Activities in Central Coast
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Santa Barbara Old Town Trolley
Santa Barbara Old Town Trolley operates 90-minute guided tours in an open-sided, San Francisco-style, motorized cable car. It gives a great overview of the city's sights, and allows you to get on and off at 14 different stops. Start the tour at Stearns Wharf, or call for other pick-up points. Pay the driver directly; check online for discounts.
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Santa Barbara Sailing Center
Santa Barbara Sailing Center will take you sailing on the Double Dolphin, a 50ft sailing catamaran, for around US$35. One child, age 12 and under, is free with each paid adult. If you want to pilot your own craft, the center also rents paddleboats, motorboats, fishing boats and sailboats. In season they offer whale-watching too.
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Sanctuary Cruises
Year-round, Fisherman's Wharf is the launch pad for whale-watching trips. But it's worth the 20-minute drive north to Moss Landing, where Sanctuary Cruises operates highly recommended whale- watching and dolphin-spotting cruises led by marine biologists; reservations are essential.
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Open Air Bikes
Road cyclists should check out Open Air Bikes for rentals, sales and accessories. The helpful staff has loads of information on local rides. Road bikes rent for about around US$75 per day, with costs decreasing the longer the rental. It's about $210 per week.
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Sunset Kidd's Sailing Cruises
Sunset Kidd's Sailing Cruises will take you on a two-hour whale-watching trip in an 18-passenger sailboat for around US$35 per person. It also operates pleasure trips - try the sunset cocktail cruise - for the same price.
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Los Baños del Mar
You can also swim in Los Baños del Mar , a municipal outdoor pool near West Beach which is good for recreational and lap swimming. For little ones under eight years old, there's a wonderful wading pool.
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Land and Sea Tours
If you dig James Bond-style gadgets and vehicles, take a guided tour of the city on the Land Shark with Land and Sea Tours , then drive right into the water for a tour in this amphibious vehicle.
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Bishop's Peak Hike
A popular day hike. The trail (about 2.5 miles) starts in a beautiful grove of live oaks and then heads steeply along rocky, exposed switchbacks, home to many lizards. Scramble up boulders at the top for panoramic views of San Luis Obispo Bay and the surrounding ranch land. To get to the hike, go northwest from downtown on Santa Rosa St (Hwy 1) for 1.5 miles, turn west onto Highland Dr and after a little less than 1 mile the road ends at the trailhead.
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Carmel Heritage Society
Checking out the once modest cabins that have taken on the trappings of wealth along Carmel's tree-lined neighborhoods is reason enough to stroll outside of the shopping area. Better yet, go with a guide from the Carmel Heritage Society. The Society operates 90-minute walking tours at 09:30 on Saturday, which leave from First Murphy House, a former home with exhibits of local history and lore.
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Cloud Climbers Jeep Tours
Cloud Climbers Jeep Tours runs guided jeep tours of the mountains and forest above the town, including hiking/driving tours, horseback riding/driving tours, family outings, wine-country jaunts, and sunset-chasing journeys for adults. Tours of three to 6½ hours cost around US$89 to around US$150 per person. The charge per child for the Family Discovery Mountain Tour is $69.
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Roaring Camp Railroad
If it's too cold for the beach or you don't feel like riding a rollercoaster, take the Roaring Camp Railroad, which operates standard-gauge trains from the boardwalk that connect in Felton, 6 miles north of town, with narrow-gauge trains into the redwoods. Opening hours vary according to the seasons. The trains only operate May through September.
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Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition
For info on biking in Santa Barbara, contact the Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition , which also has online printable self-biking tours. The Cabrillo Blvd beachfront bike path runs for 3 miles along the water, between the Andrée Clark Bird Refuge and Leadbetter Beach. The Goleta Bikeway continues west to UCSB.
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Stagnaro's
Whale-watching trips, harbor cruises and fishing expeditions depart year-round from the municipal wharf. Stagnaro's is a longstanding operator. Whale-watching trips run from December to April, though there's plenty of marine life to see on a summer bay cruise. There's also a range of fishing trips available.
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Electric Sierra Cycles
Cycling along West Cliff Dr provides million-dollar views, especially at sunset, and it’s a great way to get around town on crowded summer days. Electric Sierra Cycles rents electric and pedal-powered bikes by the hour and day, starting at $8 per hour.
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Monterey Whale Watching
You can spot whales off the coast of Monterey pretty much year-round. The season for blue and humpback whales runs from May to November, while gray whales pass by from mid-December to April. Monterey Whale Watching boats leave daily on three-hour tours.
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Molera Horseback Tours
A quarter-mile trail leads from the Andrew Molera State Park campground to a beautiful beach where the Big Sur River runs into the ocean. Molera Horseback Tours offers a variety of guided trail rides from around US$25.
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Day Hikes
There are plenty of good hikes around SLO, many of which start from Poly Canyon Rd on the Cal Poly campus. Hiking maps and parking information are available at the booth on the right as you enter the campus.
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Monterey Bay Dive Company
Diving and snorkeling reign supreme, although the water is rather frigid. Rent a full get-up, including wetsuit, at Monterey Bay Dive Company, which runs guided boat dives (from $60).
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Boardwalk
There's free admission to the vintage 1907 boardwalk, which boasts the West Coast's oldest beachfront amusement park, with the 1924 Giant Dipper coaster and a 1911 Looff carousel.
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Surf Happens
Surf Happens offers lessons which also incorporate the zen of surfing; if you decide that this is the place to begin your spiritual journey, it costs around US$60 per hour (two-hour minimum).
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Point Sur Lightstation
Six miles before the famous Bixby Bridge, take a tour of 1889 Point Sur Lightstation. Meet your guide at the locked gate; arrive early as space is limited (no reservations).
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Venture Quest
Experience the craggy coastline with Venture Quest, which guides sea-cave and whale-watching kayak tours, including to Elkhorn Slough and Point Lobos.
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Aardvark Adventure Stories
At Aardvark Adventure Stories, kids can star in their own adventure books. First you do a photo shoot, then use computers to design the story line; call ahead.
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