Map view
Lower Yosemite Falls Trail, Yosemite National Park
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: May-Sept
Cost: $
- Park internationally recognized for its cliffs, waterfalls, clear streams, giant sequoia groves, lakes, mountains, meadows, glaciers, and biological diversity
- Almost 95 percent of the park is designated wilderness
- Yosemite is one of the largest and least fragmented habitat blocks in the Sierra Nevada
Disneyland
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Oct
Cost: $$
- Theme park opened in 1955, and the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney
- Since its opening, Disneyland has undergone expansions and major renovations, including the addition of New Orleans Square in 1966, Bear Country in 1972, Mickey's Toontown in 1993, and Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge in 2019
#1 in Best Theme Parks in the World
#9 in Best Theme Parks in the USA
#13 in Best Attractions in the USA
Golden Gate Bridge
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the one-mile-wide (1.6 km) strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean
- Recognized by the American Society of Civil Engineers as one of the Wonders of the Modern World, the bridge is one of the most internationally recognized symbols of San Francisco and California
#2 in Best Landmarks in the USA
#8 in Best Landmarks in the World
#12 in Best Attractions in the USA
Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Monumental structure located in San Francisco, originally constructed for the 1915 Panama–Pacific International Exposition to exhibit works of art
- Completely rebuilt from 1964 to 1974, it is the only structure from the exposition that survives on site
Universal Studios Hollywood
Best time to visit: April-May, Sept-Oct
Cost: $$
- Film studio and theme park in Los Angeles County
- It is one of the oldest and most famous Hollywood film studios still in use
- It was initially created to offer tours of the real Universal Studios sets and is the first of many full-fledged Universal Studios Theme Parks located across the world
#6 in Best Theme Parks in the USA
#8 in Best Theme Parks in the World
#17 in Best Attractions in the USA
Ryan Mountain, Joshua Tree National Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: March-May, Oct-Nov
Cost: $
- Ryan Mountain is a 5,456-foot-high (1,663 m) mountain in Joshua Tree National Park
- It is one of the locations in Joshua Tree that features abundant lichen populations
- It is named after J.D. Ryan, a wealthy rancher and early mining operator in the park
#11 in Best National Parks in the USA
#20 in Best Attractions in the USA
Torrey Pines Beach Trail Loop, Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Reserve that consists of a plateau with cliffs that overlook Torrey Pines State Beach, and a lagoon that is vital to migrating seabirds
- Many different kinds of wildlife and flora are found within the reserve, including bobcat, fox, skunk, raccoon, coyote, rabbit, cacti, coastal chaparral, and the rare Torrey pine
- During whale migration, it is sometimes possible to see several species of whale from the cliffs, including humpback whale and gray whale
Badwater Basin Salt Flats Trail, Death Valley National Park
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: mid Oct-mid May
Cost: $
- Noted as the lowest point in North America and the United States, with a depth of 282 ft (86 m) below sea level
- Consists of a small spring-fed pool of "bad water" next to the road in a sink; the accumulated salts of the surrounding basin make it undrinkable, thus giving it the name. The pool does have animal and plant life, including pickleweed, aquatic insects, and the Badwater snail.
- Adjacent to the pool, where water is not always present at the surface, repeated freeze–thaw and evaporation cycles gradually push the thin salt crust into hexagonal honeycomb shapes
#16 in Best National Parks in the USA
#25 in Best Attractions in the USA
Griffith Observatory, Los Angeles
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Observatory in Los Angeles, in Griffith Park
- Has a close view of the Hollywood Sign and an extensive array of space and science-related displays
- Over 7 million people have been able to view through the 12-inch Zeiss refractor since the observatory's 1935 opening; this is the most people to have viewed through any telescope
Disney California Adventure
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Oct
Cost: $$
- Theme park located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, the park is themed after Disney's interpretation of California, which is manifested through the use of various Disney, Pixar and Marvel Studios properties
- The park opened in 2001, as Disney's California Adventure Park and is the second of two theme parks built at the Disneyland Resort complex, after Disneyland Park
#11 in Best Theme Parks in the USA
#33 in Best Attractions in the USA
Lands End Trail, Golden Gate National Recreation Area
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- One of the largest urban parks in the world, with a size two-and-a-half times that of the consolidated city and county of San Francisco
- Home to over 3,000 plant and animal species, the park encompasses 59 miles (95 km) of bay and ocean shoreline and has military fortifications that span centuries of California history, from the Spanish conquistadors to Cold War-era Nike missile sites
#38 in Best Attractions in the USA
Six Flags Magic Mountain
Best time to visit: April-May, Sept-Oct
Cost: $
