Need CA Vacation suggestions!

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Sycamore Chins

Sycamore Chins

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 2, 2009
Messages
750
Location
Fayetteville, NC
Wahoo I'm going to Cali!!! :dance3:
I was born there but left when I was around 3, so it'll be just about 20 years since I've been there!

We are flying into Oakland, visiting around San Jose (I was born in Los Gatos), then LA, then San Diego. Right now the number of days in each location is flexible, depending on how much we want to do.
We'll be there Dec. 16th - Dec 21st, so about 5 1/2 days total in CA before we drive to AZ.

I have no idea what we should see/do! It'll be my mom and I. We would like to keep the trip as low cost as possible but have no problem splurging on a really nice experience or two. We like outdoorsy things but also like the arts.

So far the number one thing I want to do is visit Santa Anita Racetrack. Not entirely sure if it's going to be possible since we'll be there about a week before racing season starts back up. We are also planning to drive the pacific coast highway from LA to San Diego and I think it's a given I'll be dragging us to the San Diego Zoo. That's all I've got so far!

Please help with suggestions!!!
 
I would stop in Santa Cruz or Big Sur on the way to SoCal. My family and I just went for a sail on the Santa Cruz harbor. (http://www.chardonnay.com/) They also have a boardwalk there, which is pretty fun. We camp in the redwoods around Big Sur every summer. Its beautiful there. They also have many cabins, vacation rentals, etc.

I could tell you many more options in SF or north of there in wine country, but doesn't sound like you'll have time! Have fun-- the view along the PCH is breathtaking. :))
 
Come visit me! Haha :p I'm an hour inland from San Francisco... of course, there's not much to see/do in the valley unless you go up to Napa for winetasting! or East to Yosemite'

What kinds of things do you want to do/see?
 
Yeah, I'm sitting here thinking but I've got nothing lol. We have a friend from Texas visiting next week and besides a trip to the Jelly Belly factory I have no idea what we're gonna do for her.
 
There is a lot of stuff to do in San Francisco, Fisherman's Wharf, Giradelli Square, Golden Gate Bridge, Golden Gate Park, etc. Any ways that is the stuff up north.

Hwy 1 from San Francisco the coast is pretty scenic. Also there is the Hearst Castle. Between Santa Maria and Santa Barbara there is a city called Solvang (Danish community, which is very nice). Hollywood, I would skip Disneyland too expensive.

San Diego Sea World, San Diego Zoo, Wild Animal Park.
 
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Snickers said:
There is a lot of stuff to do in San Francisco, Fisherman's Wharf, Giradelli Square, Golden Gate Bridge, Golden Gate Park, etc. Any ways that is the stuff up north.

Hwy 1 from San Francisco the coast is pretty scenic. Also there is the Hearst Castle. Between Santa Maria and Santa Barbara there is a city called Solvang (Danish community, which is very nice). Hollywood, I would skip Disneyland too expensive.

San Diego Sea World, San Diego Zoo, Wild Animal Park.
Click to expand...

Solvang is sooo nice. Ugh we only got to drive past it at night and I still wish we would've stopped for some quick pictures lol.
 
Oooh, good suggestions! I love Solvang! Nice place for picture taking, browsing all the cute shops and getting some tasty food at the bakeries!

If you want art and culture, there are tons of options in San Francisco. The Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) is a popular one and if you like science-related exhibits, the Exploratorium is a lot of fun! Also, just walking around Pier 39/Fisherman's Wharf/Ghiradelli Square along The Embarcadero in SF, there is a lot of neat stuff to look at. You've got the ships and the sea lions... the places for clam chowder and delicious food, the entertaining street performers. It's fun to drive Lombard Street as well, which is known as the "crookedest" street. There's also Chinatown, the Golden Gate Park (which also has the CA Academy of Sciences Museum) and the Golden Gate Bridge for nice picture ops... You can take a ride across the Bay to Alcatraz too!
 
Monterey and Carmel are nice too. Monterey has affordable hotels and the aquarium is there. Carmel isn't very far and has one of the missions if you're into history.
 
