California Travel Guide

GALLERY

2026 2026 Fodor’s Go List Destination

California's endless wonders, from Yosemite National Park to Disneyland, are both natural and man-made. Soul-satisfying wilderness often lies close to urbane civilization. With the iconic Big Sur coast, dramatic Mojave Desert, and majestic Sierra Nevada mountains, sunny California indulges those in search of great surfing, hiking, and golfing. Other pleasures await, too: superb food in San Francisco, studio tours in Los Angeles, winery visits and spas in Napa and Sonoma. Follow a beach picnic with a city stroll and live the California dream.

Guidebooks for Every Journey

Fodor's California: with the Best Road Trips

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Fodor's Southern California: with Los Angeles, San Diego, the Central Coast & the Best Road Trips

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Fodor's Northern California: With Napa & Sonoma, Yosemite, San Francisco, Lake Tahoe & The Best Road Trips

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Fodor's San Francisco: with the best of Napa & Sonoma

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Fodor's Los Angeles: with Disneyland & Orange County

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Fodor's San Diego: with North County

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Fodor's Napa & Sonoma

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Fodor's Complete Guide to the National Parks of the USA: All 63 parks from Maine to American Samoa

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Fodor's American Spirits: Exploring the Best Wineries, Breweries, and Distilleries in the USA

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Compass American Guides: Yosemite & Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Parks

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Fodor's The Complete Guide to the National Parks of the West: with the Best Scenic Road Trips

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Fodor's Best Weekend Road Trips

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ROAD TRIPS

Highway 101 From San Diego to Seattle

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Guidebooks for Every Journey

Fodor's California: with the Best Road Trips

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Fodor's Southern California: with Los Angeles, San Diego, the Central Coast & the Best Road Trips

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Fodor's Northern California: With Napa & Sonoma, Yosemite, San Francisco, Lake Tahoe & The Best Road Trips

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Pullout Map

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Fodor's San Francisco: with the best of Napa & Sonoma

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Fodor's Los Angeles: with Disneyland & Orange County

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Fodor's San Diego: with North County

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Fodor's Napa & Sonoma

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Fodor's Complete Guide to the National Parks of the USA: All 63 parks from Maine to American Samoa

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Fodor's American Spirits: Exploring the Best Wineries, Breweries, and Distilleries in the USA

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Compass American Guides: Yosemite & Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Parks

Scenic Drives
Best Hikes
Natural Wonders

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Fodor's The Complete Guide to the National Parks of the West: with the Best Scenic Road Trips

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Fodor's Best Weekend Road Trips

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Top Destinations

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Los Angeles

One of the glitziest places on the planet, the City of Angels combines the people-watching of Rodeo Drive, the nonstop nightlife of the Sunset Strip...

Napa and Sonoma

In California's premier wine region, the pleasures of eating and drinking are celebrated daily. It's easy to join in at famous wineries and rising newcomers...

Truckee

Formerly a decrepit railroad town in the mountains, Truckee is now the trendy first stop for many Tahoe visitors. The town was officially established around...

Lassen Volcanic National Park

Lassen Peak, a plug dome, is the most famous feature of this 166-square-mile tract of coniferous forests and alpine meadows. Its most spectacular outburst occurred...

South Lake Tahoe

The city of South Lake Tahoe's raison d'être is tourism: the casinos of adjacent Stateline, Nevada; the ski slopes at Heavenly Mountain; the beaches, docks...

Tahoe City

Tahoe City is the only lakeside town with a charming downtown area good for strolling and window-shopping. Stores and restaurants are all within walking distance...

Olympic Valley

Olympic Valley got its moniker in 1960, when its ski resort, Palisades Tahoe, hosted the Winter Olympics. Snow sports remain the primary activity, but once...

Carnelian Bay to Kings Beach

The small lakeside commercial districts of Carnelian Bay and Tahoe Vista service the thousand or so locals who live in the area year-round and the...

Lake Tahoe

Whether you swim, fish, sail, or simply rest on its shores, you’ll be wowed by the overwhelming beauty of Lake Tahoe, which is famous for...

Calistoga

The false-fronted shops, 19th-century buildings, and unpretentious tasting rooms lining the main drag of Lincoln Avenue give Calistoga a slightly rough-and-tumble feel that's unique in...

Stinson Beach

This laid-back hamlet is all about the beach, and folks come from all over the Bay Area to walk its sandy, often windswept shore. An...

Death Valley National Park

The natural riches of Death Valley—the largest national park outside Alaska—are overwhelming: rolling waves of sand dunes, black cinder cones thrusting up hundreds of feet...

Avila Beach

Because the village of Avila Beach and the sandy, cove-front shoreline for which it's named face south into the Pacific Ocean, they get more sun...

Big Sur Coastline

Long a retreat of artists and writers, Big Sur is a place of ancient forests and rugged shoreline, stretching 90 miles from San Simeon to...

The Central Coast

Balmy weather, glorious beaches, crystal-clear air, and serene landscapes have lured people to the Central Coast since prehistoric times. Today it’s also known for its...

Geyserville

Several high-profile Alexander Valley AVA wineries, including the splashy Francis Ford Coppola Winery, can be found in the town of Geyserville, a small part of...

Napa

After many years as a blue-collar burg detached from the Wine Country scene, the Napa Valley's largest town (population about 80,000) has evolved into its...

Joshua Tree National Park

Joshua Tree teems with fascinating landscapes and life-forms, including its namesake trees. Dagger-like tufts grace the branches of the Yucca brevifolia, which grows in vast...

Half Moon Bay

It may be the largest and most visited of the coastal communities, but Half Moon Bay is still by all measures a small town. Turn...

Yosemite National Park

By merely standing in Yosemite Valley and turning in a circle, you can see more natural wonders in a minute than you could in a...

Mendocino

A flourishing logging town in the late-19th century, Mendocino seduces 21st-century travelers with windswept cliffs, phenomenal Pacific Ocean views, and boomtown-era New England–style architecture. Following...

St. Helena

Downtown St. Helena is the very picture of good living in the Wine Country: sycamore trees arch over Main Street (Highway 29), where visitors flit...

Sonoma

One of the few towns in the valley with multiple attractions unrelated to food and wine, Sonoma has plenty to keep you busy for a...

Oakland

In contrast to San Francisco's buzz and beauty and Berkeley's storied counterculture, Oakland's allure lies in its amazing diversity. Here you can find a Nigerian...

Sausalito

Bougainvillea-covered hillsides and an expansive yacht harbor give Sausalito the feel of an Adriatic resort. The town sits on the northwestern edge of San Francisco...

Catalina Island

Just 22 miles out from the L.A. coastline, across from Newport Beach and Long Beach, Catalina has virtually unspoiled mountains, canyons, coves, and beaches; best...

Orange County and Catalina Island

With its tropical flowers and palm trees, the stretch of coast between Seal Beach and San Clemente is often called the Southern California Riviera. Upscale...

Berkeley

Berkeley is the birthplace of the Free Speech Movement, the radical hub of the 1960s, the home of arguably the nation's top public university, and...

The Mojave Desert

Dust and desolation, tumbleweeds and rattlesnakes, barren landscapes and failed dreams—these are the bleak images that come to mind when most people hear the word...

The Monterey Bay Area

North of Big Sur, the coastline softens into lower bluffs, windswept dunes, pristine estuaries, and long, sandy beaches bordering one of the world’s most amazing...

Mill Valley

Chic and woodsy Mill Valley has a dual personality. Here, as elsewhere in the county, the foundation is a superb natural setting. Virtually surrounded by...

Laguna Beach

Driving in along Laguna Canyon Road from the Interstate 405 freeway gives you the chance to cruise through a gorgeous coastal canyon, large stretches of...

Big Bear Lake

When Angelenos say they're going to the mountains, they usually mean Big Bear, where alpine-style villages surround the 7-mile-long lake. The south shore has ski...

Disneyland Resort and Anaheim

The snowcapped Matterhorn, the centerpiece of Disneyland, punctuates the skyline of Anaheim. Since 1955, when Walt Disney chose this once-quiet farming community for the site...

Sequoia National Park

Sequoia National Park is all about the trees, and to understand the scale of these giants you must walk among them. If you do nothing...

The Bay Area

It's rare for a metropolis to compete with its suburbs for visitors, but the view from any of San Francisco's hilltops shows that the Bay...

Borrego Springs

The permanent population of Borrego Springs, set squarely in the middle of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, hovers around 2,500. From September through June, when temperatures...

Palm Springs and the Desert Resorts

With the Palm Springs area’s year-round sunshine, luxurious spas, chef-driven restaurants, and see-and-be-seen pool parties, it's no wonder that Hollywood A-listers and weekend warriors make...

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks

The word “exceptional” best describes these two parks, which offer some of the nation’s greatest escapes. Drives along their byways deliver stunning vistas at nearly...

Kings Canyon National Park

Kings Canyon National Park consists of two sections that adjoin the northern boundary of Sequoia National Park. The western portion, covered with sequoia and pine...

Santa Ynez

Founded in 1882, the tiny town of Santa Ynez still has many of its original frontier buildings. You can walk through its three-block downtown in...

Ventura

Ventura Harbor is home to myriad fishing boats, restaurants, and water-activity centers where you can rent boats and take harbor cruises. The city is also...

Solvang

You'll know you've reached the town of Solvang when the architecture suddenly changes to half-timber buildings and windmills. Danish educators settled the town in 1911—the...

San Simeon

Whalers founded San Simeon in the 1850s, but had virtually abandoned it by 1865, when Senator George Hearst began purchasing most of the surrounding ranch...

Twentynine Palms

...

Rancho Mirage

The rich and famous of Rancho Mirage live in beautiful estates and patronize elegant resorts and expensive restaurants. Although many mansions here are concealed behind...

Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara has long been an oasis for Los Angelenos seeking respite from big-city life. The attractions begin at the ocean and end in the...

Pismo Beach

About 20 miles of sandy shoreline—nicknamed the Bakersfield Riviera for the throngs of vacationers who come here from the Central Valley—begins at the town of...

San Luis Obispo

About halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, San Luis Obispo spreads out below gentle hills and rocky extinct volcanoes. Its main appeal lies in...

Los Olivos

This pretty village was once on Spanish-built El Camino Real (Royal Road) and later a stop on major stagecoach and rail routes. Tasting rooms, art...

Paso Robles

In the 1860s, tourists began flocking to this ranching outpost to "take the cure" in a bathhouse fed by underground mineral hot springs. An Old...

Ojai

The Ojai Valley, which director Frank Capra used as a backdrop for his 1936 film Lost Horizon, sizzles in the summer when temperatures routinely reach...

Redwood National and State Parks

Soaring more than 375 feet high, California's coastal redwoods are miracles of efficiency—some have survived hundreds of years, a few more than two millennia. These...

Pinnacles National Park

President Theodore Roosevelt recognized the uniqueness of the Pinnacles Volcanic Formation—its jagged spires and monoliths thrusting upward from chaparral-covered mountains—when he made it a national...

Cambria

Cambria, set on piney hills above the sea, was settled by Welsh miners in the 1890s. In the 1970s the isolated setting attracted artists and...

Sacramento and the Gold Country

The Gold Country is one of California's less expensive yet still sublime destinations, a region of the Sierra Nevada foothills filled with natural and cultural...

San Francisco

With its myriad hills and spectacular bay, San Francisco beguiles with natural beauty, vibrant neighborhoods, and contagious energy. From the hipster Mission District to the...

Morro Bay

Commercial fishermen slog around Morro Bay in galoshes, and beat-up fishing boats bob in the bay's protected waters. Nature-oriented activities take center stage here: kayaking...

Jackson

Jackson wasn't the Gold Country's rowdiest town, but the party lasted longer here than most anywhere else: "girls' dormitories" (aka brothels) and nickel slot machines...

San Diego

San Diego is a vacationer's paradise, with year-round temperatures in the seventies and near-constant sunshine. One of America's most family-friendly cities, San Diego is home...

Knott's Berry Farm

Once an actual farm, Knott's Berry Farm now offers a non-Disney theme park option for anyone with a love of roller coasters and boysenberries...

Newport Beach

Newport Beach has evolved from a simple seaside village to an icon of chic coastal living. Its ritzy reputation comes from megayachts bobbing in the...

The Inland Empire

Threaded with rolling vineyards, homey agricultural towns, and mountain retreats, the Inland Empire has a humble allure. Often bypassed because of its freeway maze and...