- With 20 roller coasters, Six Flags Magic Mountain holds the world record for most roller coasters in an amusement park
- It became the first amusement park to offer 20 roller coasters with the opening of Wonder Woman: Flight of Courage in 2022
#7 in Best Theme Parks in the USA
#21 in Best Theme Parks in the World
#39 in Best Attractions in the USA
Alcatraz Island
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Small island 1.25 miles (2.01 km) offshore from San Francisco
- The island was developed in the mid-19th century with facilities for a lighthouse, a military fortification, and a military prison
- In 1934, the island was converted into a federal prison
- The strong currents around the island and cold water temperatures made escape nearly impossible, and the prison became one of the most notorious in American history
- The prison closed in 1963, and the island is now a tourist attraction
#10 in Best Landmarks in the USA
#21 in Best Landmarks in the World
#48 in Best Attractions in the USA
Coronado Beach
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Swimming, sunbathing, surfing, and other outdoor recreation draws crowds to this scenic, urban beach
#1 in Best Beaches in the USA
#56 in Best Attractions in the USA
Knott's Berry Farm
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Oct
Cost: $
- 57-acre (2,500,000 sq ft) theme park located in Buena Park
- In March 2015, it was the twelfth-most-visited theme park in North America
- It features 40 rides including roller coasters, family rides, dark rides, and water rides
#5 in Best Theme Parks in the USA
#57 in Best Attractions in the USA
Cascade Falls Trail, Lake Tahoe
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada, it straddles the state line between California and Nevada
- Lake Tahoe is the largest alpine lake in North America
- It is the second deepest lake in the United States after Crater Lake in Oregon (1,949 ft or 594 m)
Getty Center
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Campus of the Getty Museum and other programs of the Getty Trust
- The center opened to the public in 1997
- It is well known for its architecture, gardens, and views overlooking Los Angeles
- The center sits atop a hill connected to a visitors' parking garage at the bottom of the hill by a three-car, cable-pulled hovertrain people mover
Moro Rock, Sequoia National Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: June-Aug
Cost: $
- Granite dome rock formation in Sequoia National Park
- A stairway, designed by the National Park Service and built in 1931, is cut into and poured onto the rock, so that visitors can hike to the top
- The view from the rock encompasses much of the Park, including the Great Western Divide
#17 in Best National Parks in the USA
#32 in Most Surreal Attractions in the USA
#66 in Best Attractions in the USA
Carmel Beach, Carmel-by-the-Sea
Best time to visit: April-May
Cost: $
- Curving white sandy beach backed by cypress trees known for surfing, dog walking, and sunsets
Hollywood Sign via Canyon Drive, Griffith Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- American landmark and cultural icon overlooking Hollywood, Los Angeles
- It was originally created in 1923 as a temporary advertisement for a local real estate development, but due to increasing recognition the sign was left up, and replaced in 1978 with a more durable all-steel structure
#72 in Best Attractions in the USA
Fortuna Mountain Trail, Mission Trails Regional Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Park that consists mostly of rugged canyons and hills, with both natural and developed recreation areas
- It is the seventh-largest open space urban park in the United States, consisting of nearly 7,000 acres (28 km2)
- The San Diego River flows through the park
#74 in Best Attractions in the USA
Glass Beach
Best time to visit: June-Sept
Cost: $
- Beach near Fort Bragg, named from a time when it was abundant with sea glass created from years of dumping garbage into an area of coastline near the northern part of the town
- The pounding waves broke down the glass and pottery and tumbled those pieces into the small, smooth, colored pieces that often become jewelry-quality, which cover Glass Beach
USS Midway Museum
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Historical naval aircraft carrier museum located in downtown San Diego, at Navy Pier
- The ship houses an extensive collection of aircraft, many of which were built in Southern California
#6 in Best Museums in the USA
Mosaic Tile House, Venice Beach
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- 1940s home that has been covered inside and out with colored tile and splintered-glass mosaics
#42 in Best Beaches in the USA
Soberanes Canyon Trail, Garrapata State Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: April-May
Cost: $
- Park located on California State Route 1, on the Monterey coast, established in 1979
- California sea lions, harbor seals and sea otters frequent the coastal waters while gray whales pass close by during their yearly migration
California Academy of Sciences
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Research institute and natural history museum in San Francisco, that is among the largest museums of natural history in the world
- Houses over 46 million specimens
- The Academy began in 1853
#19 in Best Museums in the USA
Poplar Beach, Half Moon Bay
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Beach located in the city of Half Moon Bay
- The Coastal Trail links Poplar Beach to Half Moon Bay State Beach along the top of a bluff with scenic views of the Pacific Ocean and the Mavericks surfing location to the north