Snickers said:
Between Santa Maria and Santa Barbara there is a city called Solvang (Danish community, which is very nice).
Click to expand...

Lol it is so funny to see all these people talk about how great Solvang was... I guess I took it for granted.. I lived my entire life in Lompoc, which is 20 mins from Solvang
 
Linzizzlejo said:
Lol it is so funny to see all these people talk about how great Solvang was... I guess I took it for granted.. I lived my entire life in Lompoc, which is 20 mins from Solvang
Click to expand...

My husband lived in Lompoc for 3-4 years before we met. He worked at the Chumash Casino. You can't get that guy to shut up about missing Solvang.
 
Thank you everyone for the suggestions! I have soo much to google now!

My mom already mentioned Big Sur, but we're flying from San Jose to LA to save time (and money) so we won't be able to fit that in. We're only doing the Pacific coast highway from LA to San Diego.

Looks like we may need to add a day around San Francisco and take a day away from LA!

I have family in Lompoc, that I haven't seen since birth, so maybe Solvang would be a nice place to meet them for dinner or something.

Keep em coming! We like to see things "through the back door" - big Rick Steves fan! Of course there are the obligatory tourist attractions we have to see, but we also like small unique things that most people would pass by.
For example when we were in London, a local told me about this little market to visit in Greenwich. It was tucked between some buildings and tourists usually only went from the boat to the maritime museum and back to the boat. The market was amazing and I had the best churros EVER - they probably shortened my life by a year!
 
If you're headed to SD, Old Town is pretty cool. Again, historical stuff and they have some awesome Mexican food. I recommend the restaurant with the outdoor canvas canopies. I don't remember the name though. Downtown SD also has those decommissioned military ships you can tour. The zoo is also a blast!
 
I just went to San Diego and San Francisco for the first time - business took up too much time in San Fran but San Diego was great!

We took the north and south bay cruise and saw tons of military and service ships including the USS Ronald Regan that was just back from tsunami relief in Japan. Also saw TONS of sailboats. It was nice to enjoy the sun on the deck and you get a great view of downtown AND get to see sealions lounging about. I think they said their whale cruises begin in either Dec or January so check to see if they will be available when you go.

There are also lots of cool shops over that way and we ate lunch at an excellent restaurant on the water called Pier Cafe. Shrimp quesadillas were yummy!

We also went to Coronado Island and saw the famous Hotel Del Coronado - I wanted to visit the haunted room but settled for some of the best ice cream ive ever had. The hotel is truly beautiful though and my friend said they decorate beautifully for Christmas.

We also went to Silver Strand beach - famous for sand dollars. Found several broken ones but we went late in the day so I am sure the pristine ones were scooped up early in the morning.

We also went out to some fun rooftop bars - not sure if that's on your itinerary :D
 
If you're going to be in Los Gatos/San Jose, there is the Winchester House. Lots of great museums and galleries in San Francisco. The Monterrey Aquarium, Alcatraz, Golden Gate Bridge, Sausalito.

In the LA area you have Universal Studios, Disneyland, Getty Museum, Hollywood, Beverly Hills.

There is so much to do here in San Diego, it really depends what you are interested in.

The three big ones and most expensive are Zoo, Safari Park and Sea World. Each of those is a whole day experience.

If you have a car, the drive to Cabrillo National Monument is nice and it's a gorgeous view of San Diego Bay, Coronado, Downtown and the Ocean. On a clear day you can see the Coronado Islands in Mexico. It's $5 per car.

In La Jolla there are the sea lions at the Cove and harbor seals at the Children's Pool. This is a free activity. Mount Solidad has amazing views of the ocean, up and down the coast and inland. It's an awesome view day and night.

Balboa park is gorgeous and home to most of the museums.

There is the Gaslamp District downtown, as well as the Embarcadero. The Maritime Museum is along the Embarcadero and just south of there is SeaPort Village.

If you're into haunted places, there is a room at the Hotel Del Coronado that is haunted (located on Coronado), The Waley House in Old town and the Horton Grand, downtown.

There is the Mission San Diego de alca, Presidio Park.

The list goes on and on and on.
 
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