Redding

A handy gateway to Lassen Volcanic National Park, Redding, population about 95,000, sits along the busy I–5 corridor, with attractions that include the photogenic Sundial...

Avalon

Avalon, Catalina’s only real town, extends from the shore of its natural harbor to the surrounding hillsides. Its resident population is about 3,800, but it...

The Sierra Nevada

The granite peaks and ancient pines of the Eastern Sierra bedazzle heart and soul so completely that, for many visitors, the experience surpasses that at...

Murphys

A well-preserved hamlet of white-picket fences and Victorian houses, compact Murphys has an upscale yet unpretentious vibe. Shops and restaurants line several blocks of Main...

North County and Around

A whole world of scenic grandeur, fascinating history, and scientific wonder lies just beyond San Diego’s city limits. If you travel north along the coast...

Volcano

Many roads, all of them winding, all of them scenic, lead to Volcano, an off-the-beaten-path former mining town of about 120 people, the entirety of...

Sutter Creek

Sutter Creek is a charming conglomeration of balconied buildings, Victorian homes, and neo–New England structures. At any time of year Main Street (formerly part of...

Sacramento

All around the Golden State's seat of government you'll experience echoes of the gold-rush days, most notably in Old Sacramento, whose wooden sidewalks and horse-drawn...

Placerville

It's hard to imagine now, but in 1849 about 4,000 miners staked out every gully and hillside in Placerville, turning the town into a rip-roaring...

Nevada City

Nevada City, once known as the Queen City of the Northern Mines, is the most appealing of the northern Mother Lode towns. The iron-shutter brick...

Santa Rosa

Urban Santa Rosa isn't as popular with tourists as many Wine Country destinations—which isn't surprising, seeing as there are more office parks than wineries within...

Carmel Valley

Carmel Valley Road, which heads inland from Highway 1 south of Carmel, is the main thoroughfare through this valley, a secluded enclave of horse ranchers...

Lodi

With about 100,000 acres of mostly rich alluvial soils planted to more than six-dozen grape varietals—more types than in any other California viticultural area—Lodi is...

Boonville

At first glance Boonville, population a little more than 1,000, looks pretty much as it has for decades, with the 19th-century Boonville Hotel anchoring the...

Kenwood

Tiny Kenwood consists of little more than a few restaurants, shops, tasting rooms, and a historic train depot, now used for private events. But hidden...

Petaluma

The first thing you should know about Petaluma is that this is a farm town—with 62,500 residents, a large one—and the residents are proud of...

Davis

Davis began as a rich agricultural area and remains one, but it doesn't feel like a cow town. It's home to the University of California...

El Portal

The market in town is a good place to pick up provisions before you get to Yosemite. You'll find a post office and a gas...

Grass Valley

More than half of California's total gold production was extracted from mines around Grass Valley, including the Empire Mine, among the Gold Country's most fascinating...

Guerneville

Guerneville's tourist demographic has evolved over the years—Bay Area families in the 1950s, lesbians and gays starting in the 1970s, and these days a mix...

Amador City

The history of tiny Amador City (population less than 200) mirrors the boom-bust-boom cycle of many Gold Country towns. With an output of $42 million...

Outside Pinnacles National Park

The small town of Soledad, just outside the park's western entrance, is most famous as the setting of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, but...

Outside Redwood National Park

The North Coast's largest city is Eureka, population 27,000 and the Humboldt County seat. Its Old Town has an alluring waterfront boardwalk, several excellent restaurants...

Palm Springs

A tourist destination since the late 19th century, Palm Springs evolved into an ideal hideaway for early Hollywood celebrities who slipped into town to play...

Desert Hot Springs

Desert Hot Springs's famous mineral waters, thought by some to have curative powers, bubble up at temperatures of 90°F to 148°F and flow into the...

La Quinta

The desert became a Hollywood hideout in the 1920s, when La Quinta Hotel (now La Quinta Resort and Club) opened, introducing the Coachella Valley's first...

Yucca Valley

One of the high desert's fastest-growing cities, Yucca Valley is emerging as a bedroom community for people who work as far away as Ontario, 85...

The Central Valley

In California’s family of diverse regions, the 225-mile-long Central Valley is literally and figuratively a middle sibling. Cradled between the popular coastal communities to the...

Palm Desert

Palm Desert is a thriving retail and business community with popular restaurants, private and public golf courses, and premium shopping along its main commercial drag...

Hanford

Founded in 1877 as a Southern Pacific Railroad stop, Hanford had one of California's largest Chinatowns—the Chinese came to help build the railroads and stayed...

Indian Wells

For the most part a quiet and exclusive residential enclave, Indian Wells hosts major tennis tournaments throughout the year, including the BNP Paribas Open. Three...

Merced

The 2005 debut of a branch of the University of California helped spur redevelopment in Merced County’s seat of government. The transformation has resulted in...

Stockton

California's first inland port—connected since 1933 to San Francisco via a 60-mile-long deepwater channel—is wedged between Interstate 5 and Highway 99, on the eastern end...

Bakersfield

Bakersfield's founder, Colonel Thomas Baker, arrived with the discovery of gold in the nearby Kern River valley in 1851. With 364,000 residents, including the country’s...

Cathedral City

Cathedral City is more residential than tourist-oriented, with large and small malls everywhere, but the city has several good restaurants and entertainment venues with moderate...

Kernville

The wild Kern River, which flows through Kernville en route from Mt. Whitney to Bakersfield, delivers some of the most exciting white-water rafting in the...

Chester

A gateway to Lassen Volcanic National Park on Lake Almanor's north shore, Chester, population 2,200, supports locals and tourists with modest restaurants, hotels, and shops...

Modesto

Among the most striking "welcome to downtown" signs you'll see, the Modesto Arch, at 9th and I streets, bears the city's motto: "Water, Wealth, Contentment...

Dunsmuir

Surrounded by towering forests and boasting world-class upper Sacramento River fly-fishing, Dunsmuir acquired its current moniker when a Scottish coal baron built a fountain in...

The Far North

The Far North's soaring mountain peaks, trail-filled national forests, alpine lakes, and wild rivers teeming with trout make it the perfect destination for outdoor enthusiasts...

San Juan Capistrano

San Juan Capistrano is best known for its historic mission, where the swallows traditionally return each year, migrating from their winter haven in Argentina, but...

Chico

Its name is Spanish for "small," but with a 40% increase in population between censuses, Chico outpaced Redding as the Far North's largest city. Chico...

Claremont

The seven Claremont Colleges are among the most prestigious in the nation, lending the town an ambitious and creative energy. The campuses are all laid...

Mt. Shasta

While a snow-covered dormant volcano is the area’s dazzling draw, the town of Mt. Shasta charms visitors with its small shops, friendly residents, and beautiful...

Oak Glen

More than 60 varieties of apples are grown in Oak Glen. This rustic village in the foothills above Yucaipa is home to acres of farms...

Weaverville

Chinese miners erected the 1874 Joss House that anchors Weaverville's downtown historic district. The town, population about 3,200, is a popular headquarters for family vacations...

Temecula

Temecula, with its rolling green vineyards, country inns, and first-rate restaurants, bills itself as "Southern California Wine Country." The region is home to about four...

Barstow

Barstow was born in 1886, when a subsidiary of the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway began construction of a Harvey House depot and hotel...

Long Beach and San Pedro

...

Lake Arrowhead

Lake Arrowhead Village is an alpine community with lodgings, shops, outlet stores, and eateries that descend a hill to the lake. Outside the village, access...

Ridgecrest

A military town that serves the U.S. Naval Weapons Center to its north, Ridgecrest has scores of stores, restaurants, and hotels. With about 29,000 residents...

Riverside

By 1882 Riverside was home to more than half of California's citrus groves, making it the state's wealthiest city per capita in 1895. The prosperity...

Capitola and Soquel

On the National Register of Historic places as California’s first seaside resort town, the village of Capitola has been in a holiday mood since the...

Corona del Mar

A small jewel on the Pacific Coast, Corona del Mar (known by locals as "CDM") has exceptional beaches that some say resemble their majestic Northern...

Huntington Beach

Once a sleepy residential town with little more than a string of rugged surf shops, Huntington Beach has transformed itself into a resort destination,commonly referred...

Lancaster

Points of interest around Lancaster include a state poppy reserve that bursts to life in the spring and Edwards Air Force Base, which many consider...

Muir Beach

Except on the sunniest of weekends, Muir Beach is relatively quiet, but the drive to this community and beach is a scenic adventure...

Victorville

At the southwest corner of the Mojave is sprawling Victorville, a town with a rich Route 66 heritage and a museum dedicated to the Mother...

Moss Landing

Moss Landing is not much more than a couple of blocks of cafés and restaurants, art galleries, and studios, plus a busy fishing port, but...

Aptos

Backed by a redwood forest and facing the sea, downtown Aptos—known as Aptos Village—is a place of wooden walkways and false-fronted shops. Antiques dealers cluster...

Pebble Beach

In 1919 the Pacific Improvement Company acquired 18,000 acres of prime land on the Monterey Peninsula, including the entire Pebble Beach coastal region and much...

Carmel-by-the-Sea

Even when its population quadruples with tourists on weekends and in summer, Carmel-by-the-Sea, commonly referred to as Carmel, retains its identity as a quaint village...

The North Coast

The spectacular coastline of Sonoma, Mendocino, and Humboldt counties defies expectations. The Pacific Ocean defines the landscape, but instead of boardwalks and bikinis there are...

Monterey

Monterey is a scenic city filled with early California history: adobe buildings from the 1700s, Colton Hall, where California’s first constitution was drafted in 1849...

Yountville

Yountville (population about 3,000) is something like Disneyland for food lovers. It all started with Thomas Keller's The French Laundry, one of the best restaurants...

Pacific Grove

This picturesque town, which began as a summer retreat for church groups more than a century ago, recalls its prim and proper Victorian heritage in...

Point Reyes National Seashore

With sandy beaches stretching for miles, a dramatic rocky coastline, a gem of a lighthouse (Point Reyes Lighthouse: closed at this writing, but check online)...

Santa Cruz

The big city on this stretch of the California coast, Santa Cruz (pop. 63,364) is less manicured than Carmel or Monterey. Long known for its...

Eureka

An excellent place to fuel up, buy groceries, and learn a little about the region's mining, timber, and fishing pasts, historic Eureka was named after...

Bodega Bay

Pockets of modernity notwithstanding, this commercial fishing town retains the workaday vibe of its cinematic turn in Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds (1963). Little from the...

Hopland

U.S. 101 briefly narrows to one lane in each direction to become this small town's main drag. For many years a center for the cultivation...

Elk

In this quiet town on the cliff above Greenwood Cove, just about every spot has a view of the rocky coastline and stunning Pacific sunsets...

Rutherford

The spot where Highway 29 meets Rutherford Road in the tiny community of Rutherford may well be the most significant wine-related intersection in the United...

Fort Bragg

Fort Bragg is a working-class town that many feel is the most authentic place on the coast. The city maintains a local vibe since most...

Trinidad

A mellow base for exploring the southern portion of Redwood National and State Parks, coastal Trinidad got its name from the Spanish mariners who entered...

Jenner

The Russian River empties into the Pacific Ocean at Jenner, a wide spot in the road where houses dot a mountainside high above the sea...

Occidental

A village surrounded by redwood forests, orchards, and vineyards, Occidental is a former logging hub with a bohemian vibe. The small downtown, which contains several...

Philo

Many wineries straddle Highway 128 in Philo, where the tasting rooms are more low-key than their counterparts in Napa. The wineries here, however, produce world-class...

Pescadero

As you walk down Stage Road, Pescadero's main street, it's hard to believe you're only 30 minutes from Silicon Valley. If you could block out...

Ukiah

About 16,000 people live in Ukiah, the Mendocino County seat and largest town. Logging and beer hops were two prominent industries starting in the late-19th...

Fresno

Fresno, with half a million people, is the center of the richest agricultural county in the United States. Cotton, grapes, and tomatoes are among the...

Bishop

One of the biggest towns along U.S. 395, bustling Bishop has views of the Sierra Nevada and the White and Inyo mountains. First settled by...

Lone Pine

Mt. Whitney towers majestically over this tiny community, which supplied nearby gold- and silver-mining outposts in the 1860s, and for the past century the town...

