Explore the real-world places that appear in The Terminal List by Jack Carr. Each location on the map shows what happens there in the novel, the real history of the place, and what's there today. Featured locations include Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, Hotel del Coronado, Orange Avenue, Coronado, Naval Medical Center San Diego, Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery and 5 more.
Silver Strand Boulevard, Coronado: home base of the SEAL Teams
Lieutenant Commander James Reece belongs to the West Coast Naval Special Warfare community centered at Coronado. His SEAL platoon was wiped out in a catastrophic ambush on his last deployment, and the base is the world of his career and his teammates. It anchors the military order he leaves behind as he turns from operator to avenger.
The base was established in the early 1940s to train amphibious forces and became the home of West Coast Navy SEAL teams and Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training. It is one of the most important special operations installations in the United States.
The base is an active, secure military installation and is not open for general public visits. Visitors can see the area from the Silver Strand and learn about the SEALs at the nearby museum in Fort Pierce, Florida, or in local exhibits.
1500 Orange Avenue, Coronado: iconic island landmark
The Victorian Hotel del Coronado is the best-known landmark of Reece's home island. It is part of the Coronado setting where he returns to what should be a peaceful life with his wife Lauren and daughter Lola. Its postcard beauty contrasts with the violence that follows his homecoming.
Opened in 1888, the hotel was among the largest resort hotels in the world and has hosted presidents and celebrities. It is a National Historic Landmark and famously served as a filming location for Some Like It Hot.
The hotel operates as a beachfront resort open to guests and visitors, with restaurants, shops, and a historical exhibit. Its beach is among the most photographed in Southern California.
Visit: Hotel del Coronado (landmark)
Coronado's main street: the small-town Navy community
Coronado is the quiet naval town where Reece's family lives while he is deployed. The Reece family's home life, built around Lauren and Lola, is the emotional core of the novel. It is the life the conspirators destroy on the day of his return, setting off his campaign of revenge.
Orange Avenue has been Coronado's main commercial street since the late 19th century, running from the Hotel del Coronado toward the ferry landing. The town grew around its ties to the Navy and the resort industry.
The street is lined with independent shops, cafes, restaurants, and a community theater and library. It retains a small-town feel and is a popular place for visitors to walk.
Visit: Orange Avenue (landmark)
34800 Bob Wilson Drive, Balboa Park: military hospital
After the ambush and the loss of his family, Reece's medical care brings him through the military hospital system in San Diego, where he is treated for his physical and psychological injuries. This environment is part of the chain of events that exposes what happened to his team and why the military is not a place he can trust anymore.
Naval Medical Center San Diego traces its roots to a hospital on the Balboa Park grounds in 1917. It is one of the Navy's largest medical facilities and treats returning combat casualties.
The hospital continues to serve active-duty personnel, veterans, and their families as a working military medical center. Public access is restricted to those with base access.
1800 Cabrillo Memorial Drive, Point Loma: military burial ground
The funerals and remembrance of fallen service members form the grief that drives Reece's story. Fort Rosecrans, on the bluffs above San Diego Bay, is the natural resting place for Navy and SEAL dead and stands for the personal cost of the losses he suffers. It evokes the weight of a team and family he has lost.
Established in 1882 on land that was part of an Army post, the cemetery became a national cemetery in 1934. It holds more than 100,000 service members, including many Navy veterans and Medal of Honor recipients.
The cemetery is open to visitors who come to honor veterans. Its hillside rows overlook the Pacific and San Diego Bay.
Visit: Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery (monument)
Interstate 5 to Coronado: the gateway to the island
The bridge links Reece's Coronado home with mainland San Diego, where he moves between the naval community and the wider world as he begins hunting those responsible. Its sweeping curve over the bay is the main route between the island and the city in the novel's local geography.
The 2.1-mile bridge opened in 1969, replacing the ferry as the main link between Coronado and San Diego. Its curved span allows navy ships to pass beneath it.
The bridge is a major commuter route and a skyline icon, and Chicano Park lies under its San Diego approach. Pedestrians can view it from Embarcadero and Coronado ferry landings.
Visit: San Diego-Coronado Bridge (landmark)
Fifth Avenue, Downtown San Diego: nightlife district
Downtown San Diego forms part of the city backdrop of Reece's world, where SEALs and veterans socialize and where he operates in the open as he moves between targets. The bars and streets reflect the Navy town atmosphere that the novel draws on.
The Gaslamp Quarter was San Diego's commercial and entertainment hub in the late 1800s and declined in the mid-20th century. A 1980s revitalization restored its Victorian buildings.
The historic district is filled with restaurants, bars, theaters, and hotels, and it is close to Petco Park and the convention center. It is one of the city's busiest nightlife areas.
Visit: Gaslamp Quarter (landmark)
5000 Highway 75, Coronado: beach along the SEAL training coast
The long stretch of the Silver Strand between the Pacific and San Diego Bay is the training ground where SEALs run, swim, and endure BUD/S. The coast is part of the physical and mental toughness that defines Reece, and it evokes the discipline he later turns to his campaign.
The Silver Strand is a narrow spit connecting Coronado to Imperial Beach, used by the military since the early 20th century. It became a state beach in 1932 and is next to Navy training areas.
The state beach has swimming, camping, and picnic areas on both the ocean and bay sides. Visitors often see Navy training activity nearby.
Visit: Silver Strand State Beach (park)
Point Loma peninsula: submarine and naval command hub
Point Loma represents the larger naval and intelligence infrastructure surrounding San Diego, the institutional world from which Reece is cut off after he is separated from the military's chain of command. It is part of the military landscape of the region where the conspiracy touches those he once served with.
The Point Loma peninsula has been a military site since Fort Rosecrans was established in the 19th century. Naval Base Point Loma was formed in 2010 from the consolidation of several installations.
The base supports submarine, communications, and fleet operations and is closed to casual visitors. The nearby Cabrillo National Monument offers public views of the harbor and the base.
1800 Cabrillo Memorial Drive, Point Loma: overlook of San Diego Bay
The tip of Point Loma offers the sweeping view of San Diego Bay, Coronado, and the Pacific that frames Reece's home turf. It is a setting for reflection that echoes the novel's themes of loss and the lonely path he walks after his family is gone.
The monument commemorates Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo's 1542 landing and was established in 1913. It includes the Old Point Loma Lighthouse, built in 1855.
The National Park Service site has a visitor center, the historic lighthouse, tide pools, and panoramic overlooks. It is popular with tourists and whale watchers in winter.
Visit: Cabrillo National Monument (monument)
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