I'm planning to do a trip to California.  It will be my wife and two sons (9 and 12).  My idea was to fly into LA or SF, rent a car and do several of the more noteworth sights....maybe spend 2-3 days at each location.  I'm thinking about 2 weeks, so maybe 5-6 different activities.  So what are the "must do" sights that capture the best of what is California?

Thanks!

what are you into ?

there are a lot beaches, aquariums, museums, a lot of historical places.

the redwoods, big sur, san francisco (it is beautiful), san diego, disneyland, and hollywood.  see hollywood just to see how small and filthy it is, quite a surprise.

spend the night in big bear, and then drive to newport beach or santa monica pier the next morning.  you go from 8,000' to sea level in 2 hours.

death valley is pretty amazing, don't know if you have really seen a desert or not.

You MUST hit the Monterey Aquarium.

You REALLY SHOULD hit San Francisco, and Pier 39.  See the Golden Gate bridge and Alcatraz, San Francisco Mint, and any of dozen or so other really good attractions.
Oooh--just remembered: Lawrence Hall of Science in Berkely!  That's almost a good full day, just there!

There is also a good aquarium in SoCal...Long Beach, I believe.

Of course, you'll want to do the theme parks in SoCal, if you have the kids.

For myself, I wouldn't be able to miss the Winchester Mystery House and the Hurst Castle.

Mann's Chinese Theatre and the Hollywood walk of fame, if you're into media culture.

Kids are easy in SoCal--play in the sand on the beach in San Diego, or go rafting on one of our great rivers in NorCal.

A dinner cruise on the Tahoe Queen paddlewheeler in NorCal.

Monterey Bay aquarium is amazing, that really should be a stop.  There are only a handful of aquariums in the world that can hold a candle to Monterey Bay Aquarium.  Lots of history in Monterey as well.  Yosemite is well... one of the greatest places that mankind has ever laid eyes upon, period.  If you saw nothing else in a trip to CA, it should be Yosemite. Sequoia/Kings canyon national parks are beautiful as well, and less well known. Depending on your kids, Hearst Castle may be very interesting, I really enjoyed it as a kid and still enjoy it as an adult.  
SF can be fun to visit, there is a lot to do there, from Golden Gate park to Alcatraz to staying the night on the USS Hornet, an old aircraft carrier in Alameda.  
Of course LA has Disney, and I love Disney.  LA also has some great museums, food, ect.  San Diego is pretty freaking awesome to visit as well.  Warm beaches and water, great tacos, Legoland, the Wild animal park, ect.  

What are your interests/what are your kids interests?  I know it sounds conceited, but you can't even begin to see all that CA has to offer in a single trip, and it's really hard to parlay in northern and southern california into a single trip.

California Academy of Science  in San Fran's Golden Gate Park is very nice too if you like Aquariums.

The problem with CA is that there is just too damn much of it.

As noted San Diego is usually worth 2 or 3 days.  But your boys will be at that age where the zoo and museums (Aviation, Natural History, Model RR, several art museums, etc) in Balboa Park may not be of any stated interest, but they may find the complex fascinating.  Maritime Museum, several interesting historic ships including the Star of India, one of the last full rigged ships that actually sails.  USS Midway is just down the way.

You can take the trolley right to the border, but I wouldn't go across.  Just the lines are a real hassle.  Or you can drive down to Border Field State Park and walk right up to the fence and see where the fence almost reaches the surf-line.  Cabrillo National Monument, is on the top and end of Point Loma, original lighthouse, panoramic views of the SubBase, NAS North Island and the whole area.    Tidepools and you may be able to get right up to some enclosures that hold sea mammals used by the Navy.

LA - Museums in Exposition Park, big Natural History Museum, (Think Night at the Museum, dinosaurs, fossils, mummies, also used in a lot of TV and Movies),  CA State Science and Industry - Mercury, Gemini and Apollo capsules, Shuttle Endeavor, lots of one of planes (LA area used to be one of the hubs of aerospace, so there are prototypes of fighter competition aircraft, mock-ups from JPL,)  Autry Western Museum - real and TV/Movie west, San Pedro (Los Angeles harbor) Battleship Iowa, (walk down a short distance to Maritime Museum, Merchant Marine and Fishing Fleet Memorials, Fireboat station)  Ft MacArthur coastal defense gun installations, and you can drive over to Terminal Island or around and see the port operations, kind of  neat guy interest things

Hollywood - Griffith Park Planetarium - Space Museum (free) expansion funded by the Nimoys, and others, view of downtown and Hollywood, good view of the sign, used in a lot of TV and movies.  The Ennis House ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ennis_House )is just off the drive up to the Planetarium.  Interesting to drive past, especially since you are right there.  Park in the underground lot at Hollywood and Highland.  Visit the couple of blocks of Hollywood Blvd and leave.

