Any recommendation for scenic vacation/sightseeing hotspots in Northern California?
My cousin and his wife is coming from Hong Kong for a week. I live in the SF Bay Area, and would like to drive them around to places. They said they like places like Monterey, and specifically said they’re not really interested in Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman Wharf, etc. those kind of places. I’m planning to go to Monterey, Santa Cruz, places along the pacific highway. But I can’t narrow down what exactly to go for down there. Any suggestion? How many days should we spend there in order to have a decent enough trip in Monterey county area?
What about other places around Norcal? They would have gone to L.A already so no need to go there….
6 Responses
Vince M
30 Jan 2010
mugenhunt
30 Jan 2010
Winchester Mystery House?
Monterey Bay Aquarium?
That’s a toughie.
silvermist
30 Jan 2010
*_~ So glad that you’re considering San Francisco for your vacation.
5 -6 days.. 3-4 day in the city and 2 days south of San Francisco(san jose and MOnterey)
Try to stay in Union Square. When you arrive at the airport, take the SFO air train that goes around the airport, then you’ll get off when you see Bart, take Bart to Powell Station (should be about $3-5 and it takes 20 mins ) that’s Union Square.
http://www.bart.gov/ for schedule..
I just love the weather and the diverse culture here!! Traffic can be hectic but still bearable. Public transport is great! You can always take Bart, ferries, bus, taxi or cable car etc. However, if you don’t have much time or want to travel beyond the city – I think a car would help a lot. Yes, you have to pay for parking, but save you time to go more places faster..
Try the “City Sightseeing Open Top Bus Tour” which is about $30. “This unique open-topped bus tour of San Francisco includes four different routes, the Downtown Loop, the Golden Gate Loop, the Park Loop, and the Night Loop.” You’re free to hop on and off as often as you want on the downtown loop.
Embarcadero is wicked nice, and it’s not THAT far, so you could really just walk down it to the Ferry Building. On Saturdays they do a nice farmer’s market and you can get lots of good stuff. Walk down to Pier 39.
GET THE San Franciso POPOUT Maps—
I loves these POPOUT map- you get to see where you are-
=) No Thinking required, especially on vacation. (Look at the pictures.)
I have about 20 of these map of different cities.. It was so useful when I was in Europe!
http://www.onlyinsanfrancisco.com/offers/
Cable Car (Union Sq to
Ferry Building
Pier 39
Alcatraz or Angel Island
Japan town
Lombard Street
Chinatown
Coit Tower
Fishermen’s Wharf
Union Square for Shopping
Golden Gate Park – Walk across the bridge
Academy of Science
Union Street
Ocean Beach
Exploratorium
Palace of Fine Arts
San Francisco Zoo
Westfield Shopping Centre
DeYoung Museum
Yerba Buena Gardens
SF Giants Fair at AT&T Park
Take the ferry to Tiburon or Sausalito
Segates is a great way to travel around the city.
Gray Line’s Yosemite in a day- Daily depart 7am
San Francisco Giants- Baseball Game
49ers- Football games
Winchester Mystery House Mansion- overrated.
Gray Line’s Motorized Cable Car City Tour
*_~ Unique places in San Francisco
-à Must be Open minded and bring your camera for tons of pics.!! We always bring our guest from out of town to these places. Have early dinner at Asia SF about 6pm and then a show at Beach Blanket Babylon.. They loved it and never forget SF.
à For half price shows/comedy/sports etc.. Try http://www.goldstar.com
à Academy of Science during the night time- $10 buy ticket in advance.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/pho-garden-san-f… – Try the pho challenge
http://sf.backpage.com/community/classif…
San Jose- Winchester Mystery House and Great Mall outlets in Milpitas.
Santa Cruz area- 30 mins from San Jose and less than an hour away south of San Francisco
Santa Cruz Beach Boalkwalk – http://www.beachboardwalk.com/
The Mystery Spot : http://www.mysteryspot.com/
Another 20 mins away- The famous Monterey Bay Aquarium/Pier- stay overnight. (Romantic)
check out the beautiful shore of Carmel to view Pebble Beach.