La Jolla Cove
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Small cove with a beach that is surrounded by cliffs in La Jolla, San Diego
- The area is protected as part of a marine reserve and is popular with snorkelers, swimmers and scuba divers
#11 in Best Beaches in the USA
South Tufa Loop Trail, Mono Lake
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: June-Sept
Cost: $
- Saline soda lake in Mono County, California, formed at least 760,000 years ago as a terminal lake in an endorheic basin
- The lack of an outlet causes high levels of salts to accumulate in the lake which make its water alkaline
- The desert lake has an unusually productive ecosystem based on brine shrimp, which thrive in its waters
- Provides critical habitat for two million annual migratory birds that feed on the shrimp and alkali flies
Joseph Phelps Vineyards, Napa Valley
Best time to visit: March-May, Aug-Oct
Cost: $$
- Upscale tasting room featuring a range of locally-produced wines amid pastoral surrounds
Lady Bird Johnson Grove Trail, Redwood National Park
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: May-Sept
Cost: $
- Complex of one national park and three state parks, containing 139,000 acres (560 km2), and featuring old-growth temperate rainforests
- The four parks protect 45 percent of all remaining coast redwood old-growth forests
- The species is the tallest, among the oldest, and one of the most massive tree species on Earth
Computer History Museum, San Jose
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Museum of computer history, located in Mountain View, the museum presents stories and artifacts of Silicon Valley and the information age, and explores the computing revolution and its impact on society
Mirror Lake via Valley Loop Trail, Yosemite Valley
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: May-Sept
Cost: $
- Glacial valley in Yosemite National Park in the western Sierra Nevada mountains
- The valley is surrounded by high granite summits, and densely forested with pines
- Yosemite Falls is the highest waterfall in North America and is a big attraction especially in the spring, when the water flow is at its peak
- The valley is often regarded as the centerpiece of Yosemite National Park
Fisherman's Wharf , San Francisco
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Neighborhood and popular tourist attraction in San Francisco
- Fisherman's Wharf is best known for being the location of Pier 39, the Cannery Shopping Center, Ghirardelli Square, a Ripley's Believe it or Not museum, the Musée Mécanique, Wax Museum at Fishermans Wharf, and the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park
Creamery Meadow, Bluffs, Panorama, and Ridge Trail Loop, Andrew Molera State Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Relatively undeveloped state park on the Big Sur coast
- Activities at the park include hiking, fishing and beachcombing, with miles of trails winding through meadows, beaches and hilltops
Baker Beach
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Public beach on the peninsula of San Francisco, that lies on the shore of the Pacific Ocean
#25 in Best Beaches in the World
Golden Gate Park Loop
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Large urban park configured as a rectangle, it is similar in shape to but 20 percent larger than Central Park in New York City
- Golden Gate is the third most-visited city park in the United States after Central Park and the Lincoln Memorial
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Largest art museum in the western United States
- It holds more than 150,000 works spanning the history of art from ancient times to the present
- In addition to art exhibits, the museum features film and concert series
#24 in Best Museums in the USA
A Taste of Monterey - Wine Market & Bistro
Best time to visit: April-May
Cost: $
- Oceanfront bistro offering Mediterranean dishes and wine tastings in a bright, relaxed setting
El Moro Canyon Loop Trail, Crystal Cove State Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: April-May, Sept-Oct
Cost: $
- Park encompassing 3.2 miles (5.1 km) of Pacific coastline, inland chaparral canyons, and the Crystal Cove Historic District of beach houses
- Crystal Cove is a stretch of coastal cliffs and a beachfront cove situated between the Pacific Coast Highway and the Pacific Ocean
- The entire park hosts a total of 3 miles of beaches and tide pools, a 1,400 acre marine Conservation Area as well as underwater park, 400 acres of bluffs, and 2,400 acres of canyons
Pope Beach
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Small beach with dunes and pine trees, that lends itself to swimming, boating, cycling and picnicking
#21 in Best Beaches in the USA
Racetrack Playa, Death Valley National Park
Best time to visit: Jan-June, Sept-Dec
Cost: $
- Scenic dry lake feature with "sailing stones" that inscribe linear "racetrack" imprints, located in Death Valley National Park
- The sailing stones are a geological phenomenon found in the Racetrack
- Rocks move when ice sheets just a few millimeters thick start to melt during periods of light wind
- These thin floating ice panels create an ice shove that moves the rocks at up to five meters (16') per minute
#16 in Best National Parks in the USA
#25 in Best Attractions in the USA
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Modern and contemporary art museum located in San Francisco
- The museum was the first museum on the West Coast devoted solely to 20th-century art
