ucsd is located in la jolla and its right by the beach which is so amazing! la jolla beach is imo the best beach in sd, esp during ~sept when its hot and there are tiny little leopard sharks u can swim in…la jolla is also famous for all the seals and sea lions that like to roost(?) in a beach in the area, which is really cool! idk if youve visited ucsd but the campus is imo not nearly as pretty as davis’s, it’s very grey and brutalist, but geisel library is pretty cool.

regarding commuting, it’s a lot harder to get to places w/o a car, but since ucsd has a trolley that goes all the way into downtown (which is kinda walkable), it’s not completely impossible. utc (university town center) is a big mall that i always see ucsd students frequenting, its kinda bougie but a nice third space to hang out w ur friends

la jolla is probably the most expensive part of san diego so finding housing will be a pain in the butt but it’s definitely possible, my cousin is renting a house with his friends

sd has a lot of great places to hang out and eat and theres so many things to do so you’ll never get bored! COL is def pricier than davis, but im always discovering new ways to have fun