We are thinking of a late July trip to No. Cal with a couple teenage boys (15) and would like to visit S.F. and Yosemite and possibly hit Great America and/or a water park. Is there a good central place to stay that would allow us to do these things as day trips? Or would it be best to split it up and stay in/near S.F. for a few days and then move base? Thanks.
Second question - if you had about 6 days in that area with 2 teenage boys what are the "must sees" and "don't bothers"?
Summer trip to Northern Cal with teens
Recent Activity
View all United States activity »
- 1 Road Trip - Las Vegas, NV to Monterey, CA
- 2 Need a bit of help planning a 3 week trip to the US
- 3
Middlebury vt quickie
- 4 Customs & Checked Baggage at O'Hare - coming from Dublin Airport
- 5 Where to stay Charleston SC
- 6 10 days after cruise - Fort Lauderdale Fly out from LA?????
- 7 Kwaussies road trip, the final chapter!
- 8
First-time to NYC Trip Report as promised!
- 9 Cheap Hotel in NY
- 10 hello guys....
- 11 2 Brits Travelling USA July-Aug 2013
- 12 Hawaii- Can't decide which islands to include
- 13 Chicago: Clark & Lake Street Subway Stop
- 14 Albuquerque to Denver
- 15 Central Coast of Maine in August
- 16 Itinerary Ideas for 2nd Trip to NYC ... without kids this time
- 17 Bryce Canyon vs. Yellowsyone
- 18
Rocks and Roads in Utah
- 19
New York-Texas Road Trip
- 20 DC Itinerary, June 8-13, suggestions welcome!
- 21 Nashville Hot Fried Chicken
- 22 Help with July 4th Marriott Houston trip
- 23 Road trip Sacramento to Denver, help requested
- 24 How far ahead to book Alcatraz?
- 25 Yosemite Falls Lodge in the park or Cedar Lodge w/ budget constraints
Where are you coming from? Driving or flying in? You should split the trip up as no central location is worth the trouble.
Great America can certainly be done as a day trip from San Francisco - it's about a 45 minute drive south (all freeway). Yosemite, however, is about 4 hours from San Francisco so you'd want at least an overnight there. You might want to look for Yosemite accommodations first, since they sell out a year in advance.
Oh, and I think biking over the Golden Gate Bridge and touring Alcatraz are teo things teen boys might enjoy.
You aren't going to find lodging in Yosemite during that time of year. sf307 is being optomistic about lodging.
How about going to an SF Giants game? The teenagers would love to see the defending World Series Champions play. Find a day game during the week if you can.
The Exploratorium should be up and running down the street (not next door) from the Giants Park. They aren't too old for that as there are enough things for any age. It's currently being moved and expanded to a new location.
We are driving down from Portland. I took a better look at a map later and realized Yosemite was a bit too far out - sounds like we had better plan that for another time.
Great suggestions for things to do in SF, thanks!
My teen liked Great America. During the week there just aren't that many people there so fun times. ALso if htey like roller coaster nearby, Vallejo is Discovery Kingdom or in nearby Santa Rosa is Safari West.
http://www.sixflags.com/discoverykingdom/index.aspx
http://www.safariwest.com/
BTW I find lodging in Yosemite (Curry Village) during the week in late July so nothing is impossible.
www.yosemitepark.com
Sorry I didn't mean to imply Safari West had roller coasters. It was a separate thought. Safari West just has animals.