Fish Camp

As you climb in elevation along Highway 41 northbound, you see nothing but trees until you get to Fish Camp, where there's a post office...

Healdsburg

Sonoma County's ritziest town and the star of many a magazine spread or online feature, Healdsburg is located at the intersection of the Dry Creek...

Lee Vining

Tiny Lee Vining is known primarily as the eastern gateway to Yosemite National Park (summer only) and the location of vast and desolate Mono Lake...

Oakhurst

Motels, restaurants, gas stations, and small businesses line Highway 41 in Oakhurst, the last sizable community before Yosemite National Park and a good spot to...

Mammoth Lakes

International real-estate developers joined forces with Mammoth Mountain Ski Area to transform the once sleepy town of Mammoth Lakes (elevation 7,800 feet) into an upscale...

Glen Ellen

Craggy Glen Ellen epitomizes the difference between the Napa and Sonoma valleys. Whereas small Napa towns like St. Helena get their charm from upscale boutiques...

Three Rivers

Three Rivers is a good spot to find a room when park lodgings are full. Either because residents here appreciate their idyllic setting or because...

Forestville

To experience the Russian River AVA's climate and rusticity, follow the river's westward course to the town of Forestville, home to a highly regarded restaurant...

Outside Yosemite National Park

Marking the southern end of the Sierra's gold-bearing mother lode, Mariposa is the last big town before you enter Yosemite on Route 140 to the...

Tiburon

On a peninsula that was named Punta de Tiburón (Shark Point) by 18th-century Spanish explorers, this beautiful Marin County community retains the feel of a...

Los Angeles

One of the glitziest places on the planet, the City of Angels combines the people-watching of Rodeo Drive, the nonstop nightlife of the Sunset Strip...

Napa and Sonoma

In California's premier wine region, the pleasures of eating and drinking are celebrated daily. It's easy to join in at famous wineries and rising newcomers...

Truckee

Formerly a decrepit railroad town in the mountains, Truckee is now the trendy first stop for many Tahoe visitors. The town was officially established around...

Lassen Volcanic National Park

Lassen Peak, a plug dome, is the most famous feature of this 166-square-mile tract of coniferous forests and alpine meadows. Its most spectacular outburst occurred...

South Lake Tahoe

The city of South Lake Tahoe's raison d'être is tourism: the casinos of adjacent Stateline, Nevada; the ski slopes at Heavenly Mountain; the beaches, docks...

Tahoe City

Tahoe City is the only lakeside town with a charming downtown area good for strolling and window-shopping. Stores and restaurants are all within walking distance...

Olympic Valley

Olympic Valley got its moniker in 1960, when its ski resort, Palisades Tahoe, hosted the Winter Olympics. Snow sports remain the primary activity, but once...

Carnelian Bay to Kings Beach

The small lakeside commercial districts of Carnelian Bay and Tahoe Vista service the thousand or so locals who live in the area year-round and the...

Lake Tahoe

Whether you swim, fish, sail, or simply rest on its shores, you’ll be wowed by the overwhelming beauty of Lake Tahoe, which is famous for...

Calistoga

The false-fronted shops, 19th-century buildings, and unpretentious tasting rooms lining the main drag of Lincoln Avenue give Calistoga a slightly rough-and-tumble feel that's unique in...

Stinson Beach

This laid-back hamlet is all about the beach, and folks come from all over the Bay Area to walk its sandy, often windswept shore. An...

Death Valley National Park

The natural riches of Death Valley—the largest national park outside Alaska—are overwhelming: rolling waves of sand dunes, black cinder cones thrusting up hundreds of feet...

Avila Beach

Because the village of Avila Beach and the sandy, cove-front shoreline for which it's named face south into the Pacific Ocean, they get more sun...

Big Sur Coastline

Long a retreat of artists and writers, Big Sur is a place of ancient forests and rugged shoreline, stretching 90 miles from San Simeon to...

The Central Coast

Balmy weather, glorious beaches, crystal-clear air, and serene landscapes have lured people to the Central Coast since prehistoric times. Today it’s also known for its...

Geyserville

Several high-profile Alexander Valley AVA wineries, including the splashy Francis Ford Coppola Winery, can be found in the town of Geyserville, a small part of...

Napa

After many years as a blue-collar burg detached from the Wine Country scene, the Napa Valley's largest town (population about 80,000) has evolved into its...

Joshua Tree National Park

Joshua Tree teems with fascinating landscapes and life-forms, including its namesake trees. Dagger-like tufts grace the branches of the Yucca brevifolia, which grows in vast...

Half Moon Bay

It may be the largest and most visited of the coastal communities, but Half Moon Bay is still by all measures a small town. Turn...

Yosemite National Park

By merely standing in Yosemite Valley and turning in a circle, you can see more natural wonders in a minute than you could in a...

Mendocino

St. Helena

Downtown St. Helena is the very picture of good living in the Wine Country: sycamore trees arch over Main Street (Highway 29), where visitors flit...

Sonoma

One of the few towns in the valley with multiple attractions unrelated to food and wine, Sonoma has plenty to keep you busy for a...

Oakland

In contrast to San Francisco's buzz and beauty and Berkeley's storied counterculture, Oakland's allure lies in its amazing diversity. Here you can find a Nigerian...

Sausalito

Bougainvillea-covered hillsides and an expansive yacht harbor give Sausalito the feel of an Adriatic resort. The town sits on the northwestern edge of San Francisco...

Catalina Island

Just 22 miles out from the L.A. coastline, across from Newport Beach and Long Beach, Catalina has virtually unspoiled mountains, canyons, coves, and beaches; best...

Orange County and Catalina Island

With its tropical flowers and palm trees, the stretch of coast between Seal Beach and San Clemente is often called the Southern California Riviera. Upscale...

Berkeley

Berkeley is the birthplace of the Free Speech Movement, the radical hub of the 1960s, the home of arguably the nation's top public university, and...

The Mojave Desert

Dust and desolation, tumbleweeds and rattlesnakes, barren landscapes and failed dreams—these are the bleak images that come to mind when most people hear the word...

The Monterey Bay Area

North of Big Sur, the coastline softens into lower bluffs, windswept dunes, pristine estuaries, and long, sandy beaches bordering one of the world’s most amazing...

Mill Valley

Chic and woodsy Mill Valley has a dual personality. Here, as elsewhere in the county, the foundation is a superb natural setting. Virtually surrounded by...

Laguna Beach

Driving in along Laguna Canyon Road from the Interstate 405 freeway gives you the chance to cruise through a gorgeous coastal canyon, large stretches of...

Big Bear Lake

When Angelenos say they're going to the mountains, they usually mean Big Bear, where alpine-style villages surround the 7-mile-long lake. The south shore has ski...

Disneyland Resort and Anaheim

The snowcapped Matterhorn, the centerpiece of Disneyland, punctuates the skyline of Anaheim. Since 1955, when Walt Disney chose this once-quiet farming community for the site...

Sequoia National Park

Sequoia National Park is all about the trees, and to understand the scale of these giants you must walk among them. If you do nothing...

The Bay Area

It's rare for a metropolis to compete with its suburbs for visitors, but the view from any of San Francisco's hilltops shows that the Bay...

Borrego Springs

The permanent population of Borrego Springs, set squarely in the middle of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, hovers around 2,500. From September through June, when temperatures...

Palm Springs and the Desert Resorts

With the Palm Springs area’s year-round sunshine, luxurious spas, chef-driven restaurants, and see-and-be-seen pool parties, it's no wonder that Hollywood A-listers and weekend warriors make...

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks

The word “exceptional” best describes these two parks, which offer some of the nation’s greatest escapes. Drives along their byways deliver stunning vistas at nearly...

Kings Canyon National Park

Kings Canyon National Park consists of two sections that adjoin the northern boundary of Sequoia National Park. The western portion, covered with sequoia and pine...

Santa Ynez

Founded in 1882, the tiny town of Santa Ynez still has many of its original frontier buildings. You can walk through its three-block downtown in...

Ventura

Ventura Harbor is home to myriad fishing boats, restaurants, and water-activity centers where you can rent boats and take harbor cruises. The city is also...

Solvang

You'll know you've reached the town of Solvang when the architecture suddenly changes to half-timber buildings and windmills. Danish educators settled the town in 1911—the...

San Simeon

Whalers founded San Simeon in the 1850s, but had virtually abandoned it by 1865, when Senator George Hearst began purchasing most of the surrounding ranch...

Twentynine Palms

...

Rancho Mirage

The rich and famous of Rancho Mirage live in beautiful estates and patronize elegant resorts and expensive restaurants. Although many mansions here are concealed behind...

Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara has long been an oasis for Los Angelenos seeking respite from big-city life. The attractions begin at the ocean and end in the...

Pismo Beach

About 20 miles of sandy shoreline—nicknamed the Bakersfield Riviera for the throngs of vacationers who come here from the Central Valley—begins at the town of...

San Luis Obispo

About halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, San Luis Obispo spreads out below gentle hills and rocky extinct volcanoes. Its main appeal lies in...

Los Olivos

This pretty village was once on Spanish-built El Camino Real (Royal Road) and later a stop on major stagecoach and rail routes. Tasting rooms, art...

Paso Robles

In the 1860s, tourists began flocking to this ranching outpost to "take the cure" in a bathhouse fed by underground mineral hot springs. An Old...

Ojai

The Ojai Valley, which director Frank Capra used as a backdrop for his 1936 film Lost Horizon, sizzles in the summer when temperatures routinely reach...

Redwood National and State Parks

Soaring more than 375 feet high, California's coastal redwoods are miracles of efficiency—some have survived hundreds of years, a few more than two millennia. These...

Pinnacles National Park

Cambria

Cambria, set on piney hills above the sea, was settled by Welsh miners in the 1890s. In the 1970s the isolated setting attracted artists and...

Sacramento and the Gold Country

The Gold Country is one of California's less expensive yet still sublime destinations, a region of the Sierra Nevada foothills filled with natural and cultural...

San Francisco

With its myriad hills and spectacular bay, San Francisco beguiles with natural beauty, vibrant neighborhoods, and contagious energy. From the hipster Mission District to the...

Morro Bay

Commercial fishermen slog around Morro Bay in galoshes, and beat-up fishing boats bob in the bay's protected waters. Nature-oriented activities take center stage here: kayaking...

Jackson

Jackson wasn't the Gold Country's rowdiest town, but the party lasted longer here than most anywhere else: "girls' dormitories" (aka brothels) and nickel slot machines...

San Diego

San Diego is a vacationer's paradise, with year-round temperatures in the seventies and near-constant sunshine. One of America's most family-friendly cities, San Diego is home...

Knott's Berry Farm

Once an actual farm, Knott's Berry Farm now offers a non-Disney theme park option for anyone with a love of roller coasters and boysenberries...

Newport Beach

Newport Beach has evolved from a simple seaside village to an icon of chic coastal living. Its ritzy reputation comes from megayachts bobbing in the...

The Inland Empire

Threaded with rolling vineyards, homey agricultural towns, and mountain retreats, the Inland Empire has a humble allure. Often bypassed because of its freeway maze and...

Redding

A handy gateway to Lassen Volcanic National Park, Redding, population about 95,000, sits along the busy I–5 corridor, with attractions that include the photogenic Sundial...

Avalon

Avalon, Catalina’s only real town, extends from the shore of its natural harbor to the surrounding hillsides. Its resident population is about 3,800, but it...

The Sierra Nevada

The granite peaks and ancient pines of the Eastern Sierra bedazzle heart and soul so completely that, for many visitors, the experience surpasses that at...

Murphys

A well-preserved hamlet of white-picket fences and Victorian houses, compact Murphys has an upscale yet unpretentious vibe. Shops and restaurants line several blocks of Main...

North County and Around

A whole world of scenic grandeur, fascinating history, and scientific wonder lies just beyond San Diego’s city limits. If you travel north along the coast...

Volcano

Many roads, all of them winding, all of them scenic, lead to Volcano, an off-the-beaten-path former mining town of about 120 people, the entirety of...

Sutter Creek

Sutter Creek is a charming conglomeration of balconied buildings, Victorian homes, and neo–New England structures. At any time of year Main Street (formerly part of...

Sacramento

All around the Golden State's seat of government you'll experience echoes of the gold-rush days, most notably in Old Sacramento, whose wooden sidewalks and horse-drawn...

Placerville

It's hard to imagine now, but in 1849 about 4,000 miners staked out every gully and hillside in Placerville, turning the town into a rip-roaring...

