Most visitors move through Balboa Park in motion. They pass from the San Diego Museum of Art to the Botanical Building, cross El Prado, and continue toward the zoo entrance in a steady flow of landmarks and open sightlines. The experience feels continuous — structured, familiar, and directional.
But the park is not only defined by what is seen. It is also shaped by what is passed through.
Among its major destinations are gardens and pathways that rarely register as places to stop. They sit in plain view, yet often immediately fade from memory. Their role is quieter: to shape movement, shift scale, and guide transitions between architecture and open space.
Much of this structure dates to the 1915–1916 Panama-California Exposition, when the park was developed as a unified cultural landscape. The monumental buildings defined its public identity. The surrounding gardens and circulation routes were planned in relation to them, forming a connected sequence of spaces across the site.
View of Dorothy Taylor Chamberlain standing at the Botanical Garden beside the Lily Pond in Balboa Park in the 1920s. (Photo courtesy of the San Diego History Center)Alcazar Garden
The Alcazar Garden sits just behind Casa del Prado. Created for the 1915 exposition and redesigned in 1935, it reflects Spanish courtyard traditions influenced by gardens in Seville.
The change upon entering is immediate.
Sound softens. The scale tightens. Hedges define the space in precise geometric patterns. Tile fountains appear at measured intervals. Walkways narrow into deliberate paths that guide movement rather than expand it.
Just beyond its edges, the park continues in motion — pedestrian traffic, open plazas, and continuous circulation through some of its busiest corridors. Inside the garden, that movement recedes. The space does not separate itself, but the experience of it shifts noticeably.
Franchon and Marco – Trumpeters – Lily pond – 1935. (Photo courtesy of the San Diego History Center)Botanical Building and Lily Pond
A short walk away, the Botanical Building and Lily Pond shift the atmosphere again. Built for the 1915 exposition, the structure remains one of San Diego’s most recognizable architectural forms.
Many visitors pass through without stopping. It functions as part of a route rather than a destination.
When movement slows, the pond becomes more noticeable. The latticework of the building reflects on the water’s surface, broken by small shifts in light and wind. The structure remains fixed, but the perception of it changes.
The spaces between
Farther into the park, the formal structure gradually loosens.
Paths narrow. Shade increases. Canyon edges replace open plazas. Plantings shift between structured layouts and more natural growth shaped by terrain.
Across the park, gardens and landscape features were developed as part of the broader design established during the 1915–1916 Panama-California Exposition. Rather than existing separately from buildings, plantings and pathways were placed in relation to architecture, helping connect spaces and guide movement through the park.
View of the panorama of Lily Pond and Botanical Building looking north. Possibly photographed from Casa de Balboa or House of Hospitality at the 1935 Expo in Balboa Park in about 1935 or 1936. (Photo courtesy of the San Diego History Center)The landscape also reflects a combination of formal garden design and terrain shaped by natural canyon systems. In some areas, structured plantings sit near more open, naturalized spaces, reflecting different approaches used over time within the park’s development.
What appears today as a series of quiet transitional areas is the result of these layered design relationships between buildings, gardens, and land forms.
A vibrant view of the California Tower rising behind the ornate arches and colorful flower beds of the Alcazar Garden in Balboa Park. Designed for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition, this Spanish-Colonial Revival landmark remains one of San Diego’s most iconic architectural achievements. (Photo courtesy of the San Diego History Center)Japanese Friendship Garden
Even the Japanese Friendship Garden, while well known, contains quieter movement beyond its central features. Upper paths extend into hillside plantings and open toward canyon views that shift with elevation and direction.
One b/w stereoview looking over the “Jardines de Montezuma” (Alcazar Garden) from the south balcony of the California Building at the Panama-California Exposition in 1915. (Photo courtesy of the San Diego History Center)The experience changes depending on where and how a visitor moves through it. Some paths open broadly. Others narrow into stillness. The rhythm is not fixed.
A park shaped in sequence
What defines these spaces is not prominence, but sequence. They are encountered between destinations, not apart from them.
Balboa Park is often remembered for its landmarks. But its structure is equally shaped by what exists between them—moments of passage that influence how the entire landscape is experienced.
Aerial view of the gardens. (Photo courtesy of the city of San Diego Digital ArchivesStep slightly off the main paths, and the park changes character. The sound softens. The architecture recedes. And what remains is a landscape designed not only to be seen, but to be moved through slowly, in a continuous unfolding of space.
Read more history stories here and send email to [email protected].
Sources:Balboa Park Conservancy – park and garden history The Cultural Landscape Foundation – Alcazar Garden historyCity of San Diego – Balboa Park overviewJapanese Friendship Garden Society of San Diego
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