killer whales perform spectacular behaviors with their trainers.

SeaWorld San Diegos killer whale family added a new member in 2003 with the birth of Grandbaby Shamu. The birth marked the worlds second successful artificial insemination of a marine mammal. The first birth as a result of artificial insemination happened in September 2001 with the birth of Baby Shamu.

There's also Dolphin Discovery at Sea World San Diego which showcases bottlenose dolphins and pilot whales. In the photo at right high-flying dolphins leap over their trainers at the Dolphin Discovery show. Guests seated in the first 10 rows of Dolphin Stadium have a very good chance that they may get wet ? not necessarily a bad thing on a hot summer day.

Fools with Tools is a comedic presentation utilizing sea lions in their own home repair show where Clyde the sea lion shows off and gets the best of his trainer. Sea Lion and Otter Stadium has been transformed into a television studio where California sea lions, otters and walruses compete for attention and the spotlight.

Other shows broaden the focus beyond animals with day and night time spectacular entertainment.

Amphibian creatures from the popular, daytime show Cirque de la Mer come out at night, for the Mistique de la Mer show mystifying guests with stilt walking, hand balancing, aerial performances and more. Show starts Memorial Day weekend and continues through Labor Day.

R.L. Stine's Haunted Lighthouse, a 4-D movie experience that opened at SeaWorld San Diego in May 2003, stars actors Michael McKean, Lea Thompson and Christopher Lloyd. The 22-minute movie, which is based on the original story by world-famous author R.L. Stine, tells the story of two children who meet a sailor and nearly meet their end in a haunted lighthouse.

There are a number of animal attractions at SeaWorld San Diego, of course. Shark Encounter is a 57 foot walk-through tube where you can practically reach out and touch the hundreds of sand tiger, bonnethead, blacktip and whitetip sharks.

Beluga whales are just one of the many intriguing animals at Wild Arctic, an attraction that gives guests a North Pole experience to be remembered.

Kaboodle, a Pacific walrus born at SeaWorld last May, enjoys her new home, on public display with her mom, Kit, at the park's Wild Arctic attraction. Kaboodle weighed approximately 110 pounds at birth. Her birth marked the first walrus birth at SeaWorld San Diego in 10 years and the second successful walrus birth in the park's 40-year history.

Additional attractions, including the Forbidden Reef, Tide Pools, Seal and Sealion Feeder Pool and bottlenose dolphins at Rockey Point Preserve, allow you to actually touch and or feed a number of sea creatures.

There are several fun and exciting rides at SeaWorld San Diego including Shipwreck Rapids where you are almost guaranteed to get wet and the new Journey to Atlantis roller coaster, which you can see from the picture below involves water as well. Why not make a big splash

There's lots more Manatee Rescue, Flamingo Cove, Clydesdale Hamlet, Aquarium de la Mer, Garden of Discovery, Anheuser-Busch Hospitality Center and a Games and Entertainment Center as well as several places to eat and shop so you'll want to plan to spend a full day at SeaWorld San Diego at Mission Bay.