The Peninsula
Inside Sam McDonald County Park, this rustic A-frame cabin is a 1.7-mile hike from the parking lot. Rented by the Sierra Club to couples, families and small groups, the cabin has a full kitchen, wood-burning stove, bathrooms and limited water (no showers). Reservations required – note it's very popular.
Bring your own sleeping bags, food, housekeeping supplies and newspaper for kindling. No alcohol or drugs allowed.
25.79 MILES
The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk has been an Americana classic like few others for over a century. Now as in 1907 when the amusement park first opened, the…
12.13 MILES
Just over a dozen miles southeast of Pescadero State Beach, Año Nuevo State Natural Reserve is home base for one of the world's largest mainland breeding…
Seymour Marine Discovery Center
25.56 MILES
This educational center is part of UCSC’s Long Marine Laboratory. Interactive natural-science exhibits include tidal touch pools and aquariums, while…
13.8 MILES
Definitely the most interesting tech visitor center in the area. You'll be met by an army of Geniuses in red shirts offering information from how to use…
16.52 MILES
This ridiculous yet fascinating Victorian mansion is filled with 160 mostly non-utilitarian rooms with dead-end hallways and a staircase that runs up to a…
University of California, Santa Cruz
23.53 MILES
Check it: the school mascot is a banana slug! Established in 1965 in the hills above town, UCSC is known for its creative, liberal bent. The rural campus…
23.16 MILES
A kitschy, old-fashioned tourist trap, Santa Cruz's Mystery Spot has scarcely changed since it opened in 1940. On a steeply sloping hillside, compasses…
25.69 MILES
Great for sunsets, this sandy beach fronted by a natural sandstone bridge is a family favorite and tops for wildlife viewing. Scan the bay for whales,…
1.05 MILES
Stretch your legs in the redwoods in this park, 2 miles south of La Honda. It has several forested hiking trails and a secluded hike-to cabin available…
7.11 MILES
At this local-food treasure, the split-level farm shop sells creamy artisanal goat's cheeses festooned with fruit, nuts and a rainbow of edible flowers,…
7.22 MILES
Five miles south of Pescadero, bobcats and coyotes reside discreetly in this pretty park's 4600 acres of dense redwood canyon and uplands laced with…
4. Big Basin Redwoods State Park
7.66 MILES
A 45-minute drive north of Santa Cruz into the mountains via Hwys 9 and 236, this state park protects over 18,000 acres of redwood forest and 80 miles of…
8.74 MILES
With driftwood scattered on the sands near San Gregorio Creek, this mile-long beach where Spanish explorer Gaspar de Portolà camped in 1769 makes a pretty…
6. Pescadero State Beach & Marsh Natural Preserve
9.31 MILES
Fifteen miles south of Half Moon Bay, the beach and marshland preserve attract beachcombers and birders. Pull over and get out of the car to explore the…
7. SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
9.32 MILES
Nobel Prize–winning scientific discoveries have been made at this 2-mile-long linear accelerator – the world's longest – built in the mid-1960s…
9.93 MILES
Pretty sand beaches speckle the coast, though one of the most interesting places to stop is Pebble Beach, a jewel less than 2 miles south of Pescadero…