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Thomas Kelley

What's open on Christmas Day 2026 in San Diego?

5 min read Checked October 28, 2026Best for Holidays 2026 Report a correction

The San Diego Zoo is open every day, Christmas included, and the Safari Park is listed 9 a.m.–3 p.m. Birch Aquarium, USS Midway, Cabrillo, Old Town museums, post offices and banks are closed; Friday trash moves to Saturday.

Zoo
Open Dec 25

Hours vary by season; Christmas Day hours not posted yet

Safari Park
9 a.m.–3 p.m.

Per La Jolla Mom; confirm on the park's hours calendar

City trash
Fri → Sat, Dec 26

No pickup on Christmas Day

MTS
Weekend schedule

Per MTS holiday page; 2026 details pending

The short version

  • San Diego Zoo: open every day of the year, including all holidays, per its help center
  • Closed Dec 25: USS Midway, Birch Aquarium, Cabrillo National Monument, Old Town museums, San Diego Museum of Art
  • City trash: no collection Fri, Dec 25; Friday routes move to Sat, Dec 26
  • MTS runs a weekend schedule on Christmas; 2026 details not posted yet (2025: trolleys every 30 min)
  • Post offices and Federal Reserve banks closed Fri, Dec 25

Christmas 2026 lands on a Friday, so the long weekend is real and most of what stays open is the outdoors and a few big animal parks. The short version: the San Diego Zoo is open on Dec 25, the Safari Park is listed as open 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and USS Midway, Birch Aquarium, Cabrillo National Monument and the Old Town museums are closed. Where a 2026 answer isn't published yet, this page says so and labels last year's pattern.

Attractions: open or closed on Dec 25

Christmas Day 2026 at San Diego attractions

  • San Diego Zoo

    Dec 25, 2026
    Open (every day, including all holidays)
    How sure
    Official help center. Hours vary by season; Christmas Day hours not posted yet

  • San Diego Zoo Safari Park

    Dec 25, 2026
    Open, listed 9 a.m.–3 p.m. (also Dec 24)
    How sure
    La Jolla Mom, updated Oct 16, 2026, describing the park's hours calendar

  • USS Midway Museum

    Dec 25, 2026
    Closed (also closed Thanksgiving)
    How sure
    Museum's own site

  • Birch Aquarium at Scripps

    Dec 25, 2026
    Closed (also closed Thanksgiving and New Year's Day)
    How sure
    Aquarium's own site

  • Cabrillo National Monument

    Dec 25, 2026
    Closed (also closed Thanksgiving); no public access
    How sure
    National Park Service

  • Old Town State Historic Park museums

    Dec 25, 2026
    Closed (also closed Thanksgiving)
    How sure
    California State Parks

  • San Diego Museum of Art / MOPA

    Dec 25, 2026
    Closed (confirmed for Dec 25, 2025)
    How sure
    Museum's December 2025 schedule; 2026 not posted

  • Other Balboa Park museums

    Dec 25, 2026
    Expect closed; Dec 24–25 in past years
    How sure
    City holiday lists from 2023 and 2024; check each museum

  • SeaWorld San Diego

    Dec 25, 2026
    2026 hours not posted
    How sure
    Open on Christmas 2024, 10 a.m.–8 p.m. (San Diego Museum Council). Check the park hours calendar

  • LEGOLAND California

    Dec 25, 2026
    2026 hours not posted
    How sure
    Listed open Christmas 2024; Christmas Bricktacular is on the park's site for select dates Nov 21–Jan 3

  • Beaches, Mission Trails, city golf courses and skate parks

    Dec 25, 2026
    Open
    How sure
    City lists for 2023 and 2024; golf at holiday rates

Sources: San Diego Zoo help center, Midway, Birch Aquarium, NPS, California State Parks, San Diego Museum of Art, La Jolla Mom, San Diego Museum Council, City of San Diego via FOX 5. Checked October 28, 2026.

Dec 24–26 at a glance

  1. Thu, Dec 24

    Christmas Eve

    Safari Park listed 9 a.m.–3 p.m.; Zoo open. In 2025 MTS phone and trip-planning lines closed at 5 p.m.

  2. Fri, Dec 25

    Christmas Day

    Zoo open. Midway, Birch, Cabrillo, Old Town museums, post offices, banks, city offices closed. No trash pickup.

  3. Sat, Dec 26

    Back to normal-ish

    Friday trash routes collected. Safari Park Wild Holidays nights resume. City tree drop-offs opened Dec 26 last year.

Dec 24 and Dec 26 details are last year's pattern unless marked. Checked October 28, 2026.

Buses, trolleys, trash and parking

MTS says it runs a Saturday or Sunday schedule on Christmas Day and New Year's Day, and its page for 2026 holiday details still says to check back. For a precedent, on Dec 25, 2025 all four trolley lines ran every 30 minutes, most buses ran a Sunday schedule, Rapid Express routes 280 and 290 and the rural routes had no service, and the Transit Store and phone line were closed. Each fare-paying adult could bring one friend free.

City of San Diego trash, recycling and green-bin pickup is canceled on Friday, Dec 25, 2026. The City collects one day later for the rest of that week starting on the holiday, so Friday routes are picked up Saturday, Dec 26. Thursday, Dec 24 is not affected. If a private hauler serves you (many apartments and some other cities), ask them. Past years: meters, street sweeping and time limits were not enforced on Dec 25, though other parking rules were. The City has not posted its 2026 list of closed facilities; in 2024 libraries, rec centers, pools, the Miramar Landfill and Balboa Park buildings were closed.

Mail, banks, government and stores

  • Post offices: closed Friday, Dec 25, no regular delivery (AARP's 2026 holiday list, based on USPS).
  • Banks: the Federal Reserve is closed Dec 25, 2026, and banks generally follow it; many branches open on Christmas Eve, sometimes with shorter hours.
  • City and county offices, libraries: closed in every past year checked. Treat Dec 25, 2026 as closed until the City posts its list.
  • DMV: We could not load the DMV's 2026 holiday list, so confirm on dmv.ca.gov before planning a visit.
  • Groceries and pharmacies (2025 pattern, LA-area report): Vons was listed open, Ralphs, Trader Joe's, Target, Walmart and Costco closed, CVS open, and Walgreens limited to select 24-hour stores. Individual stores differ, so call ahead.

New Year's Eve and New Year's Day

New Year's Eve is Thursday, Dec 31 and New Year's Day is Friday, Jan 1, 2027. The Federal Reserve is closed Jan 1, so expect banks and post offices shut, and MTS runs a weekend schedule. Birch Aquarium is closed Jan 1, and Cabrillo's posted closures are only Thanksgiving and Christmas. The City's page lists only 2026 collection holidays, so the Jan 1, 2027 trash shift isn't posted yet. The Safari Park's Wild Holidays nights run Dec 26 through Jan 3 (La Jolla Mom). For the night itself, see New Year's Eve in San Diego.

More for the week: December events, free things to do, San Diego Zoo parking and Balboa Park admission.

Is this still right?

We last checked this tip against its sources on October 28, 2026, and we re-research every tip on a schedule. Things in San Diego change, sometimes overnight.

Event dates, times and prices are set by the organizers and can change or sell out. Confirm with the organizer's own page before you plan around them.

This is general information, not legal, financial, tax, medical or safety advice.

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SOURCES

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