Nevada City

Nevada City, once known as the Queen City of the Northern Mines, is the most appealing of the northern Mother Lode towns. The iron-shutter brick...

Santa Rosa

Urban Santa Rosa isn't as popular with tourists as many Wine Country destinations—which isn't surprising, seeing as there are more office parks than wineries within...

Carmel Valley

Carmel Valley Road, which heads inland from Highway 1 south of Carmel, is the main thoroughfare through this valley, a secluded enclave of horse ranchers...

Lodi

With about 100,000 acres of mostly rich alluvial soils planted to more than six-dozen grape varietals—more types than in any other California viticultural area—Lodi is...

Boonville

At first glance Boonville, population a little more than 1,000, looks pretty much as it has for decades, with the 19th-century Boonville Hotel anchoring the...

Kenwood

Tiny Kenwood consists of little more than a few restaurants, shops, tasting rooms, and a historic train depot, now used for private events. But hidden...

Petaluma

The first thing you should know about Petaluma is that this is a farm town—with 62,500 residents, a large one—and the residents are proud of...

Davis

Davis began as a rich agricultural area and remains one, but it doesn't feel like a cow town. It's home to the University of California...

El Portal

The market in town is a good place to pick up provisions before you get to Yosemite. You'll find a post office and a gas...

Grass Valley

More than half of California's total gold production was extracted from mines around Grass Valley, including the Empire Mine, among the Gold Country's most fascinating...

Guerneville

Guerneville's tourist demographic has evolved over the years—Bay Area families in the 1950s, lesbians and gays starting in the 1970s, and these days a mix...

Amador City

The history of tiny Amador City (population less than 200) mirrors the boom-bust-boom cycle of many Gold Country towns. With an output of $42 million...

Outside Pinnacles National Park

The small town of Soledad, just outside the park's western entrance, is most famous as the setting of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, but...

Outside Redwood National Park

The North Coast's largest city is Eureka, population 27,000 and the Humboldt County seat. Its Old Town has an alluring waterfront boardwalk, several excellent restaurants...

Palm Springs

A tourist destination since the late 19th century, Palm Springs evolved into an ideal hideaway for early Hollywood celebrities who slipped into town to play...

Desert Hot Springs

Desert Hot Springs's famous mineral waters, thought by some to have curative powers, bubble up at temperatures of 90°F to 148°F and flow into the...

La Quinta

The desert became a Hollywood hideout in the 1920s, when La Quinta Hotel (now La Quinta Resort and Club) opened, introducing the Coachella Valley's first...

Yucca Valley

One of the high desert's fastest-growing cities, Yucca Valley is emerging as a bedroom community for people who work as far away as Ontario, 85...

The Central Valley

In California’s family of diverse regions, the 225-mile-long Central Valley is literally and figuratively a middle sibling. Cradled between the popular coastal communities to the...

Palm Desert

Palm Desert is a thriving retail and business community with popular restaurants, private and public golf courses, and premium shopping along its main commercial drag...

Hanford

Founded in 1877 as a Southern Pacific Railroad stop, Hanford had one of California's largest Chinatowns—the Chinese came to help build the railroads and stayed...

Indian Wells

For the most part a quiet and exclusive residential enclave, Indian Wells hosts major tennis tournaments throughout the year, including the BNP Paribas Open. Three...

Merced

The 2005 debut of a branch of the University of California helped spur redevelopment in Merced County’s seat of government. The transformation has resulted in...

Stockton

California's first inland port—connected since 1933 to San Francisco via a 60-mile-long deepwater channel—is wedged between Interstate 5 and Highway 99, on the eastern end...

Bakersfield

Bakersfield's founder, Colonel Thomas Baker, arrived with the discovery of gold in the nearby Kern River valley in 1851. With 364,000 residents, including the country’s...

Cathedral City

Cathedral City is more residential than tourist-oriented, with large and small malls everywhere, but the city has several good restaurants and entertainment venues with moderate...

Kernville

The wild Kern River, which flows through Kernville en route from Mt. Whitney to Bakersfield, delivers some of the most exciting white-water rafting in the...

Chester

A gateway to Lassen Volcanic National Park on Lake Almanor's north shore, Chester, population 2,200, supports locals and tourists with modest restaurants, hotels, and shops...

Modesto

Among the most striking "welcome to downtown" signs you'll see, the Modesto Arch, at 9th and I streets, bears the city's motto: "Water, Wealth, Contentment...

Dunsmuir

Surrounded by towering forests and boasting world-class upper Sacramento River fly-fishing, Dunsmuir acquired its current moniker when a Scottish coal baron built a fountain in...

The Far North

The Far North's soaring mountain peaks, trail-filled national forests, alpine lakes, and wild rivers teeming with trout make it the perfect destination for outdoor enthusiasts...

San Juan Capistrano

San Juan Capistrano is best known for its historic mission, where the swallows traditionally return each year, migrating from their winter haven in Argentina, but...

Chico

Its name is Spanish for "small," but with a 40% increase in population between censuses, Chico outpaced Redding as the Far North's largest city. Chico...

Claremont

The seven Claremont Colleges are among the most prestigious in the nation, lending the town an ambitious and creative energy. The campuses are all laid...

Mt. Shasta

While a snow-covered dormant volcano is the area’s dazzling draw, the town of Mt. Shasta charms visitors with its small shops, friendly residents, and beautiful...

Oak Glen

More than 60 varieties of apples are grown in Oak Glen. This rustic village in the foothills above Yucaipa is home to acres of farms...

Weaverville

Chinese miners erected the 1874 Joss House that anchors Weaverville's downtown historic district. The town, population about 3,200, is a popular headquarters for family vacations...

Temecula

Temecula, with its rolling green vineyards, country inns, and first-rate restaurants, bills itself as "Southern California Wine Country." The region is home to about four...

Barstow

Barstow was born in 1886, when a subsidiary of the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway began construction of a Harvey House depot and hotel...

Long Beach and San Pedro

...

Lake Arrowhead

Lake Arrowhead Village is an alpine community with lodgings, shops, outlet stores, and eateries that descend a hill to the lake. Outside the village, access...

Ridgecrest

A military town that serves the U.S. Naval Weapons Center to its north, Ridgecrest has scores of stores, restaurants, and hotels. With about 29,000 residents...

Riverside

By 1882 Riverside was home to more than half of California's citrus groves, making it the state's wealthiest city per capita in 1895. The prosperity...

Capitola and Soquel

On the National Register of Historic places as California’s first seaside resort town, the village of Capitola has been in a holiday mood since the...

Corona del Mar

A small jewel on the Pacific Coast, Corona del Mar (known by locals as "CDM") has exceptional beaches that some say resemble their majestic Northern...

Huntington Beach

Once a sleepy residential town with little more than a string of rugged surf shops, Huntington Beach has transformed itself into a resort destination,commonly referred...

Lancaster

Points of interest around Lancaster include a state poppy reserve that bursts to life in the spring and Edwards Air Force Base, which many consider...

Muir Beach

Except on the sunniest of weekends, Muir Beach is relatively quiet, but the drive to this community and beach is a scenic adventure...

Victorville

At the southwest corner of the Mojave is sprawling Victorville, a town with a rich Route 66 heritage and a museum dedicated to the Mother...

Moss Landing

Moss Landing is not much more than a couple of blocks of cafés and restaurants, art galleries, and studios, plus a busy fishing port, but...

Aptos

Backed by a redwood forest and facing the sea, downtown Aptos—known as Aptos Village—is a place of wooden walkways and false-fronted shops. Antiques dealers cluster...

Pebble Beach

In 1919 the Pacific Improvement Company acquired 18,000 acres of prime land on the Monterey Peninsula, including the entire Pebble Beach coastal region and much...

Carmel-by-the-Sea

Even when its population quadruples with tourists on weekends and in summer, Carmel-by-the-Sea, commonly referred to as Carmel, retains its identity as a quaint village...

The North Coast

The spectacular coastline of Sonoma, Mendocino, and Humboldt counties defies expectations. The Pacific Ocean defines the landscape, but instead of boardwalks and bikinis there are...

Monterey

Monterey is a scenic city filled with early California history: adobe buildings from the 1700s, Colton Hall, where California’s first constitution was drafted in 1849...

Yountville

Yountville (population about 3,000) is something like Disneyland for food lovers. It all started with Thomas Keller's The French Laundry, one of the best restaurants...

Pacific Grove

This picturesque town, which began as a summer retreat for church groups more than a century ago, recalls its prim and proper Victorian heritage in...

Point Reyes National Seashore

With sandy beaches stretching for miles, a dramatic rocky coastline, a gem of a lighthouse (Point Reyes Lighthouse: closed at this writing, but check online)...

Santa Cruz

The big city on this stretch of the California coast, Santa Cruz (pop. 63,364) is less manicured than Carmel or Monterey. Long known for its...

Eureka

An excellent place to fuel up, buy groceries, and learn a little about the region's mining, timber, and fishing pasts, historic Eureka was named after...

Bodega Bay

Pockets of modernity notwithstanding, this commercial fishing town retains the workaday vibe of its cinematic turn in Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds (1963). Little from the...

Hopland

U.S. 101 briefly narrows to one lane in each direction to become this small town's main drag. For many years a center for the cultivation...

Elk

In this quiet town on the cliff above Greenwood Cove, just about every spot has a view of the rocky coastline and stunning Pacific sunsets...

Rutherford

The spot where Highway 29 meets Rutherford Road in the tiny community of Rutherford may well be the most significant wine-related intersection in the United...

Fort Bragg

Fort Bragg is a working-class town that many feel is the most authentic place on the coast. The city maintains a local vibe since most...

Trinidad

A mellow base for exploring the southern portion of Redwood National and State Parks, coastal Trinidad got its name from the Spanish mariners who entered...

Jenner

The Russian River empties into the Pacific Ocean at Jenner, a wide spot in the road where houses dot a mountainside high above the sea...

Occidental

A village surrounded by redwood forests, orchards, and vineyards, Occidental is a former logging hub with a bohemian vibe. The small downtown, which contains several...

Philo

Many wineries straddle Highway 128 in Philo, where the tasting rooms are more low-key than their counterparts in Napa. The wineries here, however, produce world-class...

Pescadero

As you walk down Stage Road, Pescadero's main street, it's hard to believe you're only 30 minutes from Silicon Valley. If you could block out...

Ukiah

About 16,000 people live in Ukiah, the Mendocino County seat and largest town. Logging and beer hops were two prominent industries starting in the late-19th...

Fresno

Fresno, with half a million people, is the center of the richest agricultural county in the United States. Cotton, grapes, and tomatoes are among the...

Bishop

One of the biggest towns along U.S. 395, bustling Bishop has views of the Sierra Nevada and the White and Inyo mountains. First settled by...

Lone Pine

Mt. Whitney towers majestically over this tiny community, which supplied nearby gold- and silver-mining outposts in the 1860s, and for the past century the town...

Fish Camp

As you climb in elevation along Highway 41 northbound, you see nothing but trees until you get to Fish Camp, where there's a post office...

Healdsburg

Sonoma County's ritziest town and the star of many a magazine spread or online feature, Healdsburg is located at the intersection of the Dry Creek...

Lee Vining

Tiny Lee Vining is known primarily as the eastern gateway to Yosemite National Park (summer only) and the location of vast and desolate Mono Lake...

Oakhurst

Motels, restaurants, gas stations, and small businesses line Highway 41 in Oakhurst, the last sizable community before Yosemite National Park and a good spot to...

Mammoth Lakes

International real-estate developers joined forces with Mammoth Mountain Ski Area to transform the once sleepy town of Mammoth Lakes (elevation 7,800 feet) into an upscale...

Glen Ellen

Craggy Glen Ellen epitomizes the difference between the Napa and Sonoma valleys. Whereas small Napa towns like St. Helena get their charm from upscale boutiques...

Three Rivers

Three Rivers is a good spot to find a room when park lodgings are full. Either because residents here appreciate their idyllic setting or because...

Forestville

To experience the Russian River AVA's climate and rusticity, follow the river's westward course to the town of Forestville, home to a highly regarded restaurant...

Outside Yosemite National Park

Marking the southern end of the Sierra's gold-bearing mother lode, Mariposa is the last big town before you enter Yosemite on Route 140 to the...