How politically interested is the family?  Reagan and Nixon Libraries

Airplanes?? Planes of Fame Museum in Chino, March AFB Museum

Now comes the tough part, there are 3 good ways to get to North/Central California,

Coast route - While possible to shoot up in one day, 3 days is much more interesting.  First day to San Luis Obispo/Morro Bay area.  If you only want to visit one mission, see La Purisima Concepcion,  it's the one that most is in it's original rural setting, almost all the rest are in cities, towns or along the highways, all are interesting except Soledad, recently built next to the ruins of the original, it just doesn't have the gravitas of any of the rest.  Sonoma and San Luis Batista are on the town plazas of their samll town locations, both bypassed by the major highway routes through the areas so they retain the air of the Mission and surrounding pueblo original atmosphere.  La Purisma is a short drive west of 101 at Buellton.

San Luis Obispo - College town, big city on the central coast, lots of good food, Pismo Beach - laid-back resort beach town, pier, etc,  Morro Bay - interesting bay front complex of kitschy shops but many very good places to eat, drive out to Morro Rock, almost guaranteed to see otters and seals, and impressive beachfront.  But we really like going out to Port San Luisa and Avila Beach.  Off the main tourist track, the restaurant on the wharf is great, so is the one at the base of the pier. Almost guaranteed to see otters and seals from the pier, we actually have seen whales between the pier and headlands and while eating at the restaurant.

Second day - Take Highway 1, elephant seal rookeries at Piedras Blancas, San Simeon Castle (maybe see the zebra herd),   take a restroom break at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julia_Pfeiffer_Burns_State_Park and take the short walk out to see the falls, Big Sur Coast, stay in the Monterey, room rates are better over toward Seaside, but lots of places to stay in Monterey.  Fishermans Wharf, Cannery Row, old town.  

Point Lobos State Reserve -  a must see

Monterey Bay Aquarium see others comments.

Third Day - up into San Francisco.

395 - East of the High Sierra. (One of the "Other" Californias)  Leave the LA area via CA 14 out of the San Fernando Valley, head north and a few miles out of Mojave, Red Rock Canyon State Park, surrounds the road, site of movies and TV shows, you probably will want to stop and explore some.  Continue on 14 to jct with 395, beginning of the High Sierras, literally next to the road, north of Lone Pine, the Alabama Hills of movie and TV fame, side road through the area and back on to 395 and by Manzanar (Relocation Camp Site, let us know if you see any new tents, the black helicopter boys tell us it's ready to be put back into operation)   you'll be in Owens Valley,  Mt. Whitney and the Sierras over 14,000 feet to the west and 12,000 feet to the east.  Stay in Bishop, smallish city, center of ranching and recreational activities.  If you have time drive up Bishop Creek or over the RR museum at Laws.

Second day - North in to the mountains, drive up to Convict Lake, 3 miles off 395, awesome scenery, continue up to Lee Vining, you can take a side trip up to Tioga Pass, eastern gate to Yosemite,  and/or Saddlebag Lake, highest altitude lake in the US reachable by car., or to the east visit the Mono Lake Visitor center and lake.  Continue over the pass and then off to the east to Bodie State Park, a must visit ghost town, you can drive in from the north side of Mono Lake, but that road is dirt all the way.  Continue north into Carson City/Virginia City/Reno area.  Carson City has some neat museums, and just east is Virgina City, Silver City and Gold Hill historic areas. Three passes over 8,000 feet

From there take 50 via Lake Tahoe and down into Sacramento via the Gold Rush Mother Lode area, or over 80 via Donner Pass, take the old road from Truckee, the Donner Memorial and up to the pass and see the massive engineering work of building the Central Pacific over the pass.

Sacramento - Old Sacramento, the RR Museum - if you only see one place in Sacramento this is it., Sutters Fort

Then down in to Bay Area.

The third route is up 99 and seeing Sequoia and Kings CAnyon and then into Yosemite.  That is 3-5 days at a minimum

BTW - You can't drive from Kings Canyon over to Lone Pine.  Although it appears from some maps you can, you can't.