- The museum's current collection includes over 33,000 works of painting, sculpture, photography, architecture, design, and media arts
- The museum is one of the largest in the United States overall, and one of the largest in the world for modern and contemporary art
#34 in Best Museums in the USA
Lotusland, Santa Barbara
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Non-profit botanical garden located in Montecito
- The garden is the historic estate of Madame Ganna Walska
- Opened in 1993
Giant Dipper, Santa Cruz
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Historic wooden roller coaster located at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, an amusement park in Santa Cruz
- The Giant Dipper, which replaced the Thompson's Scenic Railway, took 47 days to build and opened in 1924 at a cost of $50,000
- It is one of the most popular wooden roller coasters in the world
The Broad
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Contemporary art museum in Downtown Los Angeles, named for philanthropists Eli and Edythe Broad
- Houses a 2,000 piece collection of contemporary art, featuring 200 artists, including Andy Warhol
- Opened in 2015
Asian Art Museum
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Museum in San Francisco, that specializes in Asian art
- It was founded by Olympian Avery Brundage in the 1960s and has more than 18,000 works of art in its permanent collection, some as much as 6,000 years old
#27 in Best Museums in the USA
Point San Luis Lighthouse, Avila Beach
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Located near Avila Beach, it is the only Prairie Victorian model lighthouse left on the West Coast of the United States
- Constructed in 1890
Seven Bridge Walk, Balboa Park
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Historic urban cultural park in San Diego
- In addition to open space areas, natural vegetation zones, green belts, gardens, and walking paths, it contains museums and several theaters
- Placed in reserve in 1835, the park's site is one of the oldest in the United States dedicated to public recreational use
Balboa Park Botanical Building
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Historic building located in San Diego's Balboa Park, built for the 1915–16 Panama–California Exposition
Seaview and Big Springs Trails Loop, Tilden Regional Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- 2,079-acre regional park in the East Bay, part of the San Francisco Bay Area, purchased in 1936
Cayucos State Beach
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Sandy beach enjoyed for swimming and surfing, located in Cayucos
- Prehistorically this general area of the central coast was inhabited by the Chumash people, who settled the coastal San Luis Obispo area approximately 10,000 to 11,000 BCE, including a large village to the south of Cayucos at Morro Creek
Mosaic Canyon, Death Valley National Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: Jan-April, Oct-Dec
Cost: $
- Canyon in the mountain face of the valley which is named after a stream-derived breccia sediment with angular blocks of dolomite in a pebbly matrix
- The canyon follows faults that formed when the rocky crust of the Death Valley region began stretching just a few million years ago
- Running water scoured away at the fault-weakened rock, gradually carving Mosaic canyon
#16 in Best National Parks in the USA
#25 in Best Attractions in the USA
Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch
Best time to visit: June-Sept
Cost: $
- Pitstop featuring many tree-shaped sculptures made from glass bottles & vintage items
Exploratorium
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Museum of science, technology, and arts in San Francisco
- The participatory nature of its exhibits and its self-identification as a center for informal learning has led to it being cited as the prototype for participatory museums around the world
#36 in Best Museums in the USA
Williamson Wines, Healdsburg
Best time to visit: March-May, Aug-Oct
Cost: $
- Wine tasting room situated within Healdsburg and featuring gourmet food and award-winning wines
Hearst Castle
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Historic estate in San Simeon, conceived by William Randolph Hearst, the publishing tycoon, and his architect Julia Morgan
- The castle was built between 1919 and 1947
- Today, Hearst Castle is a museum open to the public as a California State Park
Founders Grove Nature Trail, Humboldt Redwoods State Park
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: June-Sept
Cost: $
- State park of California, containing Rockefeller Forest, the world's largest remaining contiguous old-growth forest of coast redwoods
- Established by the Save the Redwoods League in 1921 largely from lands purchased from the Pacific Lumber Company
- The park has grown to become the third-largest park in the California State Park system, through acquisitions and gifts to the state
Irvine Regional Park Loop
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Oct
Cost: $
- California's first regional park features 491 acres with trails, a paved bicycle/walking trail through the central park providing easy access to six playgrounds, four softball fields, two horseshoe pits and a lake
Mist Falls, Kings Canyon National Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: May-June, Sept-Oct
Cost: $
- Kings Canyon is a rugged glacier-carved valley more than a mile (1,600 m) deep