Tiburon

On a peninsula that was named Punta de Tiburón (Shark Point) by 18th-century Spanish explorers, this beautiful Marin County community retains the feel of a...

Los Angeles

One of the glitziest places on the planet, the City of Angels combines the people-watching of Rodeo Drive, the nonstop nightlife of the Sunset Strip...

Truckee

Formerly a decrepit railroad town in the mountains, Truckee is now the trendy first stop for many Tahoe visitors. The town was officially established around...

Tahoe City

Tahoe City is the only lakeside town with a charming downtown area good for strolling and window-shopping. Stores and restaurants are all within walking distance...

South Lake Tahoe

The city of South Lake Tahoe's raison d'être is tourism: the casinos of adjacent Stateline, Nevada; the ski slopes at Heavenly Mountain; the beaches, docks...

Calistoga

The false-fronted shops, 19th-century buildings, and unpretentious tasting rooms lining the main drag of Lincoln Avenue give Calistoga a slightly rough-and-tumble feel that's unique in...

Avila Beach

Because the village of Avila Beach and the sandy, cove-front shoreline for which it's named face south into the Pacific Ocean, they get more sun...

Carnelian Bay to Kings Beach

The small lakeside commercial districts of Carnelian Bay and Tahoe Vista service the thousand or so locals who live in the area year-round and the...

Los Olivos

This pretty village was once on Spanish-built El Camino Real (Royal Road) and later a stop on major stagecoach and rail routes. Tasting rooms, art...

Morro Bay

Commercial fishermen slog around Morro Bay in galoshes, and beat-up fishing boats bob in the bay's protected waters. Nature-oriented activities take center stage here: kayaking...

Cambria

Cambria, set on piney hills above the sea, was settled by Welsh miners in the 1890s. In the 1970s the isolated setting attracted artists and...

Geyserville

Several high-profile Alexander Valley AVA wineries, including the splashy Francis Ford Coppola Winery, can be found in the town of Geyserville, a small part of...

Napa

After many years as a blue-collar burg detached from the Wine Country scene, the Napa Valley's largest town (population about 80,000) has evolved into its...

Mendocino

Olympic Valley

Olympic Valley got its moniker in 1960, when its ski resort, Palisades Tahoe, hosted the Winter Olympics. Snow sports remain the primary activity, but once...

Stinson Beach

This laid-back hamlet is all about the beach, and folks come from all over the Bay Area to walk its sandy, often windswept shore. An...

Half Moon Bay

It may be the largest and most visited of the coastal communities, but Half Moon Bay is still by all measures a small town. Turn...

St. Helena

Downtown St. Helena is the very picture of good living in the Wine Country: sycamore trees arch over Main Street (Highway 29), where visitors flit...

Sonoma

One of the few towns in the valley with multiple attractions unrelated to food and wine, Sonoma has plenty to keep you busy for a...

Oakland

In contrast to San Francisco's buzz and beauty and Berkeley's storied counterculture, Oakland's allure lies in its amazing diversity. Here you can find a Nigerian...

Sausalito

Bougainvillea-covered hillsides and an expansive yacht harbor give Sausalito the feel of an Adriatic resort. The town sits on the northwestern edge of San Francisco...

Mill Valley

Chic and woodsy Mill Valley has a dual personality. Here, as elsewhere in the county, the foundation is a superb natural setting. Virtually surrounded by...

Big Bear Lake

When Angelenos say they're going to the mountains, they usually mean Big Bear, where alpine-style villages surround the 7-mile-long lake. The south shore has ski...

Laguna Beach

Driving in along Laguna Canyon Road from the Interstate 405 freeway gives you the chance to cruise through a gorgeous coastal canyon, large stretches of...

San Francisco

With its myriad hills and spectacular bay, San Francisco beguiles with natural beauty, vibrant neighborhoods, and contagious energy. From the hipster Mission District to the...

Berkeley

Berkeley is the birthplace of the Free Speech Movement, the radical hub of the 1960s, the home of arguably the nation's top public university, and...

San Diego

San Diego is a vacationer's paradise, with year-round temperatures in the seventies and near-constant sunshine. One of America's most family-friendly cities, San Diego is home...

Santa Ynez

Founded in 1882, the tiny town of Santa Ynez still has many of its original frontier buildings. You can walk through its three-block downtown in...

Borrego Springs

The permanent population of Borrego Springs, set squarely in the middle of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, hovers around 2,500. From September through June, when temperatures...

Solvang

You'll know you've reached the town of Solvang when the architecture suddenly changes to half-timber buildings and windmills. Danish educators settled the town in 1911—the...

San Simeon

Whalers founded San Simeon in the 1850s, but had virtually abandoned it by 1865, when Senator George Hearst began purchasing most of the surrounding ranch...

Pismo Beach

About 20 miles of sandy shoreline—nicknamed the Bakersfield Riviera for the throngs of vacationers who come here from the Central Valley—begins at the town of...

Ventura

Ventura Harbor is home to myriad fishing boats, restaurants, and water-activity centers where you can rent boats and take harbor cruises. The city is also...

San Luis Obispo

About halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, San Luis Obispo spreads out below gentle hills and rocky extinct volcanoes. Its main appeal lies in...

Ojai

The Ojai Valley, which director Frank Capra used as a backdrop for his 1936 film Lost Horizon, sizzles in the summer when temperatures routinely reach...

Twentynine Palms

...

Rancho Mirage

The rich and famous of Rancho Mirage live in beautiful estates and patronize elegant resorts and expensive restaurants. Although many mansions here are concealed behind...

Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara has long been an oasis for Los Angelenos seeking respite from big-city life. The attractions begin at the ocean and end in the...

Paso Robles

In the 1860s, tourists began flocking to this ranching outpost to "take the cure" in a bathhouse fed by underground mineral hot springs. An Old...

Jackson

Jackson wasn't the Gold Country's rowdiest town, but the party lasted longer here than most anywhere else: "girls' dormitories" (aka brothels) and nickel slot machines...

Knott's Berry Farm

Once an actual farm, Knott's Berry Farm now offers a non-Disney theme park option for anyone with a love of roller coasters and boysenberries...

Chester

A gateway to Lassen Volcanic National Park on Lake Almanor's north shore, Chester, population 2,200, supports locals and tourists with modest restaurants, hotels, and shops...

Davis

Davis began as a rich agricultural area and remains one, but it doesn't feel like a cow town. It's home to the University of California...

Fort Bragg

Fort Bragg is a working-class town that many feel is the most authentic place on the coast. The city maintains a local vibe since most...

Santa Rosa

Urban Santa Rosa isn't as popular with tourists as many Wine Country destinations—which isn't surprising, seeing as there are more office parks than wineries within...

Carmel Valley

Carmel Valley Road, which heads inland from Highway 1 south of Carmel, is the main thoroughfare through this valley, a secluded enclave of horse ranchers...

Corona del Mar

A small jewel on the Pacific Coast, Corona del Mar (known by locals as "CDM") has exceptional beaches that some say resemble their majestic Northern...

Claremont

The seven Claremont Colleges are among the most prestigious in the nation, lending the town an ambitious and creative energy. The campuses are all laid...

Sacramento

All around the Golden State's seat of government you'll experience echoes of the gold-rush days, most notably in Old Sacramento, whose wooden sidewalks and horse-drawn...

Placerville

It's hard to imagine now, but in 1849 about 4,000 miners staked out every gully and hillside in Placerville, turning the town into a rip-roaring...

Nevada City

Nevada City, once known as the Queen City of the Northern Mines, is the most appealing of the northern Mother Lode towns. The iron-shutter brick...

Murphys

A well-preserved hamlet of white-picket fences and Victorian houses, compact Murphys has an upscale yet unpretentious vibe. Shops and restaurants line several blocks of Main...

Lodi

With about 100,000 acres of mostly rich alluvial soils planted to more than six-dozen grape varietals—more types than in any other California viticultural area—Lodi is...

Grass Valley

More than half of California's total gold production was extracted from mines around Grass Valley, including the Empire Mine, among the Gold Country's most fascinating...

Dunsmuir

Surrounded by towering forests and boasting world-class upper Sacramento River fly-fishing, Dunsmuir acquired its current moniker when a Scottish coal baron built a fountain in...

Sutter Creek

Sutter Creek is a charming conglomeration of balconied buildings, Victorian homes, and neo–New England structures. At any time of year Main Street (formerly part of...

Volcano

Many roads, all of them winding, all of them scenic, lead to Volcano, an off-the-beaten-path former mining town of about 120 people, the entirety of...

Oak Glen

More than 60 varieties of apples are grown in Oak Glen. This rustic village in the foothills above Yucaipa is home to acres of farms...

Winters

Almonds, walnuts, and fruit are the main crops grown in this rural Yolo County town (population 7,600), whose several-block historic district's wine-tasting opportunities and restaurant...

Capitola and Soquel

On the National Register of Historic places as California’s first seaside resort town, the village of Capitola has been in a holiday mood since the...

Petaluma

The first thing you should know about Petaluma is that this is a farm town—with 62,500 residents, a large one—and the residents are proud of...

Moss Landing

Moss Landing is not much more than a couple of blocks of cafés and restaurants, art galleries, and studios, plus a busy fishing port, but...

Guerneville

Guerneville's tourist demographic has evolved over the years—Bay Area families in the 1950s, lesbians and gays starting in the 1970s, and these days a mix...

Elk

In this quiet town on the cliff above Greenwood Cove, just about every spot has a view of the rocky coastline and stunning Pacific sunsets...

Palm Springs

A tourist destination since the late 19th century, Palm Springs evolved into an ideal hideaway for early Hollywood celebrities who slipped into town to play...

Jenner

The Russian River empties into the Pacific Ocean at Jenner, a wide spot in the road where houses dot a mountainside high above the sea...

Amador City

The history of tiny Amador City (population less than 200) mirrors the boom-bust-boom cycle of many Gold Country towns. With an output of $42 million...

Kenwood

Tiny Kenwood consists of little more than a few restaurants, shops, tasting rooms, and a historic train depot, now used for private events. But hidden...

La Quinta

The desert became a Hollywood hideout in the 1920s, when La Quinta Hotel (now La Quinta Resort and Club) opened, introducing the Coachella Valley's first...

Desert Hot Springs

Desert Hot Springs's famous mineral waters, thought by some to have curative powers, bubble up at temperatures of 90°F to 148°F and flow into the...

Palm Desert

Palm Desert is a thriving retail and business community with popular restaurants, private and public golf courses, and premium shopping along its main commercial drag...

Avalon

Avalon, Catalina’s only real town, extends from the shore of its natural harbor to the surrounding hillsides. Its resident population is about 3,800, but it...

Indian Wells

For the most part a quiet and exclusive residential enclave, Indian Wells hosts major tennis tournaments throughout the year, including the BNP Paribas Open. Three...

Newport Beach

Newport Beach has evolved from a simple seaside village to an icon of chic coastal living. Its ritzy reputation comes from megayachts bobbing in the...

Cathedral City

Cathedral City is more residential than tourist-oriented, with large and small malls everywhere, but the city has several good restaurants and entertainment venues with moderate...

Bakersfield

Bakersfield's founder, Colonel Thomas Baker, arrived with the discovery of gold in the nearby Kern River valley in 1851. With 364,000 residents, including the country’s...

San Juan Capistrano

San Juan Capistrano is best known for its historic mission, where the swallows traditionally return each year, migrating from their winter haven in Argentina, but...

Kernville

The wild Kern River, which flows through Kernville en route from Mt. Whitney to Bakersfield, delivers some of the most exciting white-water rafting in the...

Modesto

Among the most striking "welcome to downtown" signs you'll see, the Modesto Arch, at 9th and I streets, bears the city's motto: "Water, Wealth, Contentment...

Hanford

Founded in 1877 as a Southern Pacific Railroad stop, Hanford had one of California's largest Chinatowns—the Chinese came to help build the railroads and stayed...

Long Beach and San Pedro

...

Merced

The 2005 debut of a branch of the University of California helped spur redevelopment in Merced County’s seat of government. The transformation has resulted in...

Menlo Park

Not to be confused with lightbulb inventor Thomas Edison’s New Jersey hometown, this bedroom community centers on a small downtown strip of restaurants and shops...

Stockton

California's first inland port—connected since 1933 to San Francisco via a 60-mile-long deepwater channel—is wedged between Interstate 5 and Highway 99, on the eastern end...