Other Californias - For another trip or more time.  Behind the Redwood Curtain.  Redwood Country, Fort Ross, Mendocino, Ft. Bragg, beaches, Ferndale, Eureka, etc.  "State of Jefferson"  Redding, Mt. Shasta, Mt. Lassen Volcanic Park, Burney Falls,

Hard to go wrong in San Diego

This is some great info. I will add, if you drive from LA to San Francisco or Yosemite area, i would take PCH 1 way and highway 395 the other, it's very scenic. The 5 & 99 freeways are boring, not much to look at.

San Diego is a great place to see, your kids are the right age to enjoy Sea World, San Diego Zoo & San Diego wild animal park. You can go online & get discounts if you visit more than 1 park. Legoland is nearby but it's overpriced for what they have.

In LA, you can see the Queen Mary in Long Beach.  One of my favorite places to go is Catalina island about 20 miles off the coast. You can eat, shop, swim, rent golf carts, zipline, scuba dive and many other things on the island. It's a very relaxed atmosphere & great scenery. We've used 2 ferries, Catalina Express in Long Beach & Catalina Flyer in Newport Beach. They take about 1 hr. each way.

As everyone said, this state is big and there is so much to see. Be prepared for lots of people everywhere. Let us know how your trip went when you get back.

The USS which?? where?

Not that a Master Chief is ever slightly ________   (are we allowed to use the word wrong in the same thread as the words Master Chief?)  umm anyhow   he can be forgiven since he has never recovered from the trauma of the fleet locker clubs and Nu-Pike being closed.

This is all great stuff!  I appreciate the input..exactly what I was looking for.  If any other suggestions, keep them coming.  

Anyone done this http://www.skunktrain.com/?

Are the Channel Islands, Joshua Tree National Park and Lassen Volcanic national park worth stopping at?

have not heard of the skunk train.  I am presuming you get the "skunk" reference.  I have been through Mendocino, that place was green like I have never seen.  maybe you are sick of woods in your home state.  maybe not.  our forests are evergreen.

the islands are interesting, but channel islands park is on the mainland as I recall.  if you have the time in LA or LB, you can make the 26-mile boat trip to Catalina island, which I like, but it is kind of a tourist trap.  the coolest part of the trip might be seeing a whale or flying fish on the way.  

I visited Lassen as a kid, and I still remember how awesome it was.  it is a volcano which blew in 1915.  I don't know if you have seen a volcano before, but if not, here is your chance.  and you can see what the north part of our state looks like - a different world from the south.  but it is a drive, up north.  the devil's postpile is up there too, it is columnar basalt.  really awesome.

J-tree is the archetypical so cal desert, but it is hot as Paul says.  during fair weather, the reservations sell out in advance.  it is well worth seeing if you can, but if you can't, anza-borrego is cool too.

if you are into the desert thing, have you considered death valley?

what time of the year will you be here?  avoid late summer, as it does get hot and smoggy.  

what are your interests, anyways?  your family's?  that might help us come up with things for you.  

the redwoods, those are like nothing else in North America.  the sequoias are even bigger.  those are some giant-ass trees.  they must be seen to be believed.

The "Skunk" Train dates from when the California Western RR ran gasoline engined motor-cars from Ft. Bragg on the coast to Willits where it interchanged with the Northwestern Pacific (a subsidiary of then Southern Pacific) which ran from the Bay Area north to Eureka.  The motor-cars were pretty fragrant.  Runs through the Redwoods.  I think they still run tourist trains from Willits to Ft. Bragg (using diesels although for many years they used steam engines) .  However the major lumber mill facility in Ft. Bragg went belly-up and the NWP has been gone for years, although there are and/or have been some attempts to re-establish at least part of it.  It depended mostly on lumber traffic and also washed out several times up by Scotia.  The lumber business up on the coast there is a shell of it's former self for a variety of reasons.

Here is a link to some pix we took on a vacation in 2011.  We stayed just under a week just outside of Mt. Lassen and a week behind the Redwood Curtain staying in Eureka and Ft. Bragg area.  (Also some other galleries if you go up to the main gallery of mostly Los Angeles area stuff)  Feel free to look at all of them.  My beak looks a little funny in many of the 2011 pix, it was between 2 and 3 weeks after my Honkologist took a chunk out of it, and I was still wearing dressings.  Not what most people think of when they think California

http://www.pbase.com/n6nvr/vacation_2011

This was a site that had some Mt. Lassen winter and other pictures.  (The first time I was there was in June 64 and the snow was only about 4-6 feet deep most of the way through the park.)

http://www.americansouthwest.net/california/lassen_volcanic/snow_l.html

The Channel Islands National Park(Monument??)  are a group of islands off the coast from Oxnard up to Santa Barbara.  They are only reachable by boat, and while scenic and interesting, it will take a lot of time out of the schedule.  I haven't visited the mainland Visitor Centers  (Other islands in the chain are Santa Catalina of Los Angeles and Orange County.  A resort island, San Clemente off San Diego, a Navy Gunnery Range, San Nicolas and San Miguel, Nicolas is part of the Pacific Missile range and Miguel was a range and then a weather facility.)

