You can see redwoods in Mill Valley without driving all the way to the top of Mt.Tamalpais. E.g. from the Depot in Mill Valley, walk up Blithedale a few blocks.

For redwoods: Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park and Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park.

Bear in mind that some of the Santa Cruz area redwood parks were affected by the August 2020 fires. You can still find some old growth redwoods there, but check the park websites or call first.

The park affected by fire is Big Basin.

^^^ This. AFAIK Henry Cowell is fine except a few of the trails were damaged in last winter's storms.

The CZU fire got into the Fall Creek unit of Henry Cowell.

Probably less well known to out of towners than the other section.

i just saw that rte 1 is now open from the north from monterey at least to lucia, where my favorite monastery is located. dont know if it is now open all the way from ragged point but if it is, i would be sure to see san simeon (hearst castle) the drive from san simeon to monterey is one of life' s great joys. If you have not driven it (or even if you have a number of times, like me) give yourself a treat. there is more affordable lodging in Pacific Grove and Monterey, compared to, say, Big sur.

There’s a place in Monterey where rooms with ocean views are like $500 a night or more but it’s like a 3-star hotel at best.

So if Big Sur is more, I’d hate to see those prices.

Saw a headline about how to visit Yosemite this summer with the big crowds. Sounds like unless you reserved last year, you either pay a lot or go camping.

There are still two slides on Hwy 1 between Lucia and Limekiln. One is estimated to open in September and the other has no estimated reopening time.