Mt. Shasta

While a snow-covered dormant volcano is the area’s dazzling draw, the town of Mt. Shasta charms visitors with its small shops, friendly residents, and beautiful...

Chico

Its name is Spanish for "small," but with a 40% increase in population between censuses, Chico outpaced Redding as the Far North's largest city. Chico...

Weaverville

Chinese miners erected the 1874 Joss House that anchors Weaverville's downtown historic district. The town, population about 3,200, is a popular headquarters for family vacations...

Mineral

Fewer than 200 people live in Mineral, which serves as Lassen Volcanic National Park's official address...

Huntington Beach

Once a sleepy residential town with little more than a string of rugged surf shops, Huntington Beach has transformed itself into a resort destination,commonly referred...

Redding

A handy gateway to Lassen Volcanic National Park, Redding, population about 95,000, sits along the busy I–5 corridor, with attractions that include the photogenic Sundial...

Muir Beach

Except on the sunniest of weekends, Muir Beach is relatively quiet, but the drive to this community and beach is a scenic adventure...

Temecula

Temecula, with its rolling green vineyards, country inns, and first-rate restaurants, bills itself as "Southern California Wine Country." The region is home to about four...

Lancaster

Points of interest around Lancaster include a state poppy reserve that bursts to life in the spring and Edwards Air Force Base, which many consider...

Lake Arrowhead

Lake Arrowhead Village is an alpine community with lodgings, shops, outlet stores, and eateries that descend a hill to the lake. Outside the village, access...

Victorville

At the southwest corner of the Mojave is sprawling Victorville, a town with a rich Route 66 heritage and a museum dedicated to the Mother...

Riverside

By 1882 Riverside was home to more than half of California's citrus groves, making it the state's wealthiest city per capita in 1895. The prosperity...

Yountville

Yountville (population about 3,000) is something like Disneyland for food lovers. It all started with Thomas Keller's The French Laundry, one of the best restaurants...

Barstow

Barstow was born in 1886, when a subsidiary of the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway began construction of a Harvey House depot and hotel...

Palo Alto

Despite being a midsized residential community, Palo Alto enjoys an outsized reputation as one of the premier cities to live and work in—with eye-popping real...

Ridgecrest

A military town that serves the U.S. Naval Weapons Center to its north, Ridgecrest has scores of stores, restaurants, and hotels. With about 29,000 residents...

Point Reyes National Seashore

With sandy beaches stretching for miles, a dramatic rocky coastline, a gem of a lighthouse (Point Reyes Lighthouse: closed at this writing, but check online)...

Aptos

Backed by a redwood forest and facing the sea, downtown Aptos—known as Aptos Village—is a place of wooden walkways and false-fronted shops. Antiques dealers cluster...

San Jose

California’s third-largest city, San Jose is often thought of as a smaller Los Angeles because of its relentless sprawl and valley setting surrounded by mountains...

Carmel-by-the-Sea

Even when its population quadruples with tourists on weekends and in summer, Carmel-by-the-Sea, commonly referred to as Carmel, retains its identity as a quaint village...

Pebble Beach

In 1919 the Pacific Improvement Company acquired 18,000 acres of prime land on the Monterey Peninsula, including the entire Pebble Beach coastal region and much...

Monterey

Monterey is a scenic city filled with early California history: adobe buildings from the 1700s, Colton Hall, where California’s first constitution was drafted in 1849...

Bodega Bay

Pockets of modernity notwithstanding, this commercial fishing town retains the workaday vibe of its cinematic turn in Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds (1963). Little from the...

Pacific Grove

This picturesque town, which began as a summer retreat for church groups more than a century ago, recalls its prim and proper Victorian heritage in...

Rutherford

The spot where Highway 29 meets Rutherford Road in the tiny community of Rutherford may well be the most significant wine-related intersection in the United...

Santa Cruz

The big city on this stretch of the California coast, Santa Cruz (pop. 63,364) is less manicured than Carmel or Monterey. Long known for its...

Tiburon

On a peninsula that was named Punta de Tiburón (Shark Point) by 18th-century Spanish explorers, this beautiful Marin County community retains the feel of a...

Boonville

At first glance Boonville, population a little more than 1,000, looks pretty much as it has for decades, with the 19th-century Boonville Hotel anchoring the...

Philo

Many wineries straddle Highway 128 in Philo, where the tasting rooms are more low-key than their counterparts in Napa. The wineries here, however, produce world-class...

Eureka

An excellent place to fuel up, buy groceries, and learn a little about the region's mining, timber, and fishing pasts, historic Eureka was named after...

Ukiah

About 16,000 people live in Ukiah, the Mendocino County seat and largest town. Logging and beer hops were two prominent industries starting in the late-19th...

Hopland

U.S. 101 briefly narrows to one lane in each direction to become this small town's main drag. For many years a center for the cultivation...

El Portal

The market in town is a good place to pick up provisions before you get to Yosemite. You'll find a post office and a gas...

Pescadero

As you walk down Stage Road, Pescadero's main street, it's hard to believe you're only 30 minutes from Silicon Valley. If you could block out...

Occidental

A village surrounded by redwood forests, orchards, and vineyards, Occidental is a former logging hub with a bohemian vibe. The small downtown, which contains several...

Trinidad

A mellow base for exploring the southern portion of Redwood National and State Parks, coastal Trinidad got its name from the Spanish mariners who entered...

Fresno

Fresno, with half a million people, is the center of the richest agricultural county in the United States. Cotton, grapes, and tomatoes are among the...

Bishop

One of the biggest towns along U.S. 395, bustling Bishop has views of the Sierra Nevada and the White and Inyo mountains. First settled by...

Lone Pine

Mt. Whitney towers majestically over this tiny community, which supplied nearby gold- and silver-mining outposts in the 1860s, and for the past century the town...

Fish Camp

As you climb in elevation along Highway 41 northbound, you see nothing but trees until you get to Fish Camp, where there's a post office...

Healdsburg

Sonoma County's ritziest town and the star of many a magazine spread or online feature, Healdsburg is located at the intersection of the Dry Creek...

Lee Vining

Tiny Lee Vining is known primarily as the eastern gateway to Yosemite National Park (summer only) and the location of vast and desolate Mono Lake...

Oakhurst

Motels, restaurants, gas stations, and small businesses line Highway 41 in Oakhurst, the last sizable community before Yosemite National Park and a good spot to...

Mammoth Lakes

International real-estate developers joined forces with Mammoth Mountain Ski Area to transform the once sleepy town of Mammoth Lakes (elevation 7,800 feet) into an upscale...

Glen Ellen

Craggy Glen Ellen epitomizes the difference between the Napa and Sonoma valleys. Whereas small Napa towns like St. Helena get their charm from upscale boutiques...

Three Rivers

Three Rivers is a good spot to find a room when park lodgings are full. Either because residents here appreciate their idyllic setting or because...

Forestville

To experience the Russian River AVA's climate and rusticity, follow the river's westward course to the town of Forestville, home to a highly regarded restaurant...

Los Angeles

One of the glitziest places on the planet, the City of Angels combines the people-watching of Rodeo Drive, the nonstop nightlife of the Sunset Strip...

Truckee

Formerly a decrepit railroad town in the mountains, Truckee is now the trendy first stop for many Tahoe visitors. The town was officially established around...

Tahoe City

Tahoe City is the only lakeside town with a charming downtown area good for strolling and window-shopping. Stores and restaurants are all within walking distance...

South Lake Tahoe

The city of South Lake Tahoe's raison d'être is tourism: the casinos of adjacent Stateline, Nevada; the ski slopes at Heavenly Mountain; the beaches, docks...

Calistoga

The false-fronted shops, 19th-century buildings, and unpretentious tasting rooms lining the main drag of Lincoln Avenue give Calistoga a slightly rough-and-tumble feel that's unique in...

Avila Beach

Because the village of Avila Beach and the sandy, cove-front shoreline for which it's named face south into the Pacific Ocean, they get more sun...

Carnelian Bay to Kings Beach

The small lakeside commercial districts of Carnelian Bay and Tahoe Vista service the thousand or so locals who live in the area year-round and the...

Los Olivos

This pretty village was once on Spanish-built El Camino Real (Royal Road) and later a stop on major stagecoach and rail routes. Tasting rooms, art...

Morro Bay

Commercial fishermen slog around Morro Bay in galoshes, and beat-up fishing boats bob in the bay's protected waters. Nature-oriented activities take center stage here: kayaking...

Cambria

Cambria, set on piney hills above the sea, was settled by Welsh miners in the 1890s. In the 1970s the isolated setting attracted artists and...

Geyserville

Several high-profile Alexander Valley AVA wineries, including the splashy Francis Ford Coppola Winery, can be found in the town of Geyserville, a small part of...

Napa

After many years as a blue-collar burg detached from the Wine Country scene, the Napa Valley's largest town (population about 80,000) has evolved into its...

Mendocino

Olympic Valley

Olympic Valley got its moniker in 1960, when its ski resort, Palisades Tahoe, hosted the Winter Olympics. Snow sports remain the primary activity, but once...

Stinson Beach

This laid-back hamlet is all about the beach, and folks come from all over the Bay Area to walk its sandy, often windswept shore. An...

Half Moon Bay

It may be the largest and most visited of the coastal communities, but Half Moon Bay is still by all measures a small town. Turn...

St. Helena

Downtown St. Helena is the very picture of good living in the Wine Country: sycamore trees arch over Main Street (Highway 29), where visitors flit...

Sonoma

One of the few towns in the valley with multiple attractions unrelated to food and wine, Sonoma has plenty to keep you busy for a...

Oakland

In contrast to San Francisco's buzz and beauty and Berkeley's storied counterculture, Oakland's allure lies in its amazing diversity. Here you can find a Nigerian...

Sausalito

Bougainvillea-covered hillsides and an expansive yacht harbor give Sausalito the feel of an Adriatic resort. The town sits on the northwestern edge of San Francisco...

Mill Valley

Chic and woodsy Mill Valley has a dual personality. Here, as elsewhere in the county, the foundation is a superb natural setting. Virtually surrounded by...

Big Bear Lake

When Angelenos say they're going to the mountains, they usually mean Big Bear, where alpine-style villages surround the 7-mile-long lake. The south shore has ski...

Laguna Beach

Driving in along Laguna Canyon Road from the Interstate 405 freeway gives you the chance to cruise through a gorgeous coastal canyon, large stretches of...

San Francisco

With its myriad hills and spectacular bay, San Francisco beguiles with natural beauty, vibrant neighborhoods, and contagious energy. From the hipster Mission District to the...

Berkeley

Berkeley is the birthplace of the Free Speech Movement, the radical hub of the 1960s, the home of arguably the nation's top public university, and...

San Diego

San Diego is a vacationer's paradise, with year-round temperatures in the seventies and near-constant sunshine. One of America's most family-friendly cities, San Diego is home...

Santa Ynez

Founded in 1882, the tiny town of Santa Ynez still has many of its original frontier buildings. You can walk through its three-block downtown in...

Borrego Springs

The permanent population of Borrego Springs, set squarely in the middle of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, hovers around 2,500. From September through June, when temperatures...

Solvang

You'll know you've reached the town of Solvang when the architecture suddenly changes to half-timber buildings and windmills. Danish educators settled the town in 1911—the...

San Simeon

Whalers founded San Simeon in the 1850s, but had virtually abandoned it by 1865, when Senator George Hearst began purchasing most of the surrounding ranch...

Pismo Beach

About 20 miles of sandy shoreline—nicknamed the Bakersfield Riviera for the throngs of vacationers who come here from the Central Valley—begins at the town of...

Ventura

Ventura Harbor is home to myriad fishing boats, restaurants, and water-activity centers where you can rent boats and take harbor cruises. The city is also...

San Luis Obispo

About halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, San Luis Obispo spreads out below gentle hills and rocky extinct volcanoes. Its main appeal lies in...

Ojai

The Ojai Valley, which director Frank Capra used as a backdrop for his 1936 film Lost Horizon, sizzles in the summer when temperatures routinely reach...

Twentynine Palms

...

Rancho Mirage

The rich and famous of Rancho Mirage live in beautiful estates and patronize elegant resorts and expensive restaurants. Although many mansions here are concealed behind...

Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara has long been an oasis for Los Angelenos seeking respite from big-city life. The attractions begin at the ocean and end in the...

Paso Robles

In the 1860s, tourists began flocking to this ranching outpost to "take the cure" in a bathhouse fed by underground mineral hot springs. An Old...