Joshua Tree is an interesting place to visit,weather permitting, late Fall to late Spring, otherwise way too hot.  But if you catch it in a good wildflower year you'll never forget it.

You want to capture the best of what is California?  Just watch a few hours of MTV.  Thats what California has become.

Because all of this state is located within LA, right?

If you're in San Francisco during baseball season, and the Giants are home, do yourself a favor and catch a game.  Great ballpark, very family friendly, and there isn't a bad seat in the house.

Afterwards, or before the game, go grab a meal at the Cliff House.  The views there are worth it, food isn't bad either.  

Cliff House SF

Enjoy your stay in our beautiful state

and all of Nevada is just like north las vegas.

empty desert without much human habitation, well yes, it is.  

There are few places that offer the amazing amount of geographic diversity as California.  As I start thinking about planning, I don't think 2 weeks will allow enough time to do that state justice.  Sure, urban centers maybe crappy...but name a large urban center of similar size to LA/SF/SD anywhere else in the country that isn't crappy.  I've got to say, the more planning I do, the more excitted I am to visit.

San Diego isn't crappy IME.

I don't know what kinds of things you like to do or how much time you have, however, I am going to list several of the locations which define the vast diversity that is the great State of California.

San Diego - Sea World, San Diego Zoo, rent a small boat or some Jet Skis and tool around the waterways of Mission Bay.

Los Angeles - Disneyland & California Adventure

Cambria - take a tour or two of Hearst Castle

Hwy 1 (northbound) - the finest highway anywhere.

Monterrey - the Aquarium and the restaurants

San Francisco - trolley car ride, Fisherman's Wharf, take the Golden gate bridge to,...

Bodega Bay - worth a stay overnight (filmed Hitchcock's "The Birds").

Hwy 1 (northbound) - the finest highway anywhere,

Ferndale - Mendocino Coast/Lost Coast, filmed "Outbreak" here

Coastal Redwoods - yes, the trees and the old growth environment they've created are worth seeing.

Lassen Volcanic National Park - a "Mt St Helens" event in the era before TV

Bridgeport - worth a stop to eat lunch and walk around a small California town.

Bodie - a real life California mining ghost town.  Yes, it's worth the detour

Lee Vining - Mono Lake's Visitors Center, gives a faint hint of what's in Death Valley*

Mammoth Lakes - really at its best in the summer, rent a boat at Lake Mary and putt around

Hwy 120 - an awe inspiring drive that takes you to,...

Tuolomne  Meadows - for a day hike in the meadow

Hwy 120 (west) to ...

Yosemite Valley - this place is awe inspiring, too, you have to see it for yourself.  It is profound!

Sequoia Nat'l Park - more giant trees but worth the drive, very different environment than the Coastal Redwoods

Palm Springs - a great resort town and the tram ride to the top of Mt San Jacinto is definitely worth it.





* Death Valley - I've never been there in person but I know it's worth the trip.  I wouldn't go in the summer.






I tried to list them in an order that creates a loop around the State.  I skipped many excellent places but I covered the entire State.  Look them up and see which appeal to you.

Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National parks. Pismo Beach, Morro Bay & Cayucos on the central coast. Watch the sunset from Moonstone Beach after visiting Hearst Castle. Disneyland.

Thanks again all!

More advice...think we will be doing the trip in early June.  Want to hit Joshua Tree then head to Yosemite.  Because of mountains and time we can either head up the west side of the mountains and do Sequoia and King Valley or the east face and do Death Valley and Mono lake before taking 120 over to Yosemite.  Thoughts?

Go the west route through the San Joaquin Valley.  The eastern route is less than what you think it will be.

I agree with the western route for that time of year.  June is already very hot on the eastern side of the Sierra and in Death Valley.  

The other issue is that Tioga Road (Hwy 120) can end up snow-bound until late in the season.  Remember, Tioga Pass is almost 10,000 ft.  If it is not yet open, you are looking at a very long detour.  If you go the western route, this is a non-issue.