- Other natural features include multiple 14,000-foot (4,300 m) peaks, high mountain meadows, swift-flowing rivers, and some of the world's largest stands of giant sequoia trees
Laguna Beach
Best time to visit: April-May, Sept-Oct
Cost: $
- City in Orange County, located in Southern California along the Pacific Ocean
- This seaside resort city has a mild year-round climate, and scenic coves
Legion of Honor Museum
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- The Legion of Honor displays a collection spanning more than 6,000 years of ancient and European art
Castle Air Museum, Merced
Best time to visit: May, Sept
Cost: $
- Military aviation museum is a former United States Air Force Strategic Air Command base which was closed in 1995, after the end of the Cold War
- It is one of the largest aerospace museums displaying vintage aircraft in the western United States
Palm Springs Aerial Tramway
Best time to visit: Jan-April
Cost: $
- Largest rotating aerial tramway in the world, opened in 1963 as a way of getting from the floor of the Coachella Valley to near the top of San Jacinto Peak and was constructed in rugged Chino Canyon
- Before its construction, the only way to the top of the mountain was to hike hours from Idyllwild
- Rotating cars were added in 2000
Estrella Warbird Museum, Paso Robles
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Aviation museum dedicated to the restoration and preservation of military aircraft, vehicles, and memorabilia
- In 2009, the museum opened an automobile display featuring classic racing cars
Pfeiffer Beach
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Beach located in the Big Sur region, and one of the most popular beaches on the Central Coast
- It is well known for Keyhole Rock, a popular photography subject
- On a limited number of days in December and January each year, photographers crowd the beach to obtain pictures of the setting sun visible through the arch
Point Lobos Loop Trail, Point Lobos State Natural Reserve
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: April-May
Cost: $
- State park in California, adjoining Point Lobos is one of the richest marine habitats in California
- The sea near Point Lobos is considered one of the best locations for scuba diving on the Monterey Peninsula and along the California coast
Sundial Bridge at Turtle Bay, Redding
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: April-June, Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Cantilever spar cable-stayed bridge for bicycles and pedestrians that spans the Sacramento River in Redding, and forms a large sundial
- It was completed in 2004, and has become iconic for Redding
March Field Air Museum, Riverside
Best time to visit: March-May, Sept-Oct
Cost: $
- Aviation museum founded in 1979
- Exhibits include early aircraft including the 1903 pioneer which launched the era of powered flight, World War II bombing icons and Cold War fighters
Salton Sea - Rock Hill Trail, Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge
Walk difficulty: Easy
Best time to visit: Jan-June, Oct-Dec
Cost: $
- Refuge that protects one of the most important nesting sites and stopovers along the Pacific Flyway
- Despite its location in the Colorado Desert, the refuge contains marine, freshwater, wetland, and agricultural habitats which provide sanctuary for hundreds of birds and wetland species, including several that have been listed as endangered or sensitive
Mission Santa Clara de Asís
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Spanish mission in the city of Santa Clara
- The mission, which was the eighth in California, was founded in 1777, by the Franciscans
- Named for Saint Clare of Assisi, who founded the order of the Poor Clares and was an early companion of St. Francis of Assisi
- This was the first California mission to be named in honor of a woman
- Santa Clara University was built around the mission, and this is the only mission located on the grounds of a university campus
Santa Monica State Beach
Best time to visit: Sept-Nov
Cost: $
- Beach located along the Pacific Coast Highway in Santa Monica
- It is 3.5 miles (5.6 km) long and has parks, picnic areas, playgrounds, as well as staffed lifeguard stations, the Muscle Beach, bike rentals, concessions, a bike path, and wooden walking pathways
- Visitor activities include volleyball, surfing, stand up paddleboarding, and swimming
#43 in Best Beaches in the USA
Lake Marie via Skyline Trail, Skyline Wilderness Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: June-Oct
Cost: $
- Wilderness park offering hiking, biking, and equestrian trails, camp sites and a native plant garden
Sonoma Plaza
Best time to visit: June-Oct
Cost: $
- Town hub featuring a green space lined with 1800s buildings, restaurants, tasting rooms, and shops
Torrance County Beach
Best time to visit: May-Sept
Cost: $
- Also known as "RAT Beach" (Right After Torrance Beach)
- Amenities include a concession stand, showers, bike path,and volleyball nets
- The water is great for swimming, fishing, scuba diving, and surfing
Wedding Rock Trail, Sue-meg State Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: June-Sept
Cost: $
- State Park on the Redwood Coast, situated on a lushly forested promontory above the Pacific Ocean
- The park is home to many tree species, with a shoreline that consists of sandy beaches and sheer cliffs against the Pacific Ocean
- Amenities include hiking trails, a recreated Yurok Village, a native plant garden, visitor center, three family campgrounds, two group camps, a camp for hikers and bicyclists, accessible beaches, lookout points, and three group picnic areas