Napa Wine Country is about 2 hours north of San Francisco.
They have wine tour that brings you there form any SF hotels. Visit their outlet and Wines tours. Yummy!
timetravler
30 Jan 2010
Did you forget about the Napa Valley? People from all over the world go to the Napa Valley. Then the other best place if you have time would be Yosemite. I go there every year and never get tired of it. BTW, there are always people from Hong Kong in Yosemite, always.
Inundated in SF
30 Jan 2010
How about Yosemite–bound to impress although in summer it is crowded crowded crowded. Alcatraz? Out to the Farallons? St. Simeon?
drew
30 Jan 2010
Just north of San Francisco there is a universe of incredible beauty. In the fall the weather is perfect for a drive across the Golden Gate Bridge to see Muir Woods. MW is one of the last remaining stands of old growth redwood forest left in California. The place is a National Monument run by the Park Service and there are beautiful paved trails to walk under these towering giants. I would go early in the day to avoid crowds and time it so that you can go to lunch at Stinson Beach northwest of the Woods.
There is a spectacular drive called Panoramic Highway that will get you to Stinson Beach and about a block from the beach itself there is a general store where many people pick up food for a picnic on the beach.
You can continue up the coast on Highway 1 if you like. If you do there is another National Preserve called Point Reyes, also quite scenic, with dramatic drives among towering trees.
Coming back to SF you can either have dinner in Mill Valley or Sausalito. If you like a touristy place then Sausalito is your bag. If you like something less "boutiquey" then Mill Valley is a good place to unwind. Oh, the thing about Sausalito is that there are great views of the Bay, including the SF skyline and views of Angel Island. This is probably why it is so popular with tourists. But keep that in mind, there will be crowds there.
The drive back into SF, if you do it before dark usually allows you to witness spectacular fog coming into the bay from the Pacific. I have been lucky to see it shroud the Golden Gate Bridge in a mysterious way.
This whole day trip could be one of your best memories. And It is very close to SF. Much closer than Monterey. have fun!!
South of Monterey, you might consider a tour on the 17 Mile Drive, the Big Sur area and Hearst Castle. In season, you may want to check out the Elephant seal colony at Ano Nuevo State Park, North of Santa Cruz, before Half Moon Bay. If your cousin is coming in the Winter, you might want to check out the surfing spots at Maverick’s Beach, right next to Half Moon Bay.
On the coast, at the South end of San Francisco, check out Fort Funston. It is a popular hang gliding venue, where the flyers literally step off a sheer cliff and get immediate lift from the onshore winds coming in off of the ocean. From the viewing area, you can watch the hang gliders, at eye level just a few feet away. You can actually have a conversation with them without shouting.
If your cousin is from Hong Kong, then they might not be impressed with the housboats docked at Sausalito, but some of them are quite impressive with their luxury or whimsical decor.
I ALWAYS recommend a drive along California’s North Coast. Spectacular scenery and dramatic driving provide great photo opportunities. Suggested stops: Bodega Bay (where Hitchcock’s "The Birds" was filmed), Mendocino, and then, inland to the giant redwoods area, before coming back through the Napa and Sonoma Wine country.
How many days? My gosh, as many days as you guys can afford to stay in each area. You couldn’t SEE and appreciate much of Monterey and the Central Coast without spending two, three or more day in the region. The same applies to the Northern coast area.
I haven’t even mentioned the Sierra Nevada Mountains and gold country. A LOT of history is on display, there, including sites like Old Sacramento, Placerville, Columbia, Mono Lake and even Death Valley National Monument.
California is a BIG place and not one that can be explored and appreciated in just a couple of days. Do some reasearch and decide what KINDS of sightseeing you’d like to show your cousins and then concentrate on hanging around one or two regions for extended stays.
Have fun!