Thanks!  Found this place while I was playing around online.  

http://www.visitsequoia.com/bearpaw.aspx

Looks REALLY cool but I don't think my two kids would be up for an 11 mile hike like that.

If you find yourself with an extra couple of hours outside Kings Canyon, there is a cool little big cat rescue on 180 in Dunlap that specializes in breeding endangered big cats.   Family owned and largely volunteer operated, and they have somewhere in the range of 30-35 big cats.  Last time we were up there, they had baby snow leopards and a baby white tiger.  THe kids love it.  Not as shiny and fancy as a zoo, but you can get closer to the animals.  My son and mature male lion were roaring at each other through the fence last time we went.  Here is the website.  
You could easily do the whole thing in 90 minutes or less, the entire place is a single loop about 3/4 of a mile.

If I never set foot in California again, I'd be sure to visit Yosemite (including the Tioga Pass area).  

If you do plan to visit the park, I'd make lodging reservations as soon as possible.  They get booked up a long time in advance.

The accommodations range from primitive walk in camps for backpackers to car/rv campgrounds to tent cabins, etc. all the up up to the Ahwahnee Hotel ($$$ but amazing).  Otherwise, there are hotels and other lodging facilities within an hour or so of the park (e.g., Wawona and Oakurst).

I hope you get to see 1/4 of the places discussed in this thread.  Two weeks is gonna keep you mighty busy.

LOL!


There is lodging inside Yosemite Park, about 10 miles from the Valley floor, called "Yosemite West".  You can review the accommodations and book online.  It's been a life saver for us.

I'm having a hard time getting this to under 3 weeks.  Look at plan, put in travel time and I'm stumped getting it any shorter.  Can't figure out what to remove...all are unique and look to feature something special about California.

2 days at Disney
1 day at Joshua Tree
1.5 days at Sequoia/Kings Valley
1 day in Gold country (kids get chance to pan)
1.5 days at Yosemite
(travel through Tioga pass to take eastern route to Lassner)
1 day at Lassner Volcano
1 day at Redwood
1 day in Ft Bragg (Skunk train)
1 day at Point Reyes
2.5 days in SF
1 day in Monteray
2 days to LA (including a stop at an olive farm/tour)
1 day Channel Islands (kayaking)

If it fits into your travel plan, I would recommend stopping by the petrified forest in Calistoga. It doesn't take to long, but I really enjoy going from time to time. You can also go by Old Faithful .

Having been to Fort Brag dozens of times and never riding the Skunk Train, I had to ask my wife if she thought it was worth a precious day of vacation to ride it. Her answer was NO. A better use of the day would be to spend the time driving north on 101 and doing the "Avenue Of The Giants",(preferably in a convertible) a beautiful drive with lots of cool little touristry stops, drive through tree, grandfather tree, travel trailer carved out of a single tree, etc. You won't see all California has to offer in a single trip. Maybe not in ten trips. Enjoy.

Tom

I would agree with the above, you can see as much if not more of the Big Trees by driving north on 101.  Prairie Creek Redwoods Park has the road out to Gold Bluffs beach which is worth taking to see the driftwood forest, and Fern Canyon.  In the Eureka area, go to Ferndale, and the Cheese factory at Lolita.  Also the Samoa Cookhouse.

I do not know your preferences but here's my mods to your list.  I think this gets it down to 13 days.

I can't fault your mods at all.  Those are all good changes.

The edits are going to give me a lot to think about....I do have a question about Sequoia/Kings Canyon and Yosemite.  Based on the reviews of how crowded Yosemite can be in June/July (when we'd probably go) do you miss a lot by taking the time you'd spend in Yosemite and spend it in Sequoia/Kings Canyon?

I know that there are things unique to Yosemite, but part of me wanted to give my boys a sense of the diversity of California....from deserts to very high mountains, volcano's/thermal vents to ocean all in just hours.  That why I was spreading time at so many places.  I'll have to think a lot more about plans based on advice...thanks again!

Just remember you can't leave King's Canyon to the east.  Some maps seem to show the roads doing that.  They don't.

King's Canyon/Sequoia would be less crowded

Yes, you'd miss a lot by skipping Yosemite, even during the busy time.

EDIT: not sure if its a possibility, but May would be much nicer for the whole trip, less crowds, better weather.  It gets sort of hot in a lot of california in the summer.

You could run the risk of a lot of the Sierras being under snow in early May.

Tom

let's hope so.