Jackson

Jackson wasn't the Gold Country's rowdiest town, but the party lasted longer here than most anywhere else: "girls' dormitories" (aka brothels) and nickel slot machines...

Knott's Berry Farm

Once an actual farm, Knott's Berry Farm now offers a non-Disney theme park option for anyone with a love of roller coasters and boysenberries...

Chester

A gateway to Lassen Volcanic National Park on Lake Almanor's north shore, Chester, population 2,200, supports locals and tourists with modest restaurants, hotels, and shops...

Davis

Davis began as a rich agricultural area and remains one, but it doesn't feel like a cow town. It's home to the University of California...

Fort Bragg

Fort Bragg is a working-class town that many feel is the most authentic place on the coast. The city maintains a local vibe since most...

Santa Rosa

Urban Santa Rosa isn't as popular with tourists as many Wine Country destinations—which isn't surprising, seeing as there are more office parks than wineries within...

Carmel Valley

Carmel Valley Road, which heads inland from Highway 1 south of Carmel, is the main thoroughfare through this valley, a secluded enclave of horse ranchers...

Corona del Mar

A small jewel on the Pacific Coast, Corona del Mar (known by locals as "CDM") has exceptional beaches that some say resemble their majestic Northern...

Claremont

The seven Claremont Colleges are among the most prestigious in the nation, lending the town an ambitious and creative energy. The campuses are all laid...

Sacramento

All around the Golden State's seat of government you'll experience echoes of the gold-rush days, most notably in Old Sacramento, whose wooden sidewalks and horse-drawn...

Placerville

It's hard to imagine now, but in 1849 about 4,000 miners staked out every gully and hillside in Placerville, turning the town into a rip-roaring...

Nevada City

Nevada City, once known as the Queen City of the Northern Mines, is the most appealing of the northern Mother Lode towns. The iron-shutter brick...

Murphys

A well-preserved hamlet of white-picket fences and Victorian houses, compact Murphys has an upscale yet unpretentious vibe. Shops and restaurants line several blocks of Main...

Lodi

With about 100,000 acres of mostly rich alluvial soils planted to more than six-dozen grape varietals—more types than in any other California viticultural area—Lodi is...

Grass Valley

More than half of California's total gold production was extracted from mines around Grass Valley, including the Empire Mine, among the Gold Country's most fascinating...

Dunsmuir

Surrounded by towering forests and boasting world-class upper Sacramento River fly-fishing, Dunsmuir acquired its current moniker when a Scottish coal baron built a fountain in...

Sutter Creek

Sutter Creek is a charming conglomeration of balconied buildings, Victorian homes, and neo–New England structures. At any time of year Main Street (formerly part of...

Volcano

Many roads, all of them winding, all of them scenic, lead to Volcano, an off-the-beaten-path former mining town of about 120 people, the entirety of...

Oak Glen

More than 60 varieties of apples are grown in Oak Glen. This rustic village in the foothills above Yucaipa is home to acres of farms...

Winters

Almonds, walnuts, and fruit are the main crops grown in this rural Yolo County town (population 7,600), whose several-block historic district's wine-tasting opportunities and restaurant...

Capitola and Soquel

On the National Register of Historic places as California’s first seaside resort town, the village of Capitola has been in a holiday mood since the...

Petaluma

The first thing you should know about Petaluma is that this is a farm town—with 62,500 residents, a large one—and the residents are proud of...

Moss Landing

Moss Landing is not much more than a couple of blocks of cafés and restaurants, art galleries, and studios, plus a busy fishing port, but...

Guerneville

Guerneville's tourist demographic has evolved over the years—Bay Area families in the 1950s, lesbians and gays starting in the 1970s, and these days a mix...

Elk

In this quiet town on the cliff above Greenwood Cove, just about every spot has a view of the rocky coastline and stunning Pacific sunsets...

Palm Springs

A tourist destination since the late 19th century, Palm Springs evolved into an ideal hideaway for early Hollywood celebrities who slipped into town to play...

Jenner

The Russian River empties into the Pacific Ocean at Jenner, a wide spot in the road where houses dot a mountainside high above the sea...

Amador City

The history of tiny Amador City (population less than 200) mirrors the boom-bust-boom cycle of many Gold Country towns. With an output of $42 million...

Kenwood

Tiny Kenwood consists of little more than a few restaurants, shops, tasting rooms, and a historic train depot, now used for private events. But hidden...

La Quinta

The desert became a Hollywood hideout in the 1920s, when La Quinta Hotel (now La Quinta Resort and Club) opened, introducing the Coachella Valley's first...

Desert Hot Springs

Desert Hot Springs's famous mineral waters, thought by some to have curative powers, bubble up at temperatures of 90°F to 148°F and flow into the...

Palm Desert

Palm Desert is a thriving retail and business community with popular restaurants, private and public golf courses, and premium shopping along its main commercial drag...

Avalon

Avalon, Catalina’s only real town, extends from the shore of its natural harbor to the surrounding hillsides. Its resident population is about 3,800, but it...

Indian Wells

For the most part a quiet and exclusive residential enclave, Indian Wells hosts major tennis tournaments throughout the year, including the BNP Paribas Open. Three...

Newport Beach

Newport Beach has evolved from a simple seaside village to an icon of chic coastal living. Its ritzy reputation comes from megayachts bobbing in the...

Cathedral City

Cathedral City is more residential than tourist-oriented, with large and small malls everywhere, but the city has several good restaurants and entertainment venues with moderate...

Bakersfield

Bakersfield's founder, Colonel Thomas Baker, arrived with the discovery of gold in the nearby Kern River valley in 1851. With 364,000 residents, including the country’s...

San Juan Capistrano

San Juan Capistrano is best known for its historic mission, where the swallows traditionally return each year, migrating from their winter haven in Argentina, but...

Kernville

The wild Kern River, which flows through Kernville en route from Mt. Whitney to Bakersfield, delivers some of the most exciting white-water rafting in the...

Modesto

Among the most striking "welcome to downtown" signs you'll see, the Modesto Arch, at 9th and I streets, bears the city's motto: "Water, Wealth, Contentment...

Hanford

Founded in 1877 as a Southern Pacific Railroad stop, Hanford had one of California's largest Chinatowns—the Chinese came to help build the railroads and stayed...

Long Beach and San Pedro

...

Merced

The 2005 debut of a branch of the University of California helped spur redevelopment in Merced County’s seat of government. The transformation has resulted in...

Menlo Park

Not to be confused with lightbulb inventor Thomas Edison’s New Jersey hometown, this bedroom community centers on a small downtown strip of restaurants and shops...

Stockton

California's first inland port—connected since 1933 to San Francisco via a 60-mile-long deepwater channel—is wedged between Interstate 5 and Highway 99, on the eastern end...

Mt. Shasta

While a snow-covered dormant volcano is the area’s dazzling draw, the town of Mt. Shasta charms visitors with its small shops, friendly residents, and beautiful...

Chico

Its name is Spanish for "small," but with a 40% increase in population between censuses, Chico outpaced Redding as the Far North's largest city. Chico...

Weaverville

Chinese miners erected the 1874 Joss House that anchors Weaverville's downtown historic district. The town, population about 3,200, is a popular headquarters for family vacations...

Mineral

Fewer than 200 people live in Mineral, which serves as Lassen Volcanic National Park's official address...

Huntington Beach

Once a sleepy residential town with little more than a string of rugged surf shops, Huntington Beach has transformed itself into a resort destination,commonly referred...

Redding

A handy gateway to Lassen Volcanic National Park, Redding, population about 95,000, sits along the busy I–5 corridor, with attractions that include the photogenic Sundial...

Muir Beach

Except on the sunniest of weekends, Muir Beach is relatively quiet, but the drive to this community and beach is a scenic adventure...

Temecula

Temecula, with its rolling green vineyards, country inns, and first-rate restaurants, bills itself as "Southern California Wine Country." The region is home to about four...

Lancaster

Points of interest around Lancaster include a state poppy reserve that bursts to life in the spring and Edwards Air Force Base, which many consider...

Lake Arrowhead

Lake Arrowhead Village is an alpine community with lodgings, shops, outlet stores, and eateries that descend a hill to the lake. Outside the village, access...

Victorville

At the southwest corner of the Mojave is sprawling Victorville, a town with a rich Route 66 heritage and a museum dedicated to the Mother...

Riverside

By 1882 Riverside was home to more than half of California's citrus groves, making it the state's wealthiest city per capita in 1895. The prosperity...

Yountville

Yountville (population about 3,000) is something like Disneyland for food lovers. It all started with Thomas Keller's The French Laundry, one of the best restaurants...

Barstow

Barstow was born in 1886, when a subsidiary of the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway began construction of a Harvey House depot and hotel...

Palo Alto

Despite being a midsized residential community, Palo Alto enjoys an outsized reputation as one of the premier cities to live and work in—with eye-popping real...

Ridgecrest

A military town that serves the U.S. Naval Weapons Center to its north, Ridgecrest has scores of stores, restaurants, and hotels. With about 29,000 residents...

Point Reyes National Seashore

With sandy beaches stretching for miles, a dramatic rocky coastline, a gem of a lighthouse (Point Reyes Lighthouse: closed at this writing, but check online)...

Aptos

Backed by a redwood forest and facing the sea, downtown Aptos—known as Aptos Village—is a place of wooden walkways and false-fronted shops. Antiques dealers cluster...

San Jose

California’s third-largest city, San Jose is often thought of as a smaller Los Angeles because of its relentless sprawl and valley setting surrounded by mountains...

Carmel-by-the-Sea

Even when its population quadruples with tourists on weekends and in summer, Carmel-by-the-Sea, commonly referred to as Carmel, retains its identity as a quaint village...

Pebble Beach

In 1919 the Pacific Improvement Company acquired 18,000 acres of prime land on the Monterey Peninsula, including the entire Pebble Beach coastal region and much...

Monterey

Monterey is a scenic city filled with early California history: adobe buildings from the 1700s, Colton Hall, where California’s first constitution was drafted in 1849...

Bodega Bay

Pockets of modernity notwithstanding, this commercial fishing town retains the workaday vibe of its cinematic turn in Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds (1963). Little from the...

Pacific Grove

This picturesque town, which began as a summer retreat for church groups more than a century ago, recalls its prim and proper Victorian heritage in...

Rutherford

The spot where Highway 29 meets Rutherford Road in the tiny community of Rutherford may well be the most significant wine-related intersection in the United...

Santa Cruz

The big city on this stretch of the California coast, Santa Cruz (pop. 63,364) is less manicured than Carmel or Monterey. Long known for its...

Tiburon

On a peninsula that was named Punta de Tiburón (Shark Point) by 18th-century Spanish explorers, this beautiful Marin County community retains the feel of a...

Boonville

At first glance Boonville, population a little more than 1,000, looks pretty much as it has for decades, with the 19th-century Boonville Hotel anchoring the...

Philo

Many wineries straddle Highway 128 in Philo, where the tasting rooms are more low-key than their counterparts in Napa. The wineries here, however, produce world-class...

Eureka

An excellent place to fuel up, buy groceries, and learn a little about the region's mining, timber, and fishing pasts, historic Eureka was named after...

Ukiah

About 16,000 people live in Ukiah, the Mendocino County seat and largest town. Logging and beer hops were two prominent industries starting in the late-19th...

Hopland

U.S. 101 briefly narrows to one lane in each direction to become this small town's main drag. For many years a center for the cultivation...

El Portal

The market in town is a good place to pick up provisions before you get to Yosemite. You'll find a post office and a gas...

Pescadero

As you walk down Stage Road, Pescadero's main street, it's hard to believe you're only 30 minutes from Silicon Valley. If you could block out...

Occidental

A village surrounded by redwood forests, orchards, and vineyards, Occidental is a former logging hub with a bohemian vibe. The small downtown, which contains several...

Trinidad

A mellow base for exploring the southern portion of Redwood National and State Parks, coastal Trinidad got its name from the Spanish mariners who entered...

Fresno

Fresno, with half a million people, is the center of the richest agricultural county in the United States. Cotton, grapes, and tomatoes are among the...

Bishop

One of the biggest towns along U.S. 395, bustling Bishop has views of the Sierra Nevada and the White and Inyo mountains. First settled by...

Lone Pine

Mt. Whitney towers majestically over this tiny community, which supplied nearby gold- and silver-mining outposts in the 1860s, and for the past century the town...

