99 Best Sights in The Bay Area, California

With its laid-back restaurants (including Half Moon Bay Brewing Company) and waters full of fishing boats and sea lions, the harbor is a nice place to wander, and you can pick up shoreline trails at nearby Pillar Point.

The original Point Montara fog signal station was established in 1875. The lighthouse, which originally stood on Cape Cod from 1881 to 1922, was added in 1928, and it still has its original lightkeeper's quarters from the late 1800s; it's the only known lighthouse to have served on both coasts. Gray whales pass this point during their migration from November through April, so bring your binoculars. Visiting hours (9 am to sunset) coincide with morning and afternoon check-in and checkout times at the adjoining youth hostel. Parking is free, but a one-hour time limit is enforced.

Sequoia sempervirens, or coastal redwoods, grow to 150 feet tall in Redwood Regional Park, one of the few spots in the Bay Area that escaped timber-hungry loggers in the 19th century. The 1,830-acre park has forested picnic spots and myriad hiking trails, including part of the 32-mile East Bay Skyline National Trail, which links Redwood to four other parks in the Berkeley–Oakland hills. Also check out adjacent Joaquin Miller Park for beautiful East Bay views and lush forested trails.

Fascinating if dated, this museum showcases the largest collection of authentic ancient Egyptian artifacts on display in Western North America. Walk through a tunnel to reach a hidden burial chamber lined with murals, see a mummy more than 2,500 years old, try to figure out which animal mummies aren't what they appear to be, take a tomb tour, and learn about games ancient Egyptian children played. If that's not enough, the planetarium shows space films.

Nearly 2,500 modern and contemporary artworks by cutting-edge West Coast and Latino artists are featured in this downtown museum. Bay Area figurative painting, photography, and sculpture are also well represented, and, not surprising given the museum's proximity to Silicon Valley, new-media works are often exhibited.

Berkeley's diversity is front and center along this evolving north–south artery in West Berkeley, where the old and new stand side by side: sari shops and a Mexican grocery do business near a hipster dive bar, a bait-and-tackle store, a typewriter store, and a dozen cool boutiques, all cheek by jowl in a melting pot microhood.

Start at Bartavelle Coffee & Wine Bar (No. 1603) off of Cedar. Order a handcrafted cappuccino and the best avocado toast this side of town. Journey a couple of blocks south to the Albatross Pub (No. 1822), a neighborhood favorite where grad students have been playing darts and eating free popcorn for 50 years. Tuck into solid Pakistani food at Indus Village (No. 1920) and stop by the Halal Food Market (No. 1964), then cross University Avenue. Duck into Mi Tierra Foods (No. 2082) for piñatas and chorizo—notice the Mission District–like mural—and Middle East Market (No. 2054) for rose water and rockin' baklava. Café Venezuela (No. 2056) has authentic arepas, and pretty much everyone loves the loaded thin-crust pies at Lanesplitter Pizza & Pub (No. 2033). The coffee at Highwire (No. 2049) is strong and delicious, and can be enjoyed indoors or on the back patio.

Long-running Country Cheese (No. 2101) has hundreds of cheeses, of course, but it also carries great bulk foods. Nearby industrial-cute Gaumenkitzel (No. 2121) serves up schnitzel, spaetzle, and other traditional German fare. Not to be confused with the fresh-baked loaves that come from Acme Bread (No. 1601), craft cocktails and curated whiskey flights are the most popular daily offerings at Acme Bar & Company (No. 2115).

As you move south, you'll pass lots of home-decor shops. Witness the chic renovation genius on display at Mignonne Décor (No. 2447) or venture into Ohmega Salvage (Nos. 2400–2403) and browse though its claw-footed tubs and pricey Victorian window frames.

At the corner of Dwight Way, stop for more caffeine at Caffè Trieste (No. 2500), Berkeley's homey branch of the North Beach bohemian coffee bar. Arousing browsing of erotic products can be had at sex-positive Good Vibrations (No. 2504). Find wonderful gifts for crafty soap and candle makers at Juniper Tree Supplies (No. 2520), and one-of-a-kind jewelry at Kiss My Ring (No. 2522).

Well-to-do Palo Alto and its intellectual neighbor, Stanford University, are about 35 miles south of San Francisco. Stanford's gorgeous grounds are home to a primordial-looking cactus garden, a stone river sculpture by Scottish artist Andy Goldsworthy, wood carvings and indigenous artworks from Papua New Guinea, and an excellent art museum—the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts (open daily except Tuesday)—whose lawn is planted with bronze works by Auguste Rodin. Free one-hour walking tours of the campus leave daily at 11 and 3:15 from the visitor center.

At this hands-on, high-tech science museum, kids can engineer multicolored bacteria, attempt to steer themselves in a vehicle like ones astronauts use for forays outside the space station, experience earthquakes of different magnitudes, or design, build, and program a robot. The on-site domed IMAX theater shows a mix of nature programs and Hollywood blockbusters. Take a quick swing through the museum during the last hour and get a discounted rate.

Cafés, bookstores, poster shops, and street vendors line Berkeley's student-oriented thoroughfare, a four-block corridor just south of campus. T-shirt sellers and tarot-card readers come and go, but Rasputin Music (No. 2401), Amoeba Music (No. 2455), and Moe's Books (No. 2476) are neighborhood landmarks worth checking out. College culture and copious caffeine have long been found at Cafe Milano (2522 Bancroft Way); meanwhile, fab food comes quickly from nearby Korean-Japanese fusion hot spot Koja Kitchen (2395) and grilled-cheese grandmasters at The Melt (2400). Polish off a visit with an indulgent cookie ice-cream sandwich from CREAM (2399).