Fish Camp

As you climb in elevation along Highway 41 northbound, you see nothing but trees until you get to Fish Camp, where there's a post office...

Healdsburg

Sonoma County's ritziest town and the star of many a magazine spread or online feature, Healdsburg is located at the intersection of the Dry Creek...

Lee Vining

Tiny Lee Vining is known primarily as the eastern gateway to Yosemite National Park (summer only) and the location of vast and desolate Mono Lake...

Oakhurst

Motels, restaurants, gas stations, and small businesses line Highway 41 in Oakhurst, the last sizable community before Yosemite National Park and a good spot to...

Mammoth Lakes

International real-estate developers joined forces with Mammoth Mountain Ski Area to transform the once sleepy town of Mammoth Lakes (elevation 7,800 feet) into an upscale...

Glen Ellen

Craggy Glen Ellen epitomizes the difference between the Napa and Sonoma valleys. Whereas small Napa towns like St. Helena get their charm from upscale boutiques...

Three Rivers

Three Rivers is a good spot to find a room when park lodgings are full. Either because residents here appreciate their idyllic setting or because...

Forestville

To experience the Russian River AVA's climate and rusticity, follow the river's westward course to the town of Forestville, home to a highly regarded restaurant...

Napa and Sonoma

In California's premier wine region, the pleasures of eating and drinking are celebrated daily. It's easy to join in at famous wineries and rising newcomers...

The Bay Area

It's rare for a metropolis to compete with its suburbs for visitors, but the view from any of San Francisco's hilltops shows that the Bay...

The Monterey Bay Area

North of Big Sur, the coastline softens into lower bluffs, windswept dunes, pristine estuaries, and long, sandy beaches bordering one of the world’s most amazing...

The Central Coast

Balmy weather, glorious beaches, crystal-clear air, and serene landscapes have lured people to the Central Coast since prehistoric times. Today it’s also known for its...

Big Sur Coastline

Long a retreat of artists and writers, Big Sur is a place of ancient forests and rugged shoreline, stretching 90 miles from San Simeon to...

The Mojave Desert

Dust and desolation, tumbleweeds and rattlesnakes, barren landscapes and failed dreams—these are the bleak images that come to mind when most people hear the word...

Orange County and Catalina Island

With its tropical flowers and palm trees, the stretch of coast between Seal Beach and San Clemente is often called the Southern California Riviera. Upscale...

Palm Springs and the Desert Resorts

With the Palm Springs area’s year-round sunshine, luxurious spas, chef-driven restaurants, and see-and-be-seen pool parties, it's no wonder that Hollywood A-listers and weekend warriors make...

Sacramento and the Gold Country

The Gold Country is one of California's less expensive yet still sublime destinations, a region of the Sierra Nevada foothills filled with natural and cultural...

Lake Tahoe

Whether you swim, fish, sail, or simply rest on its shores, you’ll be wowed by the overwhelming beauty of Lake Tahoe, which is famous for...

The Central Valley

In California’s family of diverse regions, the 225-mile-long Central Valley is literally and figuratively a middle sibling. Cradled between the popular coastal communities to the...

Moss Beach

...

Sunnyvale and Mountain View

Originally a stagecoach stop on the Peninsula for travelers between San Francisco and San Jose, Mountain View’s technology certainly has evolved in the century and...

The North Coast

The spectacular coastline of Sonoma, Mendocino, and Humboldt counties defies expectations. The Pacific Ocean defines the landscape, but instead of boardwalks and bikinis there are...

Plymouth

The most concentrated Gold Country wine-touring area lies in the hills of the Shenandoah Valley, east of Plymouth—you could easily spend two or three days...

Outside Redwood National Park

The North Coast's largest city is Eureka, population 27,000 and the Humboldt County seat. Its Old Town has an alluring waterfront boardwalk, several excellent restaurants...

Outside Pinnacles National Park

The small town of Soledad, just outside the park's western entrance, is most famous as the setting of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, but...

Yucca Valley

One of the high desert's fastest-growing cities, Yucca Valley is emerging as a bedroom community for people who work as far away as Ontario, 85...

The Far North

The Far North's soaring mountain peaks, trail-filled national forests, alpine lakes, and wild rivers teeming with trout make it the perfect destination for outdoor enthusiasts...

The Inland Empire

Threaded with rolling vineyards, homey agricultural towns, and mountain retreats, the Inland Empire has a humble allure. Often bypassed because of its freeway maze and...

The Sierra Nevada

The granite peaks and ancient pines of the Eastern Sierra bedazzle heart and soul so completely that, for many visitors, the experience surpasses that at...

Downtown and Koreatown

...

North County and Around

A whole world of scenic grandeur, fascinating history, and scientific wonder lies just beyond San Diego’s city limits. If you travel north along the coast...

Avenue of the Giants

Conservationists banded together a century ago as the Save the Redwoods League and scored a crucial victory when a memorial grove was dedicated in 1921...

Peninsular Coastline

With steep, chiseled cliffs and frequently enormous waves that are popular with surfers and whales, the peninsular coastline is one of the great road trip...

Outside Yosemite National Park

Marking the southern end of the Sierra's gold-bearing mother lode, Mariposa is the last big town before you enter Yosemite on Route 140 to the...

Santa Cruz Mountains AVA

Napa Valley and Sonoma County might get most of the winery tourists, but the massive Santa Cruz Mountains AVA is often cited by locals and...

Napa and Sonoma

In California's premier wine region, the pleasures of eating and drinking are celebrated daily. It's easy to join in at famous wineries and rising newcomers...

The Bay Area

It's rare for a metropolis to compete with its suburbs for visitors, but the view from any of San Francisco's hilltops shows that the Bay...

The Monterey Bay Area

North of Big Sur, the coastline softens into lower bluffs, windswept dunes, pristine estuaries, and long, sandy beaches bordering one of the world’s most amazing...

The Central Coast

Balmy weather, glorious beaches, crystal-clear air, and serene landscapes have lured people to the Central Coast since prehistoric times. Today it’s also known for its...

Big Sur Coastline

Long a retreat of artists and writers, Big Sur is a place of ancient forests and rugged shoreline, stretching 90 miles from San Simeon to...

The Mojave Desert

Dust and desolation, tumbleweeds and rattlesnakes, barren landscapes and failed dreams—these are the bleak images that come to mind when most people hear the word...

Orange County and Catalina Island

With its tropical flowers and palm trees, the stretch of coast between Seal Beach and San Clemente is often called the Southern California Riviera. Upscale...

Palm Springs and the Desert Resorts

With the Palm Springs area’s year-round sunshine, luxurious spas, chef-driven restaurants, and see-and-be-seen pool parties, it's no wonder that Hollywood A-listers and weekend warriors make...

Sacramento and the Gold Country

The Gold Country is one of California's less expensive yet still sublime destinations, a region of the Sierra Nevada foothills filled with natural and cultural...

Lake Tahoe

Whether you swim, fish, sail, or simply rest on its shores, you’ll be wowed by the overwhelming beauty of Lake Tahoe, which is famous for...

The Central Valley

In California’s family of diverse regions, the 225-mile-long Central Valley is literally and figuratively a middle sibling. Cradled between the popular coastal communities to the...

Moss Beach

...

Sunnyvale and Mountain View

Originally a stagecoach stop on the Peninsula for travelers between San Francisco and San Jose, Mountain View’s technology certainly has evolved in the century and...

The North Coast

The spectacular coastline of Sonoma, Mendocino, and Humboldt counties defies expectations. The Pacific Ocean defines the landscape, but instead of boardwalks and bikinis there are...

Plymouth

The most concentrated Gold Country wine-touring area lies in the hills of the Shenandoah Valley, east of Plymouth—you could easily spend two or three days...

Outside Redwood National Park

The North Coast's largest city is Eureka, population 27,000 and the Humboldt County seat. Its Old Town has an alluring waterfront boardwalk, several excellent restaurants...

Outside Pinnacles National Park

The small town of Soledad, just outside the park's western entrance, is most famous as the setting of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, but...

Yucca Valley

One of the high desert's fastest-growing cities, Yucca Valley is emerging as a bedroom community for people who work as far away as Ontario, 85...

The Far North

The Far North's soaring mountain peaks, trail-filled national forests, alpine lakes, and wild rivers teeming with trout make it the perfect destination for outdoor enthusiasts...

The Inland Empire

Threaded with rolling vineyards, homey agricultural towns, and mountain retreats, the Inland Empire has a humble allure. Often bypassed because of its freeway maze and...

The Sierra Nevada

The granite peaks and ancient pines of the Eastern Sierra bedazzle heart and soul so completely that, for many visitors, the experience surpasses that at...

Downtown and Koreatown

...

North County and Around

A whole world of scenic grandeur, fascinating history, and scientific wonder lies just beyond San Diego’s city limits. If you travel north along the coast...

Avenue of the Giants

Conservationists banded together a century ago as the Save the Redwoods League and scored a crucial victory when a memorial grove was dedicated in 1921...

Peninsular Coastline

With steep, chiseled cliffs and frequently enormous waves that are popular with surfers and whales, the peninsular coastline is one of the great road trip...

Outside Yosemite National Park

Marking the southern end of the Sierra's gold-bearing mother lode, Mariposa is the last big town before you enter Yosemite on Route 140 to the...

Santa Cruz Mountains AVA

Napa Valley and Sonoma County might get most of the winery tourists, but the massive Santa Cruz Mountains AVA is often cited by locals and...

Sequoia National Park

Sequoia National Park is all about the trees, and to understand the scale of these giants you must walk among them. If you do nothing...

Yosemite National Park

By merely standing in Yosemite Valley and turning in a circle, you can see more natural wonders in a minute than you could in a...

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks

The word “exceptional” best describes these two parks, which offer some of the nation’s greatest escapes. Drives along their byways deliver stunning vistas at nearly...

Kings Canyon National Park

Kings Canyon National Park consists of two sections that adjoin the northern boundary of Sequoia National Park. The western portion, covered with sequoia and pine...

Redwood National and State Parks

Soaring more than 375 feet high, California's coastal redwoods are miracles of efficiency—some have survived hundreds of years, a few more than two millennia. These...

Pinnacles National Park

Lassen Volcanic National Park

Lassen Peak, a plug dome, is the most famous feature of this 166-square-mile tract of coniferous forests and alpine meadows. Its most spectacular outburst occurred...

Joshua Tree National Park

Joshua Tree teems with fascinating landscapes and life-forms, including its namesake trees. Dagger-like tufts grace the branches of the Yucca brevifolia, which grows in vast...

Death Valley National Park

The natural riches of Death Valley—the largest national park outside Alaska—are overwhelming: rolling waves of sand dunes, black cinder cones thrusting up hundreds of feet...

Sequoia National Park

Sequoia National Park is all about the trees, and to understand the scale of these giants you must walk among them. If you do nothing...

Yosemite National Park

By merely standing in Yosemite Valley and turning in a circle, you can see more natural wonders in a minute than you could in a...

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks

The word “exceptional” best describes these two parks, which offer some of the nation’s greatest escapes. Drives along their byways deliver stunning vistas at nearly...

Kings Canyon National Park

Kings Canyon National Park consists of two sections that adjoin the northern boundary of Sequoia National Park. The western portion, covered with sequoia and pine...

Redwood National and State Parks

Soaring more than 375 feet high, California's coastal redwoods are miracles of efficiency—some have survived hundreds of years, a few more than two millennia. These...

Pinnacles National Park

Lassen Volcanic National Park

Lassen Peak, a plug dome, is the most famous feature of this 166-square-mile tract of coniferous forests and alpine meadows. Its most spectacular outburst occurred...

Joshua Tree National Park

Joshua Tree teems with fascinating landscapes and life-forms, including its namesake trees. Dagger-like tufts grace the branches of the Yucca brevifolia, which grows in vast...

Death Valley National Park

The natural riches of Death Valley—the largest national park outside Alaska—are overwhelming: rolling waves of sand dunes, black cinder cones thrusting up hundreds of feet...

Catalina Island

Just 22 miles out from the L.A. coastline, across from Newport Beach and Long Beach, Catalina has virtually unspoiled mountains, canyons, coves, and beaches; best...

Catalina Island

Just 22 miles out from the L.A. coastline, across from Newport Beach and Long Beach, Catalina has virtually unspoiled mountains, canyons, coves, and